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No fee for changing your UK driving licence......


mint

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[quote user="Nell"]Yes, free - after OH and myself had paid about 52 euro each!!! C'est la vie.........[/quote]

Hey, Nell, I did seem to remember that OH paid 25 euros for his but then I thought that perhaps I'd "mis-remembered"!  That would have been maybe 4 years ago.  But 52 euros EACH [:-))]

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[quote user="AnOther"]Don't get too excited, it depends on the individual prefectures I'm afraid.
[/quote]

Ah, Erns, thanks for the bucket of cold water!

Seriously, I'm very grateful to you as I am following your advice to change before next year so that I'll get a life-time paper licence.

Er.....does anyone know a prefecture that gives out free licences [I] 

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[quote user="AnOther"]

[quote user="sweet 17"]

Er.....does anyone know a prefecture that gives out free licences [I] 

[/quote]Yes, Cahors but probably cheaper to pay than travel !
[/quote]

I wasn't thinking of TRAVELLING, only going to SEND the application.

If I WERE to send them to Cahors prefecture, would they be asking me to send them to my own prefecture?

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Sorry sweets but it has to be in your own department.

Pour échanger son permis de conduire, il faut s'adresser suivant son département :

  • à la préfecture de son domicile,

  • ou à la sous-préfecture de son domicile,

  • et, à Paris, à la préfecture de police.

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[quote user="sweet 17"]

into a French one?

Can this be really true?  I have printed out all the instructions and the form but nowhere can I find the cost.

Please somebody confirm it for me![:)]

[/quote]

I am pretty sure that the Dordogne do not charge, for the exchange of an EU licence, just supply the stamped envelope, for the return, if applying by post.

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What does the Prefecture web site say Sweet17? Usually any required payments are mentioned on the web site and any application form, or is that 'should be mentioned on the web site and any application form'.[Www]

Personally I'd call the Prefecture, that is what I always did.

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[quote user="idun"]

What does the Prefecture web site say Sweet17? Usually any required payments are mentioned on the web site and any application form, or is that 'should be mentioned on the web site and any application form'.[Www]

Personally I'd call the Prefecture, that is what I always did.

[/quote]Should be is correct.  We followed what the website said then when we got to the prefecture the guy told us when we handed him our pile of paperwork (without even mentioning the website) that the website was wrong and that in addition to the list on it we needed a cheque to cover the fees and also a birth certificate for me as women have to prove their birth name and their passport only proves their married name.  Yes - best to call if it's a bit of a trek!  They did let us post the birth certificate though.

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No charge in Deux-Sèvres (Niort).  Go in with all the paperwork prepared (for example, our secretary at the village Mairie will happily check everything first), and you should come away with a temporary attestation to produce to the Gendarmes if required in the intervening period; the new licence arrived within a week.  [geek]
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[quote user="sid"]No charge in Deux-Sèvres (Niort).  Go in with all the paperwork prepared (for example, our secretary at the village Mairie will happily check everything first), and you should come away with a temporary attestation to produce to the Gendarmes if required in the intervening period; the new licence arrived within a week.  [geek][/quote]Same here except for the no charge part, but my Mum is up in Normandy 56 and she had to fill in the categories herself;  got no attestation and is still waiting, three weeks later......and is worried that the very brusque woman who seemed to think they weren't allowed to have a French licence has just binned the forms!

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[quote user="Araucaria"]Here in the Cantal the Préfecture wants an officially translated version of the UK licence and a medical examination (no matter what category you might want). The fee for the licence will be small beer by comparison.

[/quote]They're not supposed to do that.  A translation isn't necessary (unless it was a very old one and they don't recognise the format?)

see http://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/vehicles/driving/faq/index_en.htm

  • I am renewing my driving licence in a different EU country to the one that issued it. Do I have to produce a translation?  

    NO — There is no legal requirement to do this. The authorities in the new country will issue you a local licence.

and they're only supposed to require a medical examination for categories for which that is the local rule.

  • I have moved to another

    European country, my new country of residence has recognised my licence

    but wants to shorten its validity and make me take a medical exam. Is

    that legal?    

    YES — They’re entitled to apply the same restrictions to your licence as to those issued locally.

    The new validity period for your driving licence will start on the date you take up residence in your new home country.

    As for the expiry date,

    ask the licence issuing authorities there, and also whether any other

    restrictions apply. Some countries also require medical exams for

    licence renewals.

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They’re entitled to apply the same restrictions to your licence as to those issued locally.

That is the key point, they cannot demand a medical on age or category grounds if the same would not be asked of a French person and since French drivers do not have to undergo any medicals for group A or B their lifetime licences neither should you.

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  • 1 month later...

Well, Jazzer, this is what I sent off and the maire's secretary went through it with me and provided the photocopies.

This is what I sent:

the envelope as you have mentioned

colour (better copy than black-and-white) photocopy of passport

old UK licence (both the paper bit and the card)

recent utilities bill

photocopy of marriage certificate as I wanted the licence to be in my married name

relevant form "demande de délivrance de permis de conduire"

No money as it wasn't mentioned on the prefecture site

It's been about 3 weeks and nothing's come back yet but I am optimistic as they haven't returned the whole pack and asked for other documents either [:-))]

Madame la secretaire also potocopied my old licence and wrote a note to the effect that my licence was being changed (with the mairie's tampon, of course!) to keep in the car in the event of being stopped.

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