Driving a spanish car on uk licence

Now that I am somewhat calmer. YOU DO NOT NEED TO HAVE A SPANISH DRIVING LICENCE TO DRIVE IN SPAIN. Even if you are a resident. Its more than my position is worth to give wrong info. There are many more things about fines etc. that I could talk about  which would be very beneficial but I will keep quite cos I love living here.

Myra, thanks for that!  It made me check with the DVLA - it was about eight years ago that I was informed I could not have a UK licence issued whilst I was living abroad, and had to have a UK address.

Now, as you correctly state, that is not the case!  Indeed, according to the government website, you don't even have to inform them if you move abroad (which I find a little strange!). 

Here is a link to the UK government website, detailing this.

I think there will be alot of British in Spain (and anywhere abroad) that will be interested to know this - it seems this has only been changed in recent years, about 2005 or so.  Interesting!

yes, yes, yes..........but in answer to pdunstan's (not so silly) question, I reiterate; it's just a case of some paperwork, a minor inconvenience, to exchange your UK licence for a Spanish one. My personal opinion on this, is that for your own peace of mind, it is well worth the effort. I respect your "stand", Myra, and I promise to come visit you in the slammer when you tell the Guardia how to do their job!

Hello Pitby. Thank you so much for taking the time to inform yourself and to kindly share this information with us all.  As to Robertos explanation I understand perfectly well what you are saying but the laws is the law. If you take on a Spanish licence you also have to have the medical tests. As you get older these become more frequent. But of course as always it is up to the individual.

Myra cecilia

Hello Myra

I understood that we still have to take the medicals even with a UK licence. Have i got it wrong? Hope so and then will not need to arrange the medicals for us both.

Jean

I've heard loads of stories going both ways, people who've had valid EU licences and gotten hefty fines regardless and those who've driven for years with the old fashioned paper ones and never a problem.

Personally my feel is that the government is desperate for money so regardless your going to get a hefty fine. I've seen the cops everywhere handing loads of fines. The speed cameras have been adjusted to blitz you the moment your above the limit, I got a 90€ fine for going 93 in a 90. Now I drop 5K under the limit when going through a camera.

BTW what's the dif between a Pardon and a NIE.

The law is the law....and it's the guys in the fancy uniforms and with the GUNS!!! who choose how they want to interpret it and enforce it, so for my money........the medical doesn't cost that much, it's only every 10 years up to 45, and every 5 then until 70, and is almost impossible to fail (if you do fail, you really should not be out on your own, let alone driving). You cannot register a UK licence to a Spanish address, which illustrates perfectly how the morons in Brussels have not thought this through before dictating to EU member states what they can and cannot do, and although this may not matter too much in practice, it's clearly not right to have your licence registered to an address you don't live at, so as Myra says, it's up to each individual, but I will always recommend exchanging for a Spanish licence.

I can post the links for the forms etc. again if anyone wants them.

Rob, padron (not pardon) is your registration with the town hall where you live, whereas your NIE is your foreigner's identification number

Rob Hi

Padron is your registration with your local authority enabling them to extract more funds from the regional authority for services in the local community.

NIE is your fiscal registration with the National Authority without which its almost impossible to do anything involving large sums of money like getting electricity, water, buying a car, ahouse or anything where there is an element of national taxation.

bf

Four or five  years ago I had my licence stamped by the traffico in Malaga and put on the system.  A while later I was stopped by the Guardia for overtaking.   An officer in his 50's   politely gave me a fine to pay and checked my licence and docs, smiled  and thanked me .  At that time several people working here had been fined heavily for not having their licences stamped but never any mention of needing to swap it for a Spanish one.

You pays your money and takes your chances.

Again, as Myra said before, it's up to the individual. I'm not going to bang on about it, but I'm just a little curious why there seems to be such resistance to the idea of changing licences? I'm seriously thinking about swapping my UK passport for a Spanish one (eligible as a permanent resident more than 5 years); why pay €137 plus courier fees to/from Madrid to renew a document that I can get for €20 at my local cop shop that does the same thing?

We've been over here just a year with our UK RH Drive car - the tax expires next month.

I've noticed a number of UK cars being driven over here still with UK number plates but no UK tax.

Is that legal and if so does the car still have to be registered in the UK.
 

Have replied to this on another thread. Totally illegal - get it sorted!

I used this as a guide to register my LHD UK registered car when I moved : www.myspain.es/forum/motoring-spain/52-faq-registering-your-uk-vehicle-spain-inc-new-2008-laws.html

As mentioned in the guide I got a local Gestor to do the final paperwork submit but I did everything else and it only ended up costing me about €150 which is a lot lot less if I had not of stumbled apon the post when looking for something else as I did not know hat after 3 months you need to register the car or pay import durty! Lucky really.

That's a good guide to the process. The only thing it doesn't mention, is that supposedly to avoid having to pay the reg tax, not only do you have to have owned the vehicle for more than 6 months, but you have to register it within a certain time span (6 weeks is it?) of registering as a resident. Waiting to hear from TechNoApe to see he gets on with registering his Beemer.

 My son was stopped in Valencia, he has lived in Spain for 4/5 years, has a Spanish car and a UK paper licence.

He was given a 500Euro fine (paid 250E within the 20 days), and was advised bu a lawyer not to contest it!!

BE WARNED

 Does anyone know if there is a law against a UK visitor driving a Spaish registered car in Spain providing they are insured??

My son lives in Spain and has a car that I can use when I visit - is that a problem??

I heard it is in Portugal

Any views

Thanks

As long as you have a valid driving licence and you are insured then it's no problem at all.  It's perfectly legal.

Justin

 Hi if you have a old paper uk licence make sure you get an International Driving Permit from a Post office or Rac Lasts 1 year Irene