UK Driving License expires soon

[nellyt]

This was discussed briefly about a year ago, but the thread never got off the ground http://www.enz.org/forum/showthread....riving+license

Been here 2+ years, got NZ license, UK license needs renewing in a few months (I think because the picture will be 10 years old).

I know I can drive in UK on a kiwi license, but if I want to keep the UK license is it possible?

The only reference on DVLA website I can find is "if you permanently move to another country, you can’t register your new address on your British driving license. You’ll need to contact the driving license authority in your country of residence"
It doesn't say I'm not allowed to use the parent's address, or that I am not allowed a UK license.

Anyone looked into this in more detail?

[nickiware]

perhaps you need to do a change of address first to your parents address, then renew it from that address.

[Kiwi Mac]

I believe you can use any address in the UK.

If converting a Kiwi one back to a UK one is as easy as the other way around, I'm not sure I'll bother keeping my UK one when it runs out - especially as technically it is the photo rather than the driving entitlement that expires.

I'd just drive on the old one and say "Oh, I've been living abroad" if I got stopped!

[Duncan74]

If you do it that way round (ie let it expire then convert back from Kiwi to UK) will the entiltements be the new ones, or the old ones? May not be an issue, but there was a reduction in the default classifications in the mid 1990s.

[rizjunior]

The photo part expires in 10 years but paper part is valid for over 30 years. You can use your parents address and renew photo part.

[M-Squared]

I guess my question would be "are you planning on moving back to the UK?" Not quite sure why you need to maintain a UK licence if you don't live there and don't need it?

[Flutterby]

have been told in the past that it is illegal to drive on a foreign license if you have held a license in that country, so maybe this is the reason for wishing to renew it!
It was an issue for us here as DP's kiwi license expired while we were out of the country but he needed to be able to drive immediately upon returning here and couldn't renew until he was here!

[Kiwi Mac]

If you do it that way round (ie let it expire then convert back from Kiwi to UK) will the entiltements be the new ones, or the old ones? May not be an issue, but there was a reduction in the default classifications in the mid 1990s.

That's a point; sadly you don't get the pre-reduction enhancements (eg 7500 kg lorry) on your new Kiwi licence when you get one!

[Flutterby]

be warned, when OH converted his KIWI license to a UK one they took his kiwi one away (claiming they were returning it to NZ) caused us more hassle when getting it back here (and DVLA never actually returned it to NZ)