Hi, have heard that you now need a licence with a photograph to drive in France. Does anyone know if this is correct. Thanks, Helen.
Driving Licence France
- Thread starter hgriff10
- Start date
I have seen nothing. The current rules state that if you have a paper licence then you carry your passport, or some photo ID to confirm it. The EU rules state that documentation legal in any EU country is acceptable in any other, so unless the French are pulling their usual 'fast one' then I think it is wrong.
Hi Scotch Lad, that's what we usually do. Friends that we holiday with had been told by someone who they work with that they now had to have a photo driving licence. I've failed to find any info so I don't know where it's come from. I suppose we'll have to wait and see. Thanks for reply, Helen.
We will find out the hard way next week as we are travelling to France. I have the photo type but my wife has the old paper one. I had better tell her to slow down or she could be in the brown stuff. Mind you if she gets hauled off to the Bastille, who will put the legs down for me??
- Jun 4, 2011
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http://www.frenchentree.com/fe-lavie/DisplayArticle.asp?ID=134
I've just googled this question and came across the above link.
On the FAQ the following question is answered:
Q. Is my UK licence legal to drive on?
A. Yes, citizens of EU countries are permitted to drive within France on the driving licence issued by their country of origin. UK driving licence holders moving to live in France should be aware that the DVLA in the UK do not allow foreign addresses on UK licences. If you inform them that you have a foreign address they will send you a form which you can use to obtain a French licence. You should also note that if you commit a driving offence in France which involves the addition of penalty points to your licence you will be obliged to change from a foreign to a French licence.
I've just googled this question and came across the above link.
On the FAQ the following question is answered:
Q. Is my UK licence legal to drive on?
A. Yes, citizens of EU countries are permitted to drive within France on the driving licence issued by their country of origin. UK driving licence holders moving to live in France should be aware that the DVLA in the UK do not allow foreign addresses on UK licences. If you inform them that you have a foreign address they will send you a form which you can use to obtain a French licence. You should also note that if you commit a driving offence in France which involves the addition of penalty points to your licence you will be obliged to change from a foreign to a French licence.
Believe it or not, we actually got into France with just driving licences - his the photo one, mine the old paper type - and NO passports! We left our passports at home (don't ask - it's a sore point) and had got as far as the check-in booth before we realised. We hadn't been stopped at Passport Control on the way in. We asked Norfolkline if we could leave the caravan at the docks so we could drive back the 280 miles to pick them up. The check-in guy referred us to the office, and they just checked our driving licences and said that we could board anyway - provided we accepted the risk that the French might send us home. They didn't - and our son posted the passports to us care of a friend with a home in France. This was just a couple of weeks ago but we still can't believe it!
- Mar 14, 2005
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It's not surprising that there is no passport control when entering France because France, after all, is a signatory to the Schengen agreement which abolished such controls between member states. As a result, many of the buildings at the borders involved have even been demolished and you hardly know that you've crossed into another country.
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