Rules for overlanding in Sudan

For stays of under 90 days a valid Italian licence is enough on its own. Check what applies to the licence you hold.

A carnet de passages en douane is required for a vehicle imported temporarily.

Diesel and petrol are not always to be found, not even in Khartoum, and the same goes for domestic gas. The ministry asks you to plan overland movements carefully around this and to weigh up whether a road trip is genuinely necessary.

There are roughly 73,577 km of ordinary roads, badly damaged by the war, and no motorway network. Maintenance is poor to non-existent, so take maximum care even on asphalt.

Travelling after dark is advised against.

In urban areas the GPS signal is sometimes unreliable and can put you in the wrong place.

From July to September flooding, slides and rivers bursting their banks affect which roads are usable. Some areas can become unreachable altogether.

Renting a car presents no particular difficulty.

Bringing in, holding, selling, using or drinking alcohol is prohibited, and so are narcotics. Penalties are very severe and airport checks for alcohol are especially strict.

Foreign credit and debit cards do not work anywhere in the country, so carry enough cash. Declare amounts over the equivalent of USD 10,000 on entry, do not try to leave with more than USD 3,000, and change money only through official channels.

Do not photograph public buildings or military sites. Taking photos or filming requires a permit from the Ministry of Information, currently free, and it helps to carry a stock of passport photos for the paperwork.

A satellite phone needs prior authorisation from the Sudanese embassy, must be declared on arrival and carries a deposit, refunded when you show the device on the way out. If you leave by a different border from the one you entered, tell the customs office of entry which crossing you will use.

Sudanese Customs lists "tourist vehicles" as a separate temporary-entry case, for foreigners only. The listed conditions include approval from the Ministry of Tourism, the vehicle and owner documents (registration and passport), a valid customs carnet de passages from an automobile club registered with the international automobile club (with the guarantee of the Al-Muhajir company), and a guarantee covering customs duties. The permitted period is one month, renewable with the approval of the Director General of Customs. (Sudan Customs (الجمارك السودانية) — إدخال السيارات المؤقت (Temporary entry of vehicles), section « العربات السياحية »)

The COMESA Yellow Card scheme (Council of Bureaux Secretariat) lists Sudan among the countries where the Yellow Card, a third-party motor vehicle liability insurance certificate, is accepted. Its FAQ says the card is designed to meet the minimum compulsory third-party motor vehicle insurance requirements in each participating state, and that if the card expires during the trip you must contact the National Bureau of the country you are visiting to obtain local third-party cover for a maximum of 30 days. (COMESA Yellow Card Scheme (Council of Bureaux Secretariat) — Yellow Card Overview (accepted-in list); the other statements are in its FAQs (https://comesayellowcard.org/frequently-asked-questions))

Sudan's Telecommunications and Post Regulatory Authority (TPRA) states, in its Regulations for the Organization of Telecommunications via Foreign Satellites 2025 (art. 12(2)), that no person may possess, use or operate an earth station in Sudanese territory connected to a satellite constellation, including satellite user devices, except under a licence issued by the Authority. The same regulations provide for licences to provide satellite internet service using low-orbit satellite technology and to provide GMPCS (global mobile personal communications by satellite) services. (TPRA Sudan (جهاز تنظيم الاتصالات والبريد) — لائحة تنظيم الاتصالات عبر السواتل الأجنبية لسنة 2025 (Regulations for the Organization of Telecommunications via Foreign Satellites 2025))