Talk Quesada forum

Can anyone on here advise please as the DVLA can't. As a British passport holder, based in UK, but with an EU driving licence (Spanish), will I need an International Driving Permit to drive a Spanish registered car in Spain in the event of a no deal Brexit? Anyone know?

Agreed would like to figure out all the driving implications of a no deal brexit... but if you are holding a Spanish driving licence, don't see how you would need an IDP to drive a spanish car in spain. UK licence holders will need to get an IDP for driving in Spain ( assuming they are not Spanish resident, just visiting.) But if you already have a Spanish licence that shouldn't be an issue in Spain. The question that was bothering me was ( as I have a car in both countries and need to drive in the UK as well as Spain) was what would happen in the UK once I had switched my UK licence to a Spanish one. The latest government guidance seems to suggest that the UK will allow people to continue to drive in UK on a Spanish licence ( presumably as visitors and if you moved back to the Uk you need to swop your licence back again...) latest government guidance here https://www.gov.uk/guidance/prepare-to- ... ter-brexit

In the UK I will be able to use my EU licence until I am 70 years old (as I do now) and I can exchange it any time I choose as I passed my test there. I just wondered if it was my British nationality that determined the need for an IDP in Spain or my driving licence?

Paul Uden wrote:In the UK I will be able to use my EU licence until I am 70 years old (as I do now) and I can exchange it any time I choose as I passed my test there. I just wondered if it was my British nationality that determined the need for an IDP in Spain or my driving licence?

If based in UK why don't you have UK license, are you resident in UK? Or Spain?

Currently resident in UK. Got EU licence when I was resident in Spain. No need to change back till I'm 70 and since I drive a lot in Spain also it is easier to keep it.

Paul Uden wrote:In the UK I will be able to use my EU licence until I am 70 years old (as I do now) and I can exchange it any time I choose as I passed my test there. I just wondered if it was my British nationality that determined the need for an IDP in Spain or my driving licence?

It is your driving licence, that's why I am changing mine as it is a UK licence...

Shiva wrote:

Paul Uden wrote:In the UK I will be able to use my EU licence until I am 70 years old (as I do now) and I can exchange it any time I choose as I passed my test there. I just wondered if it was my British nationality that determined the need for an IDP in Spain or my driving licence?

It is your driving licence, that's why I am changing mine as it is a UK licence...

Because your licence is not tied to your nationality

If you hold a Spanish licence then you won’t need an IDP to drive in Spain.
It is possible (but unlikely) that at some point in future the UK could choose to require a Spanish issued IDP before allowing you to drive in the UK, but if that happened then as you say you could simply swap back to a UK licence if that was more convenient.

The IDP is about international recognition of your ability to drive a vehicle and that’s not needed if your licence is issued in Spain and you’re driving in Spain.

Pete.

Thank you everyone for your helpful comments

It seems rather silly to me that, if all this comes about, I will be able to drive in Spain on my Spanish licence which I obtained by handing in my UK one.
On the other hand, I won't be able to drive in UK unless I get an IDP.
This means I can drive in a country where I haven't passed as test but will be unable to drive in a country where I did pass my test.

As the rules say you can't hold two EU driving licences at one time, I wonder if they might consider giving my my UK one back after we leave as it would then be one EU licence and one non-EU licence.

¡ Que Horror !