please, please… sorry - i’m not new to this site but i am new to this new set-up and can’t find the search box…
trying to renew my driving licence photo card and going round in circles
i’ve looked honest, but sometimes the internet is just too much!
i know there be must be someone here who’s done it with out resorting to nipping to the post office in Dover
x teresa
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If you are a French resident you cannot renew a U.K. photo licence, you have to exchange it for a French licence.
Thank you David for your advice on residency.
(I could have got that from any number of French forums!!)
but it’s form D798 I’m after…
xx teresa
Some info here, maybe helpful?
http://www.survivefrance.com/t/driving-license-photocard-expired/5242
sorry James…
hashtag “spanner” ?
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I love sarcasm almost as much as I love people who feel that they are above the law.
I have done some digging on this subject and apparently thanks to an EU directive we are not obliged to get a French license.
It is very easy to get a new photo card I have just had mine come through as long as you have an English address to send it to.
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Crikey David! I’m wondering what side of the bed you got out of today - but as I don’t know anything about your circumstances I couldn’t possibly guess - same way as you don’t know anything about mine…
But one thing I do know is this is not a forum I go to for a mean-spirited slanging match.
So, please believe me - thanks for your advice.
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You are correct, if you hold a valid UK licence and move to France you do not have to renew it until it expires or until you are asked to do so, normally so points can be added. However, if you are resident in France you cannot renew your UK licence, you have to exchange it for a French one. Black and white, no grey.
It’s not about having an address, it’s about residency.
https://www.service-public.fr/particuliers/vosdroits/F1757
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I’m fine, I just don’t like sarcasm. If you are on holiday you’d better phone the DVLA for advice, they might make an exception.
I don’t understand. That says nothing more than I said, the difference is that I included links to both the official French and U.K. sites that confirm that you may use a UK licence in France until it expires but may only renew a U.K. licence if you are resident in the U.K. (The key word in your post is valid). My advice would be to exchange a valid UK licence for a French one before Brexit, there is no guarantee that it will be as straightforward afterwards.
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Thanks Sarah!
that is marvellously helpful
x teresa
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Hearing what you want to hear does not make it true. Above the law.
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Will have a similar problem next year, I will be 70 in October so will have to get this together before the deline, thanks for the heads up.
Exchanging your driving licence can take a while so do it with plenty of time before the UK one expires.
If you live in france there are plenty of sensible reasons for exchanging your UK DL for a french one.
It provides good id (supermarkets et al) when required and is very easy to change over to.
What’s the problem for you with doing this?
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Hi Teresa,
We live in France & my UK licence expires soon-it was a 3 year one because I am insulin dependant diabetic. We live in the Gironde and this is the link to our local Licence Exchange page, where there are instructions & the relevant pdf’s to download.
Maybe irrelevant to you, but I needed a medical from a doctor, not my own, authorised by the Prefecture and luckily there was one in the same practice. I got the photos from a machine at our local SuperU where you can get photos for different purposes including permis de conduire. I discovered that I no longer need glasses for driving!
About to complete & send off the forms with some trepidation. I once got me ‘yes & no’s’ wrong in UK & lost my licence for a short period!
If you are interested, I’ll let you know how I get on. So many strange stories on the internet!
All the best,
Roger
PS Couldn’t see a D798 on their site, it’s a UK form!
That’s the whole point, she wants the UK form.