Mr David

We are seriously looking to buying a property in Basilicata but before we actually buy I need to know if there is any problems in exchanging my UK licence to an Italian one. We also enjoy travelling around in a motorhome that weighs 5000kgs so I need to keep my C1 category. I have no medical problems and I'm 71 years old.
Does anyone have any knowledge or experience in this field.
Thanks in advance. David

philat98

This article says that after 2020 conversion will not be possible until an agreement is in place between Italy and the UK. As non EU citizen resident in Italy you can only drive for one year before obtaining an Italian licence and you need an international licence written in Italian.. I dont think there is a problem converting the C1 if there is an agreement. On the UK website it just says the rules will change after 2020.
Brexit: trasporti e patenti di guida

Serrano

You should also be aware that, if when you get an Italian C1 licence, it will need to be renewed every 2 years, including a medical and eyetest each time (none of which come free).

Also, even if there is some agreement that will allow you to continue driving on your UK licence for some time, even that will be demed to expire (for Italian purposes) after 2 years, regardless of what's written on it.

Listen Very Carefully

The other thing to consider is your health care ie after Jan 2021 the S1 form will not be available to you so you may need private cover or have to make voluntary contributions unless others know better

Mr David

Thanks for the various posts in reply to my question. Up to now I've only been able to easily find information on category A and B licences but now I know it shouldn't be a problem for cat C1.

HADENOUGHPIZZA

Although the government website makes the Exchange sound simple and quick many of us have found it a very difficult processs . It should be straightforward but it varies enormously from town to town and you may end up going though ACI or adriving school, having to have medical tests and waiting months . Personally it took me 4 months but Parma has one of the '' worst civil motorisation offices in Italy '' as described in the local newspapaer recently . As soon as you arrive start the process.

philat98

I am just renewing mine at the moment and that is quite a bother. To avoid going to the post office and the ASL I am doing it at all the ACI. I guess the ACI do the conversion too. We were stopped by police on the way home. Fortunately an appointment at the ACI was a valid travel reason.

Casagialla

You will also have to re register your motorhome with Italian plates

Accetturese

For me, resident in Basilicata, the process of swapping my license was quick and painless - and cheap.
I would think that getting your motorhome replated to Italian reg will make any problems with your license seem trifling.
Whereabouts in Basilicata will you be moving to?

Mr David

We are looking at the rural areas around Matera. We are hoping for a smallish house with some land that's acceptable with a motorhome.

C.2s

Personally, bearing in mind the timescale pressures, I'd rent somewhere for a year (and maybe not be too fussy if it doesn't exactly fit your requirements) and use that address to get your residency sorted. And thereby have the possibility of exchanging your licence too. Then you could relax a bit and take your time to get to know the area & look at lots of properties before you buy. I reckon you're more likely to find something that is better in the long term if you do that.

As for the motorhome, unfortunately exchanging the number plate is not easy and costly. In fact it was so much bother that we gave up and decided to buy a motorhome here - and due to Covid our English motorhome is still in storage in the UK waiting to be sold! Maybe next year :-)

One thing to consider is that once you get residency you only have a certain amount of time before you must reregister (90 days I think) and once you start the process (which can take a long time) you cannot use/keep the vehicle on the road anymore...so you'll need an alternative form of transport or maybe rent a house nearer a town to start with, and think about where you can park it off-road until you complete the reregistration process (and not in a public car park).

Other people have reregistered vehicles so it is possible - but difficult. There are lots of other threads on this forum that talk in a lot more detail about this.

Mr David

Thanks for your thoughts and experiences. All good food for thought.
Such a shame we hadn't discovered the delights of Italy much earlier!! So much to do and so little time to do it.

SanNico

I agree with the comment that you may be better off getting a motorhome in Italy, especially as they are quite common in the south. Registering a foreign vehicle is a huge pain in the rear. I registered my Italian car in Germany and then returned a year later with the same car, it took 3 months and cost a pretty penny. They insisted on translated documents even though I still had a copy of the original Italian documents.
For the license, just go to an agency and they'll do it quickly and for a reasonable cost including the medical. I think I paid around 110 Euro inclusive and it was complete within a month. It would have been within two weeks but there was a problem as I hadn't changed it within the time limit. The renewal shouldn't be a problem as it's every 3 years for over 70's anyway.