Guide to Driving in France

Driving Offences and Penalties
Importing and Registering a Vehicle
Vehicle Registration Process & Transfer of Ownership
Vehicle Registration Taxes
MOT Vehicle Tests
Applying for a French Driving Licence
Use of Vehicle Accident Forms in France
Crit'Air Emissions Sticker

6. Applying for a French Driving Licence

Do You Need a New Licence?
Exchanging an EEA Driving Licence
Exchanging a Licence Issued Outside of the EEA

6.1. Do You Need a New Licence?

If relocate to France and you hold a driving licence issued from within the European Economic Area (EEA) you are not required to change it for a French permis de conduire.

A UK driving licence remains valid in France until at least 31st Dec 2020, and possibly after this date.

A final decision is awaited from the French government when the transition period ends.

It may well be that second-home owners and other visitors to France holding a UK driving licence will require an international driving permit (IPD), which can be obtained from the RAC or AA for a small fee.

If you do decide to retain your existing licence the UK licensing authority (DVLA) will not change the address details to a foreign residence. Although if you relocate within the UK you are required to change your driving licence, this does not apply to those who relocate overseas. It is, however, illegal to make application for renewal of a UK licence once you have relocated (by, for instance, using a UK address). The advice of the DVLA is: 'You cannot register your new address on your British driving licence. Contact the driving licence authority in your new country of residence'.

For the time being you will only need to change your existing licence if:

You have an old licence with an expiry date that has passed;
You lose or deface your licence;
You commit an endorsable driving offence in France;

However, whatever restrictions that apply to your home country licence apply equally in France. So if there are medical restrictions on your licence, these apply in France.

Driving licences issued outside of the EEA need to be exchanged within one year of arrival in France.

6.2. Exchanging an EEA Driving Licence

In order to exchange your existing UK driving licence for a permis de conduire, since March 2020 applications for a French driving licence by UK driving licence holders must be made on-line.

The French government have stated: "The procedure for exchanging a driving licence obtained in a country of the European Union, the European Economic Area or the United Kingdom will be online on the ANTS website from 3 March 2020. Pending the opening of this online procedure, requests for exchange should no longer be sent by post."

The 'ANTS' Agence Nationale des Titres Sécurisés website is used for a range of registrations and applications. The site is not without its technical problems and if you do not have a French social security number or tax number, you are likely to find that it will not accept your registration.

You need to go on-line at Permis de Conduire, which is part of the ANTS system.

The application is processed by CERT (Centre d'expertise et de ressources des titres) based in the prefecture in Nantes.

You will need to supply:

A copy of your driving licence, printed in colour, reverse and back;
A copy of your main passport pages;
Copy of marriage certificate (licence will be issued with birth name);
A recent utility bill as proof of address;
A copy of proof of residence in France for at least six months, eg, visa, tax return, social security certifcate, employment contract, business registration certificate;
Copy of penalty decision concerning your licence if this applies.

You will also need to supply a digital signed photo taken through an accredited photo booth - which can be organised through Où faire ma photo et ma signature numérisée? You will receive a 22 digital code, which you use to upload the photo on the ANTS application site.

You should later be requested by the authorities to supply the original driving licence. You should do only by recorded delivery letter.

As a result of Brexit the authorities have been inundated with demand from UK nationals to exchange their licence, and given the uncertainty over Brexit they are reluctant to do an exchange unless it is completely necessary eg driving offence, expiry. See our article UK Driving Licence Exchanges Suspended.

Accordingly, you would be best advised not to make application at this stage, unless you are required to do so as a result of a penalty.

However, they have similarly indicated that British nationals will continue to be permitted to drive in France on their UK licence. It remains to be seen if that advice changes, but there does not appear to be any urgency for UK nationals to seek a French driving licence, unless for the reasons outlined above.

6.3. Exchanging a Driving Licence Issued Outside of the EEA

In terms of other nationals, if you hold a non-EEA licence, and you become resident in France, you are required to obtain a French driving licence within 1 year of you becoming legally resident.

Accordingly, if you relocate to France and hold a carte de séjour, your licence will become invalid after one year.

After this period has expired in order to obtain a French driving licence you will be required to sit a driving test to obtain a permis de conduire.

France has a mutual recognition procedure with most other countries on the planet, so the process of exchanging your licence for a French one is normally fairly straightforward.

Indeed, there is widespread concern within France that the process is not rigorous enough, due to the ease with which a driving licence can be obtained in some countries, and the corruption that sometimes surrounds the issue of such licences!

You need to make application to your local prefecture.

You will need to supply the documents as given above, although you will need to supply your original driving licence, not a copy, in addition to a certified translation (traduction assermentée) of your driving licence.

The service is provided without charge.

The form to use can be found at Demande de permis de conduire par échange. You will also need to complete the complementary form Cerfa n°1494801 Réf 06, which is also on the link, together with explanatory notes (Notice explicative).