Before you start

CERPAC or evidence of lawful residence
Your foreign licence, with an English translation if it is not in English
A Lagos address
Biometric capture at an FRSC or state licensing centre

Step-by-step

1
Use your foreign licence for the first weeks only
A valid foreign licence in English is accepted for a short settling-in period — commonly stated as up to 90 days. It is not a long-term basis for driving in Nigeria and it is not what you want to be holding at a checkpoint six months in.
In personWho: YouFirst 90 days
2
Check the FRSC foreign driver's licence route before doing anything else
The FRSC runs a dedicated process for foreign nationals converting an existing licence, separate from the ordinary Nigerian learner route. It requires your residence permit and the foreign licence. Confirm the current requirements directly with the FRSC rather than from a blog — the process and its portal have changed more than once.
OnlineWho: You
3
Otherwise: driving school, learner's permit, VIO test
The ordinary Nigerian route is capture at an accredited driving school, a learner's permit, then a test with a Vehicle Inspection Officer, then the licence itself. Fees are staged across the school, the permit and the licence, and the licence is issued for three or five years.
In personWho: You
4
Complete biometric capture in Lagos State
Licence capture is done at a designated centre in the state where you live. Your licence is a national document but the issuing centre is state-administered, so use a Lagos centre with a Lagos address.
In personWho: You
5
Decide honestly whether to drive yourself
Most foreign residents employ a driver. The reasons are that traffic is unpredictable and long, that parking on the islands is scarce, that checkpoints and minor collisions are much easier for someone who knows the local rules to handle, and that a driver costs less per month here than a European car payment.
In personWho: You
6
If you do buy a car, budget for the state levies
Vehicle registration in Lagos carries plate numbers, proof of ownership, roadworthiness certification and the Lagos State licensing charges, renewed annually. Third-party motor insurance is compulsory nationally; comprehensive cover is worth it and is not expensive relative to a car's value here.
In personWho: You

Documents you’ll need

Foreign driving licence and its English translation if needed
CERPAC or residence evidence
Passport
Proof of Lagos address
Passport photographs

Things most newcomers don’t know

A driver is a normal expense in Lagos, not a luxury one, and the maths is not about status.

A full-time driver costs a fraction of a European salary and removes the three hardest parts of Lagos motoring: reading traffic in real time, dealing with checkpoints and minor collisions where local knowledge matters enormously, and parking on Victoria Island and Ikoyi where space is genuinely scarce. Newcomers who insist on driving themselves usually change their mind within a few months, and the ones who do keep driving mostly live and work on the same side of a bridge.

Source: community-reported

Third Mainland Bridge maintenance closures reshape the whole city, and they are announced in advance.

Lagos's mainland-to-island traffic funnels across three bridges, and Third Mainland carries the largest share. When it is partially closed for maintenance, journeys that took forty minutes take two hours and the alternative routes saturate. The closures are announced by the state and federal works ministries days or weeks ahead. Anyone commuting across the lagoon should be following those announcements the way people elsewhere follow the weather.

Source: community-reported

Okada and tricycle restrictions vary by local government area and change.

Lagos State has repeatedly restricted commercial motorcycles and tricycles on major corridors and in specific local government areas, with enforcement waves and seizures. Whether a ride-hailing bike can legally pick you up depends on where you are standing. This is not a stable rule to memorise once; check the current position for the areas you actually move between.

Source: community-reported

Call 122 for a road crash, not 112, if you want the road agency.

112 is the national emergency number and 767 is the Lagos toll-free line, both routed through emergency communication centres. But the Federal Road Safety Corps operates its own toll-free line, 122, which reaches its national operations control centre and dispatches the rescue units that handle road traffic crashes. On an expressway, 122 is the number that reaches the people with the cutting equipment.

Source: Federal Road Safety Corps

Common mistakes to avoid

Driving on a foreign licence for a year and being stopped without a Nigerian one.
Assuming a European licence converts automatically without checking the FRSC route.
Buying a car before understanding parking on the island where you work.
Ignoring announced Third Mainland Bridge closures when planning a commute.
Assuming okada rules are the same across the whole of Lagos State.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.