Exchanging a foreign driving licence in France (ANTS)

Documents you need

• Passport or ID card

  required

• Proof of address less than six months old

  required

• Residence permit, validated long-stay visa (VLS-TS) or OFII sticker (non-EU nationals)

  required

• Digital ID photo and signature code (e-photo from an approved booth or photographer)

  required

• Colour scan of both sides of your foreign licence

  required

• Official translation of the licence if it is not in French

  optional

• Certificate of driving entitlement from the issuing country

  Usually required for non-EU licences

  optional

• Proof that you lived in the issuing country when you obtained the licence

  For non-EU licences when you are not a national of that country

  optional

Step by step

1. 1

   Step 1: Check whether you must exchange

   • EU/EEA licence: you can keep driving with it. An exchange becomes mandatory if the licence expires, if you want to add a category, if you commit an offence leading to a loss of points, restriction, suspension or cancellation, or if it is lost, stolen or damaged.
   • Non-EU licence: valid for one year from the start of your normal residence in France. For most foreign nationals arriving for the first time, the year runs from the date your first residence permit was issued, the date your long-stay visa (VLS-TS) was validated or the OFII sticker date, or for refugees and protected persons, the date of the protection receipt.
   • Students with a valid student residence document can drive on their foreign licence during their studies and do not have to exchange it; when they change to another residence status, they must apply within a year of receiving the new document.
   • UK licences issued before 2021 do not need to be exchanged unless one of the EU-type triggers applies.
2. 2

   Step 2: Check whether your licence is exchangeable

   Use the official simulator on Service-Public.fr to see whether France exchanges licences from your country and for which categories. You must also have passed the test while you were normally resident in the issuing country, be old enough for the category in France, have a valid licence and not be under a suspension or withdrawal in that country.

3. 3

   Step 3: Prepare the documents

   • A colour scan of both sides of your licence.
   • An official translation if the licence is not in French: made abroad and legalised or apostilled, or made in France by a sworn translator (traducteur assermenté) or by your consulate.
   • Proof of identity, proof of address less than six months old, and your residence permit or validated visa.
   • A certificate of driving entitlement (relevé des droits à conduire) issued by the authorities of the issuing country less than six months ago.
   • A digital photo and signature (e-photo), with the code given by an approved photo booth or photographer.
   • For heavy-vehicle categories, a medical fitness certificate, or a written renunciation of those categories.
4. 4

   Step 4: Apply online on ANTS and pay the fee

   Create or use your account on the ANTS driving licence portal, choose "exchange of a foreign licence" and upload the documents. Since 12 May 2026, the exchange costs a €40 stamp duty (timbre fiscal), €20 in French Guiana, paid online during the procedure or bought beforehand from a tax office or an authorised tobacconist. It covers making and sending the new licence.

5. 5

   Step 5: Send your original licence and drive with the ADS

   When the file is pre-approved, you receive an email or SMS asking you to send your original licence by registered post to the processing centre. Once it has been received, you can download a secure deposit certificate (attestation de dépôt sécurisée, ADS), valid for four months, which allows you to keep driving in France while your file is processed.

6. 6

   Step 6: Receive your French licence

   After validation, the French licence is produced and sent to you by tracked post, usually around two weeks later. Follow the progress in your ANTS account.

Watch out

Common mistakes

• Counting the year from your arrival date instead of from your first residence permit or visa validation, or the reverse; check which date applies to you.
• Forgetting the official translation or using an uncertified translation.
• Waiting until the last weeks before the deadline; collecting a certificate of driving entitlement from abroad can take time.

Tips

• Request the certificate of driving entitlement from your home country before you leave, if possible.
• Keep a copy of every document you upload and of the ADS; police may ask for it during a check.
• If you have questions, France Titres has a phone service at 34 00 (from abroad 09 70 83 07 07), Monday to Friday.

Frequently asked questions

Editorial answers written by our team, based on the sources below.

Official links

In your plan

• Exchange a non-EU driving licence within one yearAdd to plan
• Get a certificate of your driving rights before you leaveAdd to plan
• Validate your VLS-TS onlineAdd to plan

Sources

Written and checked by HomiStart editorial against the official sources below. Next scheduled check: 4 Feb 2027.