Spanish driving licence

[Thesheriff]

Capn Billy.

It only took me 5 mins to find the relative Legislation - no big deal. and here it is  - I have separated and made bold the relative sentence which is the last one.

History  Pre-1996 European driving licence.

The first step to a European driving licence was taken on 4 December 1980, when the Council of Ministers adopted Council Directive 80/1263/EEC on the introduction of a Community driving licence, which established a Community model national licence that guaranteed the mutual recognition by Member States of national licences. It also established the practice of exchange of licences by holders moving from one Member State to another.
  European driving licence as from 1996

European Union directive:

Directive 91/439/EEC

Council Directive on driving licences

History

Made                                    1991-07-29
Came into force                 1991-08-24Implementation date        1996-07-01

Directive 80/1263/EEC

On 29 July 1991, the Council of Ministers adopted the Council Directive 91/439/EEC on driving licences. The directive required Member States to adopt laws implementing the directive before 1 July 1994, which laws would take effect on 1 July 1996. Directive 80/1263/EEC would be repealed on the same date. Directive 91/439/EEC currently specifies the European driving licence.
  Provisions The directive harmonises the categories of driving licences among the Member States and establishes two Community driving licence models, one paper version and one plastic card version. It furthermore establishes an obligatory test of knowledge (theory) and a test of skills and behaviour (practical) which has to be successfully passed before an individual is offered a driving licence. It also requires an applicant to meet the minimum standards of physical and mental fitness to drive. The directive specifies the minimum ages for driving different types of vehicles, and establishes progressive access in categories A, C, and D, from light vehicles to larger or more powerful vehicles.

The directive stipulates that it is mandatory to have the normal residence in the Member State issuing the licence.[1]


That means according to my command of the English Language - that a person who is living Full Time in Spain - should hold a European Driving Licence issued by the Spanish Authorities - It is MANDATORY  not a choice.

[Merrytel]

For some of our newer ex pat forum members who have not seen this before please do watch it is not only so true but also very very very funny.

Dottie , that is truly beautiful !

[Capn Billy]

Dottie , that is truly beautiful !

It's very funny, but I'm not sure I'd describe it as beautiful

[Merrytel]

Capn Billy , I felt it was beautiful as in sticking 2 fingers up at beaurocracy , and winning !

But then , the old saying of ' each to his own ' applies  , n'est-ce  pas ?

[Capn Billy]

The directive stipulates that it is mandatory to have the normal residence in the Member State issuing the licence.[1]


That means according to my command of the English Language - that a person who is living Full Time in Spain - should hold a European Driving Licence issued by the Spanish Authorities - It is MANDATORY  not a choice.

Absolutely right, when someone applies for a new licence. So, If I did not have a licence, or lost my existing one, I can only obtain it from Spain, not the UK, because I am now a resident of Spain. However, when you have an existing licence, it is not mandatory, or illegal to retain it in Spain (as you posted), because the directive says in Clause 1(2) that licences are mutually recognised. Article 1 (3) is the one which allows Spain to require you to take the medical, the same as if you have a spanish licence (although, there has been some debate about that)




Article 1
1. Member States shall introduce a national driving licence based on the Community model described in Annex I, in accordance with the provisions of this Directive.
2. Driving licences issued by Member States shall be mutually recognized.
3. Where the holder of a valid national driving licence takes up normal residence in a Member State other than that which issued the licence, the host Member State may apply to the holder of the licences its national rules on the period of validity of the licences, medical checks and tax arrangements and may enter on the licence any information indispensable for administration.

 

[Capn Billy]

Capn Billy , I felt it was beautiful as in sticking 2 fingers up at beaurocracy , and winning !

But then , the old saying of ' each to his own ' applies  , n'est-ce  pas ?

No, i agree with you

[300s]

Just had a quote for obtaining a Spanish Driving licence, over €200 including medical and photo's. So it is not a cheap option. The Licence itself is not too expensive but all the other parts really add up. The cost is about half a possible fine so it's more economical in the long run.

[Thesheriff]

300's,

Go somewhere else then - the maximum I have heard of anyone paying  -  for everything has been € 75.00  - most places charge around € 60 / 65 .00

[300s]

Maybe before this latest scare. The translaters know the Brits are panicking so have put there prices up. A friend of mine got his licence several weeks ago for €50, but when I aproached the same translater I got the quote of over €200.

[300s]

[font=]24/07/2012  
[font=]The British Embassy  in Madrid give the following guidance on UK Driving Licences in  Spain:  UK driving licences  issued from 1990 and the photo card licence issued from 1997 are  accepted in Spain. Licences issued before 1990 are only accepted if  accompanied by an official translation into Spanish (available from the  Spanish Embassy in London and the Real Automóvil Club de España if  the licence holder is already in Spain). UK Provisional  Licences are not valid for use in Spain.  It is not  obligatory to register your British driving licence with the Spanish authorities  but it is recommended, since if it is lost or stolen it is  quicker to get a replacement Spanish licence Once the UK licence  runs out or if it is lost or stolen, the new licence must be  Spanish if you are resident in Spain.  

[Capn Billy]

.It is not  obligatory to register your British driving licence with theSpanish authorities  but it is recommended, since if it is lost orstolen it is  quicker to get a replacement Spanish licenceOnce the UK licence  runs out or if it is lost or stolen, the newlicence must be  Spanish if you are resident in Spain.

Just to clarify, registration is different to exchange. They etch your NIE number on the licence, after checking your details with the DVLA. It costs €8, and is not difficult to do yourself. Details of how to do it can be found here


As a supplementary note, I mentioned earlier in this post that there is a new directive coming into force in January 2013, although it doesn't have to be implemented until 2017 (I'm not sure when Spain will fully implement it, but you should probably assume straight away).


Under this new directive, the key date is the administrative date, NOT the expiry date. Generally the administrative date for normal vehicles is every 10 years. This is normally to enable an update of the photo etc. When implemented, this will be the date when you HAVE to exchange your licence for a Spanish one, if you are a resident.

[Thesheriff]

300's

In that case get yourself a new translator - if you really need one  ?    their charge should be very little - in fact most place I have visited to renew our  licences  - 3 different ones in total over the years - Brits have been there without a translator even though they knew very little Spanish.   

[romfty]

The Guardia are no worse or better than UK traffic officers, they are doing a job............but unfortunately the number of ex pats running around Spain in un taxed,no mot and no insurance vehicles gets us all tarred by the  same brush.