Bevdeforges said:
I answered your question about the driver's license in your other thread on the subject.
If there is a right to exchange for your DL, you normally have to do so before you get your first carte de séjour (i.e. as opposed to the titre de séjour you have in your passport now). Fancy way of saying you have to do the exchange within your first year in France.
But if SA doesn't have an exchange agreement with France, you have to start from go (or nearly so). Usually best to contact a driving school in the area. They usually have special arrangements for foreigners who already know how to drive, but just need some "how to drive in France" lessons and the sponsorship for taking the exams from the driving school.
Cheers,
Bev
If the foreign driver's license is exchangeable for a French driver's license it absolutely MUST be exchanged within the first year of your documented entry into France. As far as the regulations are concerned, this date is normally determined by your first carte de sejour, or titre de sejour. However, if one is, let's say an EU national with a non-exchangeable license from "anywhere" then the means and burden of proof for the official residency date can vary depending on at which prefecture one applies for the exchange. I know of one French/American national with a Pennsylvania license who simply had to provide an "attestation" of his residency date in order to exchange his US license.
For a license exchange, probably the most important idea for all foreigners to understand is, "What is the official date of continuous residency in France?" If one has been in France for more than a year, for example, whether or not one has a "titre de sejour" or a "carte de sejour" (or whatever, in name) is practically irrelevant for a license exchange. If one has, or more specifically, if the French government has official documented proof of one's legal entry into the country 365 day prior to the date of the request for a license exchange, the exchange will NOT be allowed. Period! As with all things, there may be someone out there, somewhere in France, who managed an exception through the "normal" French bureaucracy. Well, all that can be said is that person hit the lotto!
In France, if your foreign license is not exchangeable for a French driver's license, and you still want to continue to legally drive, then you MUST take both the written (theoretical, i.e., code de la route) examination, and the actual driver's test (practical, behind the wheel examination with a French examiner). The French government makes an exception for previously licensed foreign drivers (it does not matter which country you come from) only to the extent that previously licensed foreign drivers are not obligated to fulfill the many, many hours of expensive and time-consuming practice driving that are legally required of French adolescent, novice drivers. Otherwise, all foreign licensed drivers are essentially treated as beginners. At the end of the day, what this means is that once one passes the written and road test and receives the Probationary French Driver's license, one receives 6 initial points on their license. After 3 years with zero offenses, one receives a total of 12 points. During the 3 year probationary period, one is legally obligated to display the "A" on the rear of the vehicle, and drive at the reduced speeds for beginners. It does not matter how long a foreigner has been licensed to drive in their former home country. These are the current procedures for foreigners who cannot exchange their current valid foreign driver's licenses to be licensed in France.
