You can take a Guatemalan rental car into El Salvador or Honduras with six of the seven rental brands compared here if you buy their border letter in advance; of those brands, only Avis publishes Belize as an option, and none lists Mexico.

In short: Every agency on this page that allows a crossing requires its own written border authorization; where the cost is published it runs US$20 to US$35 (Tabarini and Avis add tax) for El Salvador and Honduras (Avis: US$30 + VAT; Belize US$150 + VAT). Enterprise and National need 48 hours’ notice. Hertz limits trips to Central America and bans Mexico and Belize; Europcar bans all cross-border use. Tabarini says “contact us” for Belize and Mexico. At the Belize border you need a temporary importation permit and insurance (Belize Tourism Board: US$8 per 24 hours). Mexico’s customs agency accepts a rented car only with a lease in your name plus the company’s authorization letter. Agency terms below were read on 9 November 2026.

This page is about crossing a border in a car rented in Guatemala. For the insurance products themselves (CDW, LDW, third-party liability) and what Guatemalan law requires, see the rental car insurance guide.

Agency by agency

Each row comes from the agency’s own published terms, read on 9 November 2026.

AgencyEl SalvadorHondurasNicaraguaBelizeMexicoFee and notice
Enterprise and National (Guatemala City Zona 13 branch)YesYesYesNot listedNot listedUS$35 for legal/border documents; arrange 48 hours before leaving Guatemala
Hertz GuatemalaCentral America only, with border formCentral America only, with border formCentral America only, with border formNot permittedNot permittedFee and notice not published in the terms
Avis (Avis Budget Group Latin America)YesYesYesYesNot listedUS$30 + VAT (Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua); US$150 + VAT (Belize); permits issued at the Avis counter; car must return to Guatemala
TabariniYes, same rateCopán: yes, same rateContact TabariniContact TabariniContact TabariniAuthorization letter US$25.00 + 12% sales tax
Europcar GuatemalaNoNoNoNoNoNot possible to use the car outside Guatemala
Guatemala Rent a CarYesYesNoNoNoUS$20 attorney’s letter; international insurance US$7 per day

What each agency’s terms say

Enterprise and National. The two brands publish identical text for their Guatemala City branches (codes K60C and K60B): “Renters may drive into El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua, however, arrangements must be made with the rental station 48 hours prior to leaving Guatemala. A fee of $35 USD will be assessed for legal/cross border documents.” Enterprise’s branch page, previously labelled Zona 10, now redirects to a page labelled Guatemala City Zona 13 (9 November 2026). Neither page mentions Belize or Mexico.

Hertz Guatemala. Its terms say vehicles may leave the country if the renter has filled out the proper border-crossing form, and: “Vehicles are not permitted to cross over the border to Mexico and Belize, all border crossing authorizations only include Central America”.

Avis. The Avis Budget Group Latin America rental conditions for Guatemala list Belize, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica, “if returned to Guatemala”, and state that “Permits are required for all countries noted and are issued at the Avis counter.” Costa Rica carries a footnote marker whose text and permit price do not appear in the published page. One-way rentals that end outside Guatemala are priced with the border permit included: San Salvador US$350 and Tegucigalpa US$400, plus tax. Budget’s equivalent cross-border section on the same site was not verified for this page.

Tabarini. Item 7 of its rental policy: “If renter wants to take the car out of the country a letter of authorization to cross the border will be necessary with a cost of US$25.00 plus 12% sales tax. When the trip is to El Salvador or Copan, Honduras, our rate does not vary.” For Belize, Mexico and the rest of Central America, Tabarini asks renters to contact it directly; it does not publish those terms.

Europcar Guatemala. Its FAQ: “At the moment it is not possible to use the rental car outside the Republic of Guatemala.”

Guatemala Rent a Car. Its FAQ answers the question of taking the vehicle out of the country with “Yes, only to El Salvador and Honduras.” Its rental policy adds a US$20 letter from the company’s attorney and a required international insurance at US$7 a day.

Sixt. Its Guatemala landing page carries a marketing line about driving across borders but publishes no countries, fees or notice period (read 9 November 2026).

Insurance across the border

Guatemala Rent a Car is the only agency here that addresses it directly: “The insurances do not cover you in any other country.” The cross-border texts of Enterprise, National, Hertz and Avis do not say whether their damage or liability coverage applies in El Salvador, Honduras or Nicaragua. Get the answer in writing before you cross.

Belize: what the border asks for

The Belize Tourism Board, Belize’s official tourism authority, says anyone driving in from Guatemala or Mexico “must obtain a temporary importation permit at the point of entry”, valid for one month and extendable through the Customs Department. To get the permit, visitors present “travel documents and identification, proof of ownership (vehicle registration), proof of insurance (available from any of the companies at the borders), and rental documents for vehicles rented in Mexico or Guatemala.”

Belize border chargeAmount (Belize Tourism Board)
Fumigation feeUS$5
Vehicle border feeUS$15
InsuranceUS$8 per 24 hours

The Belize Tourism Board page carries no date. Belize’s Border Management Agency confirms “Insurance is available for purchase at both the northern & western borders.” Its separate line that travel insurance is optional refers to travel insurance, not motor insurance. For the crossing itself, see Melchor de Mencos border crossing.

Mexico: allowed by Mexican customs, not offered by the agencies here

Mexico’s customs agency (ANAM), which publishes the Banjercito temporary-import rules, for a rented vehicle, lists a “Contrato de arrendamiento a nombre del importador, con la carta de la arrendadora que autorice la importación temporal del vehículo” (a lease in the importer’s name, with the rental company’s letter authorizing temporary import).

Mexican temporary import itemAmount (ANAM)
Permit at the CIITEV modules at border customsUS$51 + IVA
Permit onlineUS$45 + IVA
Guarantee deposit, models 2007 and laterUS$400
Guarantee deposit, models 2001 to 2006US$300
Guarantee deposit, models 2000 and earlierUS$200

You also sign a letter committing to return the vehicle within the authorized period. The obstacle is the Guatemalan side: Hertz and Europcar forbid Mexico, Tabarini asks you to contact it, and Enterprise, National, Avis and Guatemala Rent a Car do not list it. Without that authorization letter, the ANAM requirement cannot be met.

Coming back into Guatemala

SAT’s temporary-import procedure for tourist vehicles covers foreign vehicles entering Guatemala (its sticker costs Q100.00 per sticker). SAT does not publish, on that page, a procedure for a Guatemalan-plated car that leaves and returns (read 9 November 2026).

None of the agency or government pages cited here say the CA-4 arrangement for travellers covers vehicles.

For El Salvador and Honduras crossings, see El Salvador border crossings and Honduras border crossings; for the base rental, see renting a car in Guatemala.

Sources

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I take a rental car from Guatemala to another country?

To El Salvador and Honduras, yes with six of the seven rental brands whose terms are below (all but Europcar; Tabarini names only Copán in Honduras), if you arrange the border paperwork first; Avis is the only one of them that lists Belize (Tabarini says to contact it), and none of them lists Mexico. Enterprise and National allow El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua with 48 hours’ notice and a US$35 document fee; Avis lists El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Belize with permits issued at its counter; Hertz allows Central America only; Tabarini covers El Salvador and Copán, Honduras, with a US$25 plus 12% letter; Guatemala Rent a Car allows El Salvador and Honduras only; Europcar does not allow it at all (agencies’ own terms, read 9 November 2026).

Can I drive a Guatemalan rental car to Mexico?

None of the seven rental brands whose terms are on this page lists Mexico as an allowed destination. Hertz Guatemala says vehicles ‘are not permitted to cross over the border to Mexico and Belize’; Europcar does not allow any country; Tabarini says to contact it directly for Mexico; Enterprise, National, Avis and Guatemala Rent a Car do not list Mexico (read 9 November 2026). On the Mexican side, ANAM’s temporary-import rules accept a rented vehicle only with a lease in the importer’s name plus the rental company’s letter authorizing the temporary import.

Can I take a rental car from Guatemala to Belize?

Of the rental brands whose terms are on this page, only Avis lists Belize among allowed countries, with a permit fee of US$150 plus VAT issued at the Avis counter (Avis Budget Group Latin America rental conditions, read 9 November 2026). Hertz prohibits Belize, Tabarini asks you to contact it, and Enterprise, National and Guatemala Rent a Car do not list Belize. At the border, the Belize Tourism Board requires a temporary importation permit, and lists rental documents and proof of insurance among the papers to show; it gives insurance as US$8 per 24 hours.

Does my rental insurance cover me in El Salvador or Honduras?

Ask the agency in writing. Guatemala Rent a Car is the only agency on this page that says it directly: ‘The insurances do not cover you in any other country’, and it sells international insurance at US$7 a day for El Salvador and Honduras trips. The cross-border texts of Enterprise, National, Hertz and Avis do not say whether their coverage extends outside Guatemala (read 9 November 2026).

What happens if I cross a border without the agency's permission?

Avis and Budget Guatemala’s local terms say: ‘Está prohibido sacar el vehículo del país sin permiso escrito. De hacerlo, deberá pagar tres veces el valor del contrato como multa, más gastos de repatriación del vehículo’ (taking the car out without written permission costs three times the contract value plus the cost of bringing the car back). Enterprise and National state that vehicles may not be driven outside Guatemala without the required legal documents (read 9 November 2026).