Spain · Driving licence exchange
How to exchange your EU driving licence for a Spanish one
An EU or EEA licence stays valid in Spain while it's in date, so exchanging it is usually optional. If you want a Spanish licence, book a DGT appointment with the form, your licence, ID, registration certificate, a photo and the fee, and leave with a provisional permit.
What it is
If your driving licence was issued in another EU or EEA country (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway), it's valid in Spain for as long as it's in date. You don't have to exchange it.
You can still swap it for a Spanish licence (canje) at any time once you live here (the DGT counts you as resident when you live in Spain at least 185 days a year). That's handy if you want everything in one country, or simply prefer a Spanish card.
This guide is for EU and EEA licences. UK licences follow different rules, with a six-month deadline: see our guide to exchanging a UK licence.
When it isn't optional
You must renew your licence in Spain after two years of living here if your licence:
- has no expiry date, or
- is valid for more than 15 years (cars and motorbikes: AM, A1, A2, A, B, B+E), or
- is valid for more than 5 years (lorries and buses: C and D categories).
And once your EU licence expires while you live in Spain, you renew it here, not in the country that issued it. A renewal, unlike the exchange, needs a medical fitness report from a driver medical centre (Centro de Reconocimiento de Conductores).
Before you start
You'll need:
- The application form (solicitud de canje), from the DGT website or the traffic office.
- Your EU licence, original and in date, plus a photocopy.
- ID: your passport or national ID card, and proof you live here: your EU registration certificate (the green certificate with your NIE). Non-EU citizens with an EU licence bring their TIE.
- One recent colour photo, 32 × 26 mm, plain background, taken from the front, no hat or dark glasses.
- Proof you paid the DGT fee (tasa 2.3).
Steps
- Pay the fee online on the DGT website (tasa 2.3) and keep the payment number or receipt.
- Book a DGT appointment (cita previa) online or by phoning 060, at any provincial traffic office (Jefatura Provincial de Tráfico), and choose the option "Canjes de permisos de conducción".
- Go to the appointment with everything above. They keep your original licence and give you a provisional permit.
- Your Spanish licence arrives by post, usually in about six weeks. The provisional permit lets you drive in Spain only, for up to six months, while you wait.
Cost
The DGT fee (tasa 2.3), shown when you pay it online.
Common pitfalls
- Bring the original licence, in date. An expired licence follows the renewal procedure instead (with a medical report).
- Choose the right appointment option, canjes, or you may be turned away.
- Don't drive abroad on the provisional permit: it's only valid in Spain. Plan trips abroad before you hand over your licence, or after the new one arrives.
- If you paid a gestoría to do it for you, ask for the appointment date and the submission receipt (justificante de presentación). If they can't show either, the application probably hasn't been made yet, and you can still book it yourself.
When to ask a helper
Ask someone who exchanged a licence at your provincial traffic office recently: they'll know how long appointments take there.
Spot a mistake?
Rules change and offices differ. If something here is wrong or out of date, tell us and we'll check it.