US license, UK resident....
Discussion
My sis in law is a US national with a US driver's license 
. As of July last year she's a UK resident. She is going through the process of getting her UK driving licence within the first year of being a resident, which for an American is the full provisional, theory, practical process we all did when we were kids.
My question is, does she need L plates and a co-driver person, like your average learner does? Or is she ok to drive "on her US licence" until she gets her full UK licence, like she would if she was on holiday here.
This is SP&L, so I'm expecting a fair bit of conjecture - all part of the fun
- but if you really know what you're on about it would be good if you could say so.
(FWIW, I bought her some L plates and have her insured on my car. From a practical point of view, driving a manual is probably the biggest sticking point at the mo!)
. As of July last year she's a UK resident. She is going through the process of getting her UK driving licence within the first year of being a resident, which for an American is the full provisional, theory, practical process we all did when we were kids.My question is, does she need L plates and a co-driver person, like your average learner does? Or is she ok to drive "on her US licence" until she gets her full UK licence, like she would if she was on holiday here.
This is SP&L, so I'm expecting a fair bit of conjecture - all part of the fun
- but if you really know what you're on about it would be good if you could say so.(FWIW, I bought her some L plates and have her insured on my car. From a practical point of view, driving a manual is probably the biggest sticking point at the mo!)
bitwrx said:
My sis in law is a US national with a US driver's license . As of July last year she's a UK resident. She is going through the process of getting her UK driving licence within the first year of being a resident, which for an American is the full provisional, theory, practical process we all did when we were kids.
My question is, does she need L plates and a co-driver person, like your average learner does? Or is she ok to drive "on her US licence" until she gets her full UK licence, like she would if she was on holiday here.
Within the year, she's driving on her US full licence - no need for L-plates or accompaniment.. As of July last year she's a UK resident. She is going through the process of getting her UK driving licence within the first year of being a resident, which for an American is the full provisional, theory, practical process we all did when we were kids.My question is, does she need L plates and a co-driver person, like your average learner does? Or is she ok to drive "on her US licence" until she gets her full UK licence, like she would if she was on holiday here.
After that year, her US licence is no longer valid, so she needs a UK provisional - needs L-plates and accompaniment.
designforlife said:
pretty sure you can drive on a "foreign" full driving license in the UK for up to a year..
That's certainly how it was in the olden days. I learnt to drive whilst living in Italy and back in those days (early '80s) that was the situation - could drive for a year with no restrictions/L plates etc. but must pass a UK test within the year to be able to continue afterwards.
Shortly afterwards EU licences were accepted for an exchange but AFAIK the same situation still applies for non EU licences.
bitwrx said:
My sis in law is a US national with a US driver's license. As of July last year she's a UK resident. She is going through the process of getting her UK driving licence within the first year of being a resident, which for an American is the full provisional, theory, practical process we all did when we were kids.
My question is, does she need L plates and a co-driver person, like your average learner does? Or is she ok to drive "on her US licence" until she gets her full UK licence, like she would if she was on holiday here.
This is SP&L, so I'm expecting a fair bit of conjecture - all part of the fun - but if you really know what you're on about it would be good if you could say so.
(FWIW, I bought her some L plates and have her insured on my car. From a practical point of view, driving a manual is probably the biggest sticking point at the mo!)
I have no idea what the answer to your question is but that is wonderful. . As of July last year she's a UK resident. She is going through the process of getting her UK driving licence within the first year of being a resident, which for an American is the full provisional, theory, practical process we all did when we were kids.My question is, does she need L plates and a co-driver person, like your average learner does? Or is she ok to drive "on her US licence" until she gets her full UK licence, like she would if she was on holiday here.
This is SP&L, so I'm expecting a fair bit of conjecture - all part of the fun
- but if you really know what you're on about it would be good if you could say so.(FWIW, I bought her some L plates and have her insured on my car. From a practical point of view, driving a manual is probably the biggest sticking point at the mo!)
I had the same when I came over from the states, you can drive for a year on the foreign licence, after this point you must apply for your UK licence in the usual way, theory, provisional, and L plates. If you have enough experience you can get it all sorted within a couple of weeks. If you are caught driving on your own when you have your UK provisional (no matter how long you've been in the country) you will get the same penalties as anyone else who is caught driving on just a provisional.
If your friend only had a US passport they could check the arrival stamp in the passport. I have heard that the one year 'resets' upon returning to states then coming back, but I don't think this would work.
If your friend only had a US passport they could check the arrival stamp in the passport. I have heard that the one year 'resets' upon returning to states then coming back, but I don't think this would work.
Wow, I'm surprised the US is not on this list!
The list of countries with which Britain has reciprocal agreements includes: Australia, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Hong Kong, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland and Zimbabwe.
When I moved over from SA I was able to exchange my SA licence for a UK one.
The list of countries with which Britain has reciprocal agreements includes: Australia, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Hong Kong, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland and Zimbabwe.
When I moved over from SA I was able to exchange my SA licence for a UK one.
TonyRPH said:
Wow, I'm surprised the US is not on this list!
The list of countries with which Britain has reciprocal agreements includes: Australia, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Hong Kong, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland and Zimbabwe.
When I moved over from SA I was able to exchange my SA licence for a UK one.
Probably down to the US giving licenses away free with cornflakes, rather than having any kind of realistic test.The list of countries with which Britain has reciprocal agreements includes: Australia, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Hong Kong, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland and Zimbabwe.
When I moved over from SA I was able to exchange my SA licence for a UK one.
(Mind you, Zimbabwe...)
Most of those countries are Commonwealth, with the exceptions of Switz and Monaco (only just outside the EU/EEA no-need-to-change), Japan and Korea.
Edited by TooMany2cvs on Thursday 7th June 22:02
TonyRPH said:
Wow, I'm surprised the US is not on this list!
The list of countries with which Britain has reciprocal agreements includes: Australia, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Hong Kong, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland and Zimbabwe.
When I moved over from SA I was able to exchange my SA licence for a UK one.
You wouldn't be if you took a driving test here.The list of countries with which Britain has reciprocal agreements includes: Australia, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Hong Kong, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland and Zimbabwe.
When I moved over from SA I was able to exchange my SA licence for a UK one.
TonyRPH said:
Wow, I'm surprised the US is not on this list!
The list of countries with which Britain has reciprocal agreements includes: Australia, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Hong Kong, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland and Zimbabwe.
When I moved over from SA I was able to exchange my SA licence for a UK one.
BARBADOS!?!? Some of the worst driving I've ever seen! The list of countries with which Britain has reciprocal agreements includes: Australia, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Hong Kong, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland and Zimbabwe.
When I moved over from SA I was able to exchange my SA licence for a UK one.
My wife is driving on a non-exchangeable foreign driving license and as others say, that's fine for 1 year after arriving in the UK.
However, my question is... when she comes to want to pass the UK test to switch to a UK license, can she take the test on her Chilean license, or does she have to get some kind of UK provisional license first? Common sense says the former... but Government processes and common sense ren't always aligned...
However, my question is... when she comes to want to pass the UK test to switch to a UK license, can she take the test on her Chilean license, or does she have to get some kind of UK provisional license first? Common sense says the former... but Government processes and common sense ren't always aligned...
alex98uk said:
However, my question is... when she comes to want to pass the UK test to switch to a UK license, can she take the test on her Chilean license, or does she have to get some kind of UK provisional license first? Common sense says the former... but Government processes and common sense ren't always aligned...
She needs to "take her test" on the UK provisional, so obviously she needs to apply for it, which then gets converted to her full on passing the test.But, within the year, she can drive around quite happily on her Chilean full without L plates and accompaniment.
bigmadjohn said:
If you are caught driving on your own when you have your UK provisional (no matter how long you've been in the country) you will get the same penalties as anyone else who is caught driving on just a provisional.
Not quite sure what you mean by this. If you mean obtaining a UK provisional licence will invalidate a US licence then you are completely wrong.
If you mean that once the 1 year US exemption has run out the UK provisional licence is treated exactly the same as everyone else then you are correct.
But why wait? Get a UK provisional licence whilst still driving on the US one, that gives a whole year to pass the test and get a full UK licence, without having to ever worry about L plates, 'co-driver person', etc.
Edited by NGee on Friday 8th June 11:55
TonyRPH said:
Wow, I'm surprised the US is not on this list!
The list of countries with which Britain has reciprocal agreements includes: Australia, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Hong Kong, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland and Zimbabwe.
When I moved over from SA I was able to exchange my SA licence for a UK one.
Don't quote me on this reply but I think I know why - Most of the countries on the list are part of the Commonwealth and therefor the individuals are entitled by the Commonwealth Rule of Law to be able to exchange all documents - including their drivers licence - to the British equivalent. The list of countries with which Britain has reciprocal agreements includes: Australia, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Hong Kong, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland and Zimbabwe.
When I moved over from SA I was able to exchange my SA licence for a UK one.
Countries on the list that are out with The Commonwealth are able to exchange their licence due to a Political Agreement by Britain which was based on the difficulty to obtain a licence due to the ruthless requirements and competence levels expected in these respective countries.
99dndd said:
bitwrx said:
My sis in law is a US national with a US driver's license. As of July last year she's a UK resident. She is going through the process of getting her UK driving licence within the first year of being a resident, which for an American is the full provisional, theory, practical process we all did when we were kids.
My question is, does she need L plates and a co-driver person, like your average learner does? Or is she ok to drive "on her US licence" until she gets her full UK licence, like she would if she was on holiday here.
This is SP&L, so I'm expecting a fair bit of conjecture - all part of the fun - but if you really know what you're on about it would be good if you could say so.
(FWIW, I bought her some L plates and have her insured on my car. From a practical point of view, driving a manual is probably the biggest sticking point at the mo!)
I have no idea what the answer to your question is but that is wonderful. . As of July last year she's a UK resident. She is going through the process of getting her UK driving licence within the first year of being a resident, which for an American is the full provisional, theory, practical process we all did when we were kids.My question is, does she need L plates and a co-driver person, like your average learner does? Or is she ok to drive "on her US licence" until she gets her full UK licence, like she would if she was on holiday here.
This is SP&L, so I'm expecting a fair bit of conjecture - all part of the fun
- but if you really know what you're on about it would be good if you could say so.(FWIW, I bought her some L plates and have her insured on my car. From a practical point of view, driving a manual is probably the biggest sticking point at the mo!)
TooMany2cvs said:
Probably down to the US giving licenses away free with cornflakes, rather than having any kind of realistic test.
That may vary by state, but I can assure you that California has a comprehensive theory exam and an actual driving test that covers railway crossings, four-way stops, etc And on moving residence from the UK you technically have 14 days to get through it (waiting list for the practical test is 30+ days in San Fran - go figure)
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