License Validity & Renewal

Article 7(2) of Directive 2006/126/EC sets the EU baseline at 10 years for cars and motorcycles and 5 years for buses and lorries, but member states may set their own shorter periods. Spain: 10 years for car drivers under 65 and 5 years for those 65 and older (DGT, Reglamento General de Conductores). Germany: the photocard runs 15 years (FeV §24a); the underlying entitlement is permanent. France: 15 years for Category B (Service-Public.fr). Italy: 10 years up to age 50, 5 years from 50–70, 3 years thereafter (Codice della Strada Article 126). UK: photocard 10 years; entitlement to age 70, then renewed every 3 years (DVLA).

Spain: apply through the DGT (sede.dgt.gob.es), supply a digital photo and a psicotécnico medical certificate, pay €23.92, and the new card arrives by post within two weeks. Germany: apply at the local Führerscheinstelle 6 months before the 15-year photocard expires; the eye test and biometric photo cost roughly €40 (FeV §24a). France: ANTS portal for renewal after age 75 or for medical reasons. UK: DVLA renews the photocard every 10 years online for £14 (£17 by post) and posts the new card in about a week. Renew before expiry — driving on a lapsed photocard is illegal even where the underlying entitlement still runs.

No — driving on an expired licence is an offence treated as driving without a licence in most jurisdictions. In Spain it carries a €200 fine under the Reglamento General de Conductores. In Germany §21 StVG makes it a criminal offence punishable by a fine or up to one year's imprisonment. In the UK driving with an expired photocard while the entitlement is still live is a £1,000 fine (DVLA, Road Traffic Act 1988 §99). Insurance is usually void during the expired period, which is the more expensive problem after a collision. Renewal does not normally require re-testing unless the licence lapsed many years earlier.

Report a stolen licence to the police and keep the crime reference number — most insurers and authorities will ask for it. Apply for a duplicate through the issuing authority: DGT in Spain (€21.10 fee, via sede.dgt.gob.es), DVLA in the UK (£20 online with a credit card), ANTS in France, the Führerscheinstelle in Germany, RDW in the Netherlands. Spain and Germany issue a provisional driving document immediately so you can keep driving. The UK posts the new photocard within a week. Carry a copy of your application receipt; in some countries (Italy, Portugal) you must not drive at all until the duplicate arrives.

Two opposite designs exist. Penalty-points systems (UK, Ireland, Netherlands) start at zero and add points per offence, with a ban at 12 points within three years for the UK (Road Traffic Act 1988 §35). Demerit or credit systems (Spain, France, Italy) start the driver with a balance and deduct points per offence. Spain: 12 credit points, 8 for new drivers in their first three years (DGT). France: 12 points; new drivers start at 6 and rise to 12 after three offence-free years (Code de la route L223). Germany uses Fahreignungsregister points in Flensburg: a ban triggers at 8 points (KBA, FeV §4 StVG). Points expire after 2–4 years depending on the system.

Annex III of Directive 2006/126/EC sets the EU minimum medical standards: binocular visual acuity of at least 0.5 with correction, a 120° horizontal field of view, and no conditions that compromise safe driving. Spain requires a psicotécnico exam at every renewal — vision, reflexes, and coordination, with stricter thresholds for over-65s and for Categories C and D (Reglamento General de Conductores Article 7). Germany requires only a Sehtest for Category B and a more extensive Gesundheitsuntersuchung for Categories C and D (FeV §11–§12). The UK works on self-declaration plus reporting duties under §92 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 — drivers must notify DVLA of conditions such as epilepsy, severe sleep apnoea, or insulin-treated diabetes.