HEALTHPLAN MAGAZINE

British citizens living in Spain have been urged by the UK Embassy to get their residency and exchange driving licences before the end of the year.

With the transition period set to end on December 31, 2020, the Embassy sought to remind expats in Spain as to the importance of getting their residencia sorted prior to the current deadline.

They also took the opportunity to remind UK nationals in Spain that as long as they were registered as resident in Spain, they would maintain their citizen’s rights to live and work here.

Residencia Appointments

Due to the Coronavirus lockdown, the public administration offices that usually deal with residency applications have been closed. However, now that most regions have started to enter phase 2/3 of the de-escalation process, some are now accepting a limited number of appointments.

To find out whether your area is accepting face-to-face residency appointments, you can visit the following official SEDE public administration website. 

https://sede.administracionespublicas.gob.es/icpplus/index.html

The following page details everything you need to know about getting residency in Spain. 

Driving Licence Exchanges

The British Embassy also stressed that UK nationals resident in Spain would also need to exchange their British driving licences by the end of the year if they wish to avoid having to sit a Spanish driving test.

Now that many regions have entered into phase 2 of the COVID-19 de-escalation, many of the regional DGT offices have begun to accept appointments once again.

This will be good news for those wishing to make a new appointment and for those who had previously made an appointment but had it cancelled due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

You will now be able to book an appointment online at https://sedeclave.dgt.gob.es/WEB_NCIT_CONSULTA/solicitarCita.faces or by calling 060 from June 8.

When you visit the page above, you will have a few options. If your licence has expired or is due to expire in the next few months, you should select the ‘renovación’ option.

If your licence has been lost, you should choose the ‘sustitución’ option.

For all other requirements, you should select the ‘canje’ option.

It’s important to note that due to the current restrictions on travelling between the different Spanish provinces, you will only be able to request an appointment in the province where you live.

For further information on the offices that are currently accepting appointments, please see the following link https://sede.dgt.gob.es/es/otros-tramites/cita-previa-jefaturas/

Remember that you will need to wear a mask if visiting one of the DGT offices.

The DGT has published a page outlining all the most common questions about driving during the Coronavirus lockdown and de-escalation phases. You can view that page here http://www.dgt.es/es/covid-19/

[Update 10/06/2020] - UK driving licence holders in Spain have now been granted a 7-month extension to renew their licence photocards by the DVLA.

If you are resident in Spain and your photocard expires between February 1, 2020, and August 31, 2020, it will now be automatically extended for 7-months.

See the following article for further details.

https://www.healthplanspain.com/blog/spain-news/954-uk-drivers-7-month-licence-extension.html

[Update 17/11/2020]

On November 16, 2020, the Spanish authorities launched a new process for UK nationals to exchange their driving licences. You can find out more about the new two-step process here.

https://www.healthplanspain.com/blog/spain-news/1039-brexit-spain-launches-new-process-for-brits-to-exchange-driving-licences.html