| EU or EEA licence | valid in Great Britain until your 70th birthday; 3 years if you were 67 or older when you became resident |
| Swiss licence | 12 months from becoming resident, exchange without a test up to 5 years after |
| Exchange | form D1 to the DVLA, fee £43, no new test |
| Speed in built-up areas | 30 mph (48 km/h) in England and Scotland, 20 mph (32 km/h) in Wales |
| Great Britain | England, Wales, Scotland; Northern Ireland has its own licensing authority |
With an EU or EEA licence
As a tourist you drive on your EU licence without any formalities. It gets interesting once you live in Great Britain. The rule then is: if you were under 67 when you became resident, you can drive on your EU licence until your 70th birthday. If you were 67 or older, it stays valid for three years from the date you became resident. After that you exchange it for a British one.
You can exchange earlier whenever you like, for example because your employer wants a British licence. You do not need a new test. You pick up form D1 at a Post Office that offers DVLA services, send it with the fee of £43 and your licence to the DVLA, and usually receive the new licence within three weeks. You hand in the old one in the process.
There is one trap. If you got your EU licence by exchanging a licence from outside the EU, say from the United States, you can only drive on it in Great Britain for twelve months.
With a Swiss licence
Switzerland is not in the EU, but to the British authorities it is a "designated country", one with a licence exchange agreement. That means you can drive on a Swiss licence for twelve months after becoming resident without exchanging it. After that you must exchange it to keep driving; you can do so up to five years after you became resident, as long as the Swiss licence is valid, again with form D1 and the £43 fee.
Let the five years slip and you face an unpleasant restart: provisional British licence, theory test, practical test. In English, on the left. It is the most expensive way to get to know Britain.
Rules of the road: miles, the left lane, roundabouts
British signs show speed in miles per hour; the speedometer shows both. The national speed limits for cars:
| Road | England, Scotland, Northern Ireland | Wales |
|---|---|---|
| Built-up area with street lighting | 30 mph (48 km/h) | 20 mph (32 km/h) |
| Single carriageway | 60 mph (96 km/h) | 60 mph (96 km/h) |
| Dual carriageway | 70 mph (112 km/h) | 70 mph (112 km/h) |
| Motorway | 70 mph (112 km/h) | 70 mph (112 km/h) |
GOV.UK: Speed limits
What surprises continental drivers on British roads
Drive on the left, overtake on the right: on a two-lane dual carriageway you stay in the left lane and use the right one only to overtake. Roundabouts go clockwise, and there are a great many of them. There is no motorway without a speed limit; the maximum is 70 mph.
The drink-drive limit differs between the countries: in Scotland it is 50 milligrams per 100 millilitres of blood, in the rest of the kingdom 80. If you commute between Edinburgh and Newcastle, plan your pint with a map in hand.
London adds the Congestion Charge: drive into the central zone during the day on weekdays or at weekends and you pay £18 a day, or £21 if you pay up to three days afterwards. If you take a British car abroad you may need a UK sticker, depending on your plates; the old GB sticker no longer counts. Why it is UK and not GB is explained in our article on the difference between England, Great Britain and the UK.
Your own car: insurance, MOT, vehicle tax, import
You may not drive in the UK uninsured; the legal minimum is third party cover. From the third year after first registration the car needs an annual MOT, the British roadworthiness test. And you must tax the vehicle even if it is exempt and you pay nothing.
Bringing your car from the continent is complicated but not impossible. If you bring a vehicle to the UK permanently, you must tell HMRC within 14 days and only then register and tax it with the DVLA, which issues British number plates. On top come technical adjustments to British standards and possibly customs duty and import VAT. If the UK becomes your main residence, transfer of residence relief may apply to your belongings. With a left-hand-drive car and a stay of only a few years, many people do the sums and sell at home instead.
The customs side of moving after Brexit is in our article Brexit for EU citizens. What else to sort out on arrival, and in which order, from your National Insurance number to the GP, is in our requirements for moving to the UK.
And in Northern Ireland?
Everything above about licences applies to Great Britain, meaning England, Wales and Scotland, where the DVLA is in charge. Northern Ireland has its own process and its own authority. If you are moving there, check the rules on driving and exchanging your licence at nidirect.gov.uk. The speed limit in built-up areas is the same 30 mph as in England.
Short answers
Is my EU driving licence valid in England?
Yes. As a resident of Great Britain you can drive on it until your 70th birthday if you were under 67 when you became resident.
Do I have to exchange my licence?
With an EU licence only at 70, or after three years if you were 67 or older when you became resident. With a Swiss licence after twelve months.
What does the exchange cost?
£43 at the DVLA with form D1, no test.
Do I need an international driving permit?
Not in Great Britain with an EU or Swiss licence; the rules above apply to the national licence.
How fast can I drive on the motorway?
70 mph in a car, about 112 km/h.
Sources: GOV.UK: Driving in Great Britain on a non-GB licence (resident, EU or EEA licence); GOV.UK: Exchange a non-GB driving licence (EU); GOV.UK: Exchange a non-GB driving licence (Switzerland); GOV.UK: Speed limits; GOV.UK: The drink drive limit; GOV.UK: Getting an MOT; GOV.UK: Vehicle insurance; GOV.UK: Importing vehicles into the UK; TfL: Congestion Charge
