12th April 2009, 05:20 PM
|
|
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by southernguy
I am looking into obtaining a French Driver's License. I have a California driver's license and was wondering if that can be exchanged for a French license. I think about 10 states have reciprocity with France and since California doesn't appear to be one of them, i am wondering with all the changes going on in EU whether France has actually included California in this exchange program. Also, where do you go to do a driver's license exchange and who can one email for direct information?
Thanks
|
From Americans in Toulouse who are normally reliable :
It is legal to drive on your home home country driver’s licence for up to a year, after which time you must apply for a French license. Americans who have been issued a valid driver’s license from Colorado, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Florida or South Carolina, (or an EEC/European Union license), may exchange their license for a French one without passing a test, but only within the first year after the official date of entry into France. You may still retain your US driver’s license upon request.
Americans who have not been issued an EEC/European license or a valid driver’s license by one of the above-mentioned states are required to pass the French driving test if they will be residing in France for more than one year. Some Americans choose to take their chances, and continue to drive past the one-year mark with a US license from a state other than those listed above. Please be advised that, in case of a serious accident for which you are found at fault (especially one involving injuries), doing so makes you vulnerable to charges of having been driving with an invalid license.
A non-French driver’s license is valid for one year after the date of official entry into France. For people who will be residing in France for less than one year, your home country driving license is sufficient, under the following conditions:
• Must have been issued by the home country.
• Must be valid in the home country.
• Must have been obtained prior to the application for a French residency card.
• Must be written in French or accompanied by an official translation (an International License). This requirement is not usually enforced when drivers’ licences from the USA are presented to officials.
• The holder of the license must be 18 years of age, the legal French driving age.
For those who wish, or need, to get a French license, both a code de la route (written) test AND a test de conduite (driving test) must be taken. Check with your employer on whether they offer special sessions to help obtain a French driver’s license (Motorola does).
Auto école (driving schools) are located throughout Toulouse and its suburbs; they provide the opportunity to take practice tests, in French, in preparation for the final written examination. It is possible, though more difficult, to apply for a French license without being enrolled in a driving school, as a candidat libre. In this case, an examination file must be sent to the Préfecture and contain the application, photos d’identité (identity photographs) and a timbre fiscal (tax stamp). “Leftover” American passport photos should not be used for official French documents, as the format is different from French ID-photos taken in the photo booths (color or black-and-white) found in supermarkets, malls and at the Préfecture.
You are required to provide a dual-driver car on the day of the exam. You may have a translator accompany you on both test dates, however due notice of such an arrangement must be given to the Préfecture.
Welcome to French bureaucracy !
Peter
|