British expats face driving ban in Spain after Brexit delays

But if you have moved to a country it seems only fair. Not sure I can get bothered/ worked up about this.

I cannot understand why someone living in mainland Europe or even those wth a second (or third!) or whatever property abroad would have voted to leave. People we have come across since all happily sat they voted to exit but why? I ask but they can’t really give a reason.
Honestly I can’t think of a single reason and would love to know why it’s ok for them but not for us, We all knew things would change irrevocably and in my humble, not for the better.

Only fair. I have lived in other countries and had to take their driving tests as a UK one wasn't valid.

Me neither Midgey.

When you leave a club the benefits are no longer available .

Yet another Brexit bonus ?

midgey

But if you have moved to a country it seems only fair. Not sure I can get bothered/ worked up about this.

I think the point is that, until Brexit, they didn't have to do this. It's just another thing that Brexit has taken away. Voting to remove freedoms for no benefit was always a ridiculous thing to do.

If you watch the police programmes on the television, they frequently apprehend people who are driving on foreign licences and tell them that, after a certain length of of time, their licences aren't valid and they need to get a UK one. Where's the difference?

You are missing the point, Septimia

Just tell me what we have gained from losing benefits such as this?

Biggest brexit benefit to date - blue passports made in France.

I dont have a lot of sympathy for people who move to another country and then live a half-in half-out existence. They want their bread buttered on both sides.

Some of these es-pats (how I hate that expression) just socialise within their own little enclave and dont even bother to learn Spanish or observe Spanish customs. Then they whinge when the rules change.

I sell on a Spanish website and communicate with my customers in Spanish. I dont expect them to learn English.

I think the problem lies with the post Brexit withdrawal agreement where UK residents were able to exchange their UK licence for a French /Spanish one. I don't know what happened elsewhere. France got everything agreed and sorted within the allotted time, Spain obviously didn't. British people living in Spain were led to believe this would happen so didn't make alternative arrangements.

When we moved from Oz to Belgium in 1991, the registering authorities simply took away our DVLA licences and replaced them with Belgian ones. Fair enough, we lived there, we should abide by their rules. No choice.

CountessFosco

When we moved from Oz to Belgium in 1991, the registering authorities simply took away our DVLA licences and replaced them with Belgian ones. Fair enough, we lived there, we should abide by their rules. No choice.

Australia requires drivers to exchange their British licences for Australian ones if they are there on a permanent basis.

I suspect that those who didn't exchange their driving licences were living under the radar and may not have registered with the tax authorities as residents, assuming that they were living in Spain for most of the year.

We were required to switch to French driving licenses which we did several years ago.

In our village there has been a fallout between some of the Brits with those Brexit supporters calling some of their friends traitors. One French lady of my acquaintance complained about the Brexiteers living in France who boast about their big houses and the amount of land that they have but don't make an effort to integrate.

Well, what did anyone expect? Those living and driving in Spain need to get their paperwork in order and they have had plenty of notice. If they did vote for Brexit then I am overjoyed that it has worked out so well for them.

We also switched to French driving licences many years ago Dinahmo, but I didn't think it was a requirement until Brexit? You certainly had to change to a French one if your UK plastic licence expired, you got points on your licence or if you lost your UK one.
I thought there had been some delays at the online centre processing new ones, but I think it is all resolved now.

This is what happens when exiting the UE won the vote

Another point - When in France we switched to french licences very smoothly. Gave up UK one.
When we returned we were told that our french licences here would be valid for 3 years, then we had to get a british one.
I expect that has changed too.
Husband changed his early on, but I decided it was time for me to stop driving anyway. But kept my french license for sentimental reasons. Driving there was such a pleasure (apart from the tailgaters) but here it's the opposite.

Mamie

We also switched to French driving licences many years ago Dinahmo, but I didn't think it was a requirement until Brexit? You certainly had to change to a French one if your UK plastic licence expired, you got points on your licence or if you lost your UK one.
I thought there had been some delays at the online centre processing new ones, but I think it is all resolved now.

I may well be getting confused with re - licensing the car which we were supposed to do within 6 months I think, but we didn't. A few people we know were stopped by the gendarmes and reminded about it - I think that they were recognised by the gendarmes.

We do have one regular poster who has a Second home in Spain who voted Leave. Be Interesting to get her views on this

Dinahmo

I suspect that those who didn't exchange their driving licences were living under the radar and may not have registered with the tax authorities as residents, assuming that they were living in Spain for most of the year.

We were required to switch to French driving licenses which we did several years ago.

In our village there has been a fallout between some of the Brits with those Brexit supporters calling some of their friends traitors. One French lady of my acquaintance complained about the Brexiteers living in France who boast about their big houses and the amount of land that they have but don't make an effort to integrate.

Not the case. I was allowed to drive on a British license when I lived and worked in Spain. Resident, tax payer. I didn't want to give up my British license because I knew I would be returning to the UK eventually.

It seems quite sensible to me. You emigrate to another country you take their driving test. OK BREXIT has made this now compulsory, so you can complain about it but ultimately if you want to live in another country then you have to go by their rules. Like MIDGEY, I can't get worked up about it.

You need to change your licence notgran. You do not need to take a test.