If you are thinking of coming to Spain or Portugal after Brexit, you need to know that from 1 January 2021 UK driving licences are subject to the general rules on licences issued by non-EU countries.
But do not worry, driving in Spain isn’t going to be too different to after Brexit. If you come on holiday and the details on your driving licence are in Roman characters, and is currently valid, you won’t have any problems. The same applies if you have decided to travel to Portugal after Brexit.
Do remember that as was also the case before, we cannot accept photocopies or faxed copies of licences. You will always need to present the original document.
If you are not coming on holiday and have decided to live in Spain, you’ll need to exchange your foreign driving licence for a provisional one, or have your licence officially validated. You can do this through the Dirección General de Tráfico.
As long as you bear in mind these updates that affect your driving licence, then all you need to do is simply enjoy being on the road! But it’s a good idea to take a few more points into account.
We know that your driving licence isn’t your only concern, you’ll also have to think about the differences that affect you when you’re actually driving.
The main and very obvious difference is that we drive on the other side of the road. In both Spain and Portugal, motorists drive on the right.
But there are some other regulations that you should also be aware of in order to make sure that you have a pleasant driving experience with no nasty surprises. Here you have a few of them:
At Record go we give you the option to pay automatically in any currency. If you need to pay in sterling, whether via our website or at one of our offices, we will let you know what the exchange rate is and apply it right away so that there are no surprises!
If you ask to pay in your own currency, remember that in the ‘Payment’ (‘Pago’) section of your contract you will see the total amount in euros next to the exchange rate information.