driving permanently in spain on a uk licence ?

[spanish_lad]

is this legal ? i´ve seen this : http://www.dgt.es/tramites/conductores/ ... cional.htm but isn´t that for spanish licences going to america for example?

what do i have to do to LEGALLY use my licence to drive my SPANISH plated car here ?

[Beachcomber]

Although many people will claim it should not be necessary I would suggest that you take it to DGT and get them to validate it with your Spanish address (the same one in which your vehicle is registered) and NIE number.

This is the only way you can be sure that you will not get into trouble for using a UK licence with an invalid address.

If you get stopped for any reason and the police/guardia see you have taken the trouble to do this you MAY get away with a caution for any minor offence you have committed.

[El Cid]

I can see the Guardia having a field day with UK licences now that the points system is operative.

Residents will have to prove they are residents to avoid the cash fine and the Guardia will not be able to add the points for the first offence if the licence has not been endorsed and the details entered on the fines database - and they are not going to be happy about that.

Since it is still a legal requirement for residents to have their details entered (whatever may have been said to the contrary) I can see them taking the opportunity to fine people for not having a correct licence.

It will be interesting to see what they do!

Sid

[Alan-LaCala]

you MAY get away with a caution for any minor offence you have committed.

That's a terrible slur on Spanish Lad, Beachcomber; I am sure that he would not bother with just minor offences.

In any case, he would conjure up some deal with the police to paint their police station in exchange for no fine.


Alan

[country boy]

We thought we'd be clever a couple or three years ago and get our yuk licences endorsed for Spain as we thought that the little plastic yuk jobbies were more user-friendly than the big Spanish ones.
Good idea but...when we got our yuk licences back fro Madrid (3 months)they were accompanied by a piece of 70 gramme A4 paper that has to carried at all time when driving, it has the Spanish words for what is on the yuk licence, needless to say it is now very tatty indeed!!! (and my wallet is even more bulky

[El Cid]

They now endorse the actual plastic UK licence.

All they do is print your NIE number on the back. I don't know how they do it - it looks a bit like the laser etching you see tins and jars!

Incidentally Spanish licences are now the small shiny plastic ones.

Sid

[mhic]

I was thinking of trying to get my UK licence re-issued but maybe I wont bother now. My Spanish licence is due for renewal, I had coronary by-pass surgery in 97' and I have to get a certificate from my specialist to say I am ok to drive. Never a problem in the UK just informed Swansea about the surgery. I suppose there is a system in place for dealing with these things.

Mhic

[El Cid]

When you renew your Spanish licence you will have to have a very basic medical. If you can walk as far as the doctors office you will probably be classed as fit!

Sid

[mhic]

Not that easy Cid.

Went for the medical last week and everything was fine until I was asked about operations and I was daft enough to be honest.

Mhic.

[spanish hopes]

I think some people are being a little unfair to spanish lad here taking the mickey out of his willingness to try anything with regard to work. I think it is admirable that he will try anything rather than scrounge or ponce from his parents.
From building, painting and decorating, mobile phone and computer repairs, even going so far as to offer a relief massage service to the old biddies up and down the coast.
More power to your elbow spanish lad (not meant in reference to the massages of course).

[spanish_lad]

yes, spanish hopes i WILL do pretty much anything for work, i´ve gone completly legal with my new car today at a cost of around 2000€, i was just asking because a friend of mine was stopped and told her licence was wrong and now has a fine of 450€ to pay?

so does anyone actually know about uk driving licences, or should i just go to the dgt website and spend hours looking thru it?

i´m not thinking of changing it for a spanish licence, just getting my english one endorsded ? can i do that in fuengerola? or does it have to be at traffico in malaga?

[spanish_lad]

anyone actually know then ? or have you all been driving about on uk licences hoping not to get caught ?

[country boy]

http://www.andalucia.com/forums/viewtop ... 02a5915ae2

[Fundalucia]

Just a thought - if you're living here in Spain permanently and officially (i.e. got a Residencia, got a Certificado de Empadronamiento, paying all the necessary taxes and Seguridad Social, registered at the local Centro de Salud, etc, etc) - why not just swap the old licence for a Spanish one!

It's easy to do yourself at the local DGT office - easier with a Gestor, and then you know that you're fully legal!

Hey presto!

[Beachcomber]

.... why not just swap the old licence for a Spanish one! ...

One often wonders!

It seems some people just like to do things the hard way, or maybe they want to hold on to something from the past.

[El Cid]

It seems some people just like to do things the hard way, or maybe they want to hold on to something from the past.

The ONLY sensible reason I have ever seen for not exchanging or endorsing a UK licence is a temporary problem if you wish to return to the UK and hire a car while your licence is being processed.

Although you will have a receipt that will satisfy the Guardia if you are stopped in Spain, this will probably present problems with the UK hire companies.

Apart from that the easiest solution is to get a Spanish licence.

Sid

[Fundalucia]

I understand what you're saying about hiring a UK car, and recognition of the Spanish receipt by UK hire companies, whilst you're waiting for your new Spanish licence to be processed.

However the whole DGT process for us was only 2 months (visit once to apply - once to collect) - go for it when you know you don't need a hire car in the UK for a while?[/quote]

[blondie]

try looking here, another spanner in the story but i carry this everwhere just in case

http://www.spainvia.com/drivelicenceletter.htm

Since September 9 of 2004, it is perfectly legal for a EU citizen resident in Spain to drive on his home country licence with no registration necessary.

However, many Spanish traffic policeman have never heard of this court decision and they want to give you a ticket, with a fine of 300€, for operating a vehicle without a proper licence. Fire up your computer and go to the web site www.spainvia.com
On this website you will find a copy of a letter which you can print out and carry with you.

The letter is the official answer of the Spanish Traffic Department to an enquiry to put them by Her M;ajesty's Consulate in Málaga. It clearly states, in Spanish that any traffic policeman can read, that, since 9 Sept 2004, inscription of an EU licence is no longer necessary.

Your print out will show all the official stamps on the letter, addressed officially to the Consul Britanico in Málaga, which ought to be convincing

[Beachcomber]

That document has been around for quite a while and you will find that waving it under the nose of a traffic policeman will do you much more harm than good.

If you are even thinking of doing so if you get stopped be absolutely certain that your vehicle will stand up to a rigorous construction and use check and that the rest of your paperwork is 100% in order because you are likely to end up with fines far in excess of the penalty for having an incorrect address on your driving licence.

[blondie]

im not sure that the document has anything to do with your address, more that it says you can drive on your license wherever it be from