Hi Stella, yes you can by either the DVLA check code which is what you provide to a hire car company in the U.K. or by contacting the DVLA for the D737 certificate. These show your entitlements to drive but the D737 has more detail.
To generate the check code you need:
Licence number
NI
Postcode licence last registered
For the D737 you need:
Name as on licence
Licence no
Date of birth
Address on licence.
If you took tests but they no longer show on your licence as happens with the heavy categories C & D if you don’t renew the medicals, you can apply to the DVLA for an extract of your driving rights (about 5 pages) and this should show all your categories, past and present.
UK licence UK resident but close relatives in France and visit regularly.
The licence check code only goes back to May 1976 so I’ll try the DVLA full check and see what it produces. It will be interesting to see how the auto conversion to HGV when I was 21 then “grandfather rights” to C in 1972 pan out or if they do.
My C category hasn’t been renewed because I no longer need it and didn’t take the medical but was informed it can be re-instated within 10 years of the last one…
thanks everyone for information in this thread. preparing a move to france soon and saw some stories online of motorbike licences being downgraded from A to A2, so wanted to check.
just to check if I have understood correctly:
I passed my motorbike category A licence in 2001 - therefore this will be transferred fully and not downgraded to A2 as its pre 2006.
my C1 and D1 licences won’t be transferred. I’ve never taken specific C or D tests.
with regards transferring to a french licence - my understanding is that its not absolutely necessary and that current UK licence will remain valid for driving in france until its expiry date. is that correct? if so, what are the reasons to swap to a french one? I have been doing my intital due diligence and research about visas and carte de sejour, and I’ve seen mentionthat having a french driving licence can be helpful when applying for your carte de sejour after year one on a long term visa?
If your dates in column 10 are different for A and B categories your A will be transferred.
Having a French licence is irrelevant to renewing a visa/applying for a CdS.
Nope you don’t get to choose when you change your licence if you passed your test pre 01/01/2021. It is column 10 that determines when your licence was issued and not 4a date on your card.
These are the criterias and you can apply just under 12 months before 4b expires.
Sorry to bring up a slightly old topic. I exchanged my UK license to a French one 1.5 years ago now but it is missing a category. I have tried to request it be put back on but on the ANTS website it only offers to look in to errors for licences issued less than 6 months. Has anyone ever had luck getting missing categories reissued even if their license was issued from a rather lengthy time ago?
Many thanks.
Quick edit - This category wasn’t even listed on the original form I filled in (I did have my medical for C and C+E and kept those)
Sorry I can’t help because I never bothered, but it is nothing new, I exchanged my HGV included one at the sub-prefecture back in ‘99 and discovered that I had lost my motor bike entitlement…but had gained a psv bus licence. Never used or needed either. Hope you get it sorted.
Thanks for the quick reply David. I may need this license for work so I’ll keep trying. A quick google search showed on Facebook someone said they wrote the the DVLA to confirm said category and then sent that via letter to ANTS and got it put back on so maybe that will be the route I will take.
If you exchanged your licence 1.5 years ago and you had at least C on your licence, was it actually on your photocard? and submitted a medical, then you should have had this category transferred across.
Have you only just noticed now that it’s missing.
Or did you click the yes to holding lourdes but no didn’t want to swap, because if you did, then you’ve lost the C and would have to take the test again here.
Hi Kim,just out of interest,have you ever dealt with a company called Chronoservices,they have been given the Gov contract to issue Tacycartes and Driver qualification cartes.I have changed my licence over but this company are very reluctant to issue my other cards that i need to work.Outrageous.
Can I jump in on the thread, I’ve now just got my TITRE DE SEJOUR, I’ve made some considerable progress since my last post. I was told by a regular contributor to expect some challenges during the first year, they certainly weren’t joking . Hell fire it’s challenging BUT well worth it.
Next challenge is ““A driving license issued by a non-EU country European (with the exception of a UK license issued before 2021) is valid for 1 year from the acquisition of the normal residence in France. Exchange for a French license is mandatory to be able drive longer.””
I note I require:-
Proof of identity (national identity card, passport)
For French people with digital identity, the single-use photo ID document generated during the process from the France Identité application is accepted.
Proof of address less than 6 months old
Proof of regularity of stay (valid residence permit)
Current driving license
An ID photo less than 6 months old (digital or paper format).
A certificate of driving rights less than 6 months old issued by the foreign authorities that issued the driving license
How do I obtain the certificate of driving rights, less than 6 months old?
If you passed your test before 2021, you’ll probably find it’s not even possibly never mind mandatory. Unless you’ve been naughty and have committed an offence that incurred a loss of points
. Hell fire it’s challenging BUT well worth it.