To reinforce what others have said, that is simply untrue. You can retain a UK licence as long as it is valid (& you don’t commit an offence that loses you points), which is now 10 years for the UK photocard version.
UK legality requires you to be contactable via the address registered on the licence, which is obviously a moot point for many Brits living in France full time & still driving on a UK licence.
When exchanging to a permis de conduire there is no requirement to take a French driving test, though obviously it’s a good idea to brush up on your abilities to see in fog, drive with no lights in half-light, see around blind bends when overtaking & having those all important instantaneous brakes fitted that mean you can safely drive so close to the car in front that you may as well be being towed…
IIRC there is a specific distance to travel behind another vehicle at which point there is less wind resistance…
This surely is in line with the Paris Accord and reduces climate change emissions benefiting the whole of humanity…
The address on the licence is irrelevant. The DVLA says that it is up to the resident’s country whether the UK licence (address and all) is acceptable. France says it is while it remains valid. What you cannot do is have a non U.K. address on a U.K. Licence. The only people likely to question you having the ‘wrong’ address would be the UK police if you were stopped while visiting the British Isles. That might only become an issue if you are driving a U.K. registered car.
I think you will find that an international driving license as issued issued by the AA or RAC is not a driving licence, it is, and always has been, only a translation of your national driving license and is now redundant in Europe as all the data on your license is number coded.
Hello John
My reply was to Farida who thought she could use an International driving license here in France while still keeping her UK one;-) In actual fact if you are resident in France it’s the Prefecture who issue International permits that can be used in countries outside of Europe. I know from experience that they are valid for only 3 years. Quite honestly I don’t know why anyone would want to keep a UK license if they are resident here, but horses for courses
Well as I said it’s horses for courses for residents BUT your UK licence expires and needs renewing when you become 70 years of age. It also does not have your French address so cannot be used as a piece (or extra piece) of identity. I don’t know what would happen if you tried to rent a car here with a UK licence, I would have thought that it may be complicated and that some other proof of address would be needed ,but I am ready to stand corrected. It’s so simple to change to a French licence, and if like me you are a long time resident and drive a French car why hang onto your UK one ?
The simple reason is because it is perfectly valid. There is absolutely no problem using a UK(EU) photo licence to hire cars in France. You can’t be a long term resident with a UK photo licence because when it needs renewing you have to change it for a French one then.
There is no reason why. The way some USA licences are treated is nothing to do with them coming from outside the EU but because of the ease of obtaining them. Licences acquired in the states that are considered to have a rigorous driving test are treated quite differently from those which are considered too easy to come by.
The address on the UK driving licence doesn’t have to be yours. We asked about this when we moved to France and the DVLA were perfectly happy to have our son’s address on the licence as they could contact us there if we were in the UK and he would put them in touch with us if we were in France. When we took over late Mum’s flat, we changed the address on the licence to that one, where same son checks our post each week or so.
How odd… the UK Government site clearly says… amongst other things… “You need to be a Resident of Great Britain”…so, perhaps you are not Resident in France ??
I don’t think there is any such thing as an “international license” Misty, it’s a misnomer. French licenses or any other EU licenses are valid worldwide (maybe not in North Korea) and one only needs an “international license”, which is only a translation of your national license, if traveling to a Country where they cannot read our script. I got one a long long time ago, it was only valid in combination with your national license, it is not valid on it’s own. I wouldn’t want anybody to pitch up at a Hertz desk with only an “international license” and think they will be driving away.
I don’t think it’s a problem…they want your business and there is plenty of competion out there, so ask for their best quote…When I insured my 1st french registered car here in the Dordogne it didn’t even come up as an issue and my monthly payments are very reasonable. Rather than do it online, I went to a local broker (part of a large National network) and later got a discount off my home insurance with them, because I was using them again.
