French daily newspaper Connexion tried to find out whether grandfather rights can be transferred to French driving licenses when replacing British documents with French ones.
Motorists who got their driving licenses in the UK before 1997 automatically received permits to drive vehicles in the C1, C1E, D1 and D1E categories. When the law changed, these drivers haven’t been deprived of their rights.
However, some drivers in France have reported to the Connexion that these grandfather rights were not being transferred when UK licences were exchanged for French ones.
The Connexion reached out to the Interior Ministry for clarification, but the answer is still not clear:
“Drivers with an EU licence or a UK licence obtained before 2021 need to exchange it only once it runs out. UK licences acquired after January 1, 2021, and other non-EU licences (from countries with agreements with France on exchange) must be exchanged for a French licence within a year of moving to France,” the statement reads.
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