Fair Lady

Please move this if in the wrong section. Was not sure where to post. I am living in Ireland and prior to that lived in the US for four years. Just noticed that my British driving license expired in 2010 and I had no idea! It was issued in 2008 and was therefore only valid for two years. For some reason I thought it was valid for years but I guess not. I have a valid US license which I can drive on here in Ireland but want to renew my British one. How do I do this when I am not residing in the UK? The gov.uk website states I must have a permanent UK address but don't because we have not been living in US for four years. Shocked I never noticed this but then I guess I never took out my British license when living there in the US.

BritInParis

Do you hold an old paper licence or a photocard with a paper counterpart? Two years validity doesn't sound right unless it's only a provisional licence. Did you pass your test in the UK, the US or both?

Your photocard is normally valid for 10 years from date of issue. These are the dates printed on the front of your photocard. The validity date of your licence is normally the day you passed your practical test until the day before your 70th birthday. This is printed on the rear of the photocard. The older paper licences don't expire until the day before your 70th birthday.

However you can't renew either unless you are residing in the UK.

Fair Lady

Thanks BritinParis. Mine is the photo card with paper counterpart. I used to have just the old paper license then it was changed to this when I needed to change my surname and address. I have to be honest, two years validity does seem wrong and I wondered if they had made a mistake. I passed my test when living in the UK at age 18 in 1989, (many years ago)!!! So on the paper it says valid until 2042 and also on the back of the card it says 2042.

The website clearly says it has expired but does that just mean the photo card? Is my actually license still valid? Confused.

BritInParis

Your licence is still valid but you cannot use it until you have renewed your photocard and you cannot do that without being resident in the UK. Your US licence is only valid for your first twelve months in Ireland.

You can exchange your expired UK licence for an Irish one however. If you return to the UK you can then exchange your Irish licence to get back your UK licence.

Converting your driving licence to an Irish driving licence

https://www.ndls.ie/holders-of-foreign-licences.html

Fair Lady

Not been here long in Ireland so at least the US one is valid. That is good to know about exchanging my UK one for an Irish license. Might just do that then. Thank you for the links, appreciate that.