Disable Parking Permits

AAA recommends that disabled drivers from other countries driving in the United States and Canada, and needing the use of designated parking spaces, should consider the following. These rules apply to any and all states in the United States, and provinces throughout Canada as well.
 

1. Travel with any credentials normally displayed in your home country.
    

2. Travel with a letter from your physician stating the nature of your disability.
    

3. Display your permit by hanging it from the rearview mirror or placing it on the dashboard of  vehicle. The international disabled symbol is a side view of a wheelchair.(see example above)
    

4. For more details, contact the nearest Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) or the Department of Transportation (DOT), listed in the middle section of any phone book, uder the  “government offices” or contact the local police station concerning a temporary use of a parking permit once you have arrived in the United State.

The Department of Transportation (DOT) issued a final ruling that provides guidelines to (all) States for the establishment of a uniform parking system for drivers with disabilities that limit or impair the ability to walk. http://www.dot.gov/new/index.htm 

The guidelines include minimum requirements to be incorporated into all state systems. Under the DOT guidelines, placards must be hung from the windshield rearview mirror or the front dashboard, so they can be viewed from the front and rear of a car, helping law enforcement personnel to easily recognize whether a vehicle is legally parked.

The rule, required by the U.S. Congress, calls for reciprocity of enforcement among states and for the state systems to specify that the International Symbol of Access (a side view of a person in a wheelchair) shall be the only symbol used on license plates or windshield placards to identify a disabled motorist.

◄Back

For additional information, please contact AAA International Relations.

If you are a AAA or CAA member, click here.