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On the road
A genuine tourist visiting Spain and driving either his own car from his own country or a Spanish rental car can do so on the licence issued to him in his home country. He needs no translation or official certification to do this, and the privilege is good for a visit up to six months.
Alter that it gets more complicated.
Who needs what licence
EU citizen, non-resident
If you are driving a vehicle you own on normal Spanish registration, you must have one of the following extra documents:
- 1. An International Driving Permit in addition to your home country licence.
- 2. An official translation of your driving licence, often available through the Spanish Consulate in your home country.
- 3. A Certificado de Equivalencia, a “Certificate of Equivalence”, prepared by Spain’s Royal Automobile Club, the RACE.
This applies to both EU and non-EU citizens who own cars on normal Spanish registration. The reason for the exercise is that Spanish traffic police want somebody who is regularly on Spanish roads and not merely a tourist visitor, to carry a licence they can read and understand.
If you do not have one of these extra documents, you can be fined €300 for carrying an improper licence.
EU citizen, resident
If you are an EU citizen who is resident in Spain you will need both of the following documents:
- 1. Spanish driving licence.
- 2. Your home driving licence.
It is very easy now to exchange your EU driving licence for a Spanish permit. Go to your provincial traffic headquarters with your present licence and a photocopy, one photograph and your residence card and photocopy. If you are lucky and the line is short, you can get your Spanish licence within a few hours. The cost is only €15.80. This exchange procedure is called canje.
If you later return to your home country, you can re-exchange your Spanish licence for a home country licence, just as you did here, only in reverse.
Your home country licence must be stamped by the provincial traffic department, the Jefatura de Trafico.
Spain allows EU citizens who take out a Spanish residence permit to continue using their original licences. However, the driver must take this licence to his provincial traffic headquarters, where it is registered in the Spanish list of drivers and violators, in the computer, and is stamped.
If he does not do this, and simply continues using his home licence, he can be fined €300 for improper licence.
Non-EU citizen, non-resident
For the first six months of your stay in Spain, driving your car on its home country registration or driving a rental car, you can simply use your home country licence with no problem.
If you cannot document your absence from Spain in the past six months, you can be fined €300 for improper licence. Spanish traffic police know that many foreigners are staying in Spain over their legal time limit, and they are starting to crack down on this practice.
If you are driving a vehicle that you own on Spanish registration, you must have:
- 1. An International Driving Permit to carry in addition to your home country licence.
- 2. Or an official translation of your driving licence, often available through the Spanish Consulate in your home country.
- 3. Or a Certificado de Equivalencia, a “Certificate of Equivalence”, which is prepared by Spain’s Royal Automobile Club, the RACE.
This applies to both EU and non-EU citizens. The reason for the exercise is that Spanish traffic police want somebody who is regularly on Spanish roads and not merely a tourist visitor, to carry a licence they can read and understand.
Non-EU citizen, resident
Now things start to get tough for the non-European Union citizen. He absolutely must have a Spanish driving licence when he becomes a resident of Spain. There is no alternative.
Furthermore, he cannot exchange his home country licence for a Spanish one. Because the European Union is still working out its international agreements on driving licences, no non-EU licence can be exchanged at this time, and for the immediate future.
This means that Americans, Swiss, Australians, and so on must take the Spanish driving examination, both written and practical, just as beginning Spanish drivers do.
Furthermore, they must take the written exam in Spanish. Formerly the exam could be taken in several languages but now it is only in Spanish. Really, it is only logical. A person who does not know that peligro means “danger” could get into trouble.
Furthermore, the non-EU citizen must attend a Spanish driving school, and pay its fees, in order to take the exam. The Spanish autoescuelas have got a hammer lock on the system and have become semi-official bodies. You cannot go for the exam without the school.
A rock-bottom price for a few classes on the rules of the road, and a few driving classes, plus the exam cost, would be about €500. And of course you must take the eye and reaction test as well.
The minimum age for a B licence, the most usual sort, is 18 and the maximum age is 65, if you have never held a licence before.
If you are 68 years old when you arrive in Sp~in, don’t worry. The 65-year figure applies only to first-timers. You can continue to renew your existing permit as long as you are physically able to drive safely. If you are under 45, your licence will be issued for 10 years; between 45 and 70, for five years. Those over 70 will have to renew their licence every year, which means a medical examination each time.
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