Driving Licence Reciprocity — Notable Pairs

The UK does not recognise US licences for exchange. Americans in the UK may drive on their US licence for up to 12 months from entry, then must pass the full UK theory + practical test. There is no reciprocal exchange route.

All Canadian provinces and US states have reciprocal exchange arrangements. A valid US licence exchanges for the equivalent provincial licence with no road test required; same in reverse. Vision and knowledge tests may be waived in some provinces.

Australia and the USA maintain reciprocal exchange agreements across all states and territories. A valid, unexpired US licence can be swapped for an equivalent Australian licence with no test. Motorcycles: class must match.

Bilateral exchange treaty in force. A valid US licence (from any state) exchanges for a German Führerschein with no theory or practical test. The German licence is then valid across the entire EU/EEA.

Spain–USA bilateral exchange agreement covers both directions. No test required. US holders must submit the DGT exchange application within 6 months of Spanish residency, otherwise the full Spanish test is required.

France and the USA have a bilateral agreement covering all 50 US states. Exchange via French préfecture. US holders have 12 months from first registering in France to exchange; after that they must sit the French test.

There is no blanket USA–Mexico national exchange treaty. Some Mexican states accept a valid US licence for conversion with a knowledge test only; others require a full test. Mexicans with a valid Mexican licence may drive in US states for up to 12 months; no direct exchange route to a US licence exists at federal level.

South Korea and the USA have a bilateral exchange agreement. No test required in either direction. A US licence must be submitted with a Korean translation of name/date fields if the DLAC (Driver Licensing Authority of the applicant's country) confirmation is not in English.

Japan is one-way: US licence holders can obtain a Japanese licence via a knowledge test and document exchange (no practical test if the US licence is more than 3 months old before Japanese residency). Japanese licence holders moving to the US must sit the relevant US state test — Japan is not on most states' exchange lists.

One of the most straightforward exchanges in the world: a valid UK photocard licence swaps for an equivalent Australian licence in any state with no test whatsoever.

Mutual exchange: a valid UK photocard licence converts to a South African licence with no test, provided the application is made within 5 years of South African residency. South African licence holders moving to the UK may drive for 12 months then must sit the UK test — no UK exchange route from a South African licence.

Pre-Brexit, UK licences were valid EU documents exchangeable seamlessly. Post-Brexit (from 1 Jan 2021), each EU member state sets its own terms. Most EU states (Germany, France, Spain, Ireland, Netherlands, etc.) accept UK licence exchange without a test via bilateral arrangements, but timelines differ. EU licence holders arriving in the UK can exchange for a UK licence without a test if the EU licence was issued in an EU state — exchange must happen within 12 months of UK residency.

UAE residents with a valid UK photocard licence can exchange for a UAE licence with no test. UAE residents with a valid UAE licence moving to the UK can exchange for a UK licence without a test, provided they register within 12 months of arrival. One of the cleaner Gulf bilateral arrangements.

Mutual exchange with no test required in either direction for equivalent vehicle classes.

Citizens and permanent residents of Australia and NZ can drive on each other's licence indefinitely (both countries drive on the left; very similar rules), and may exchange at any point with no test. The smoothest bilateral arrangement in the region.

No Canada–Mexico bilateral licence exchange agreement exists. Canadians in Mexico may drive on their Canadian licence (with IDP) as tourists; for residency, a knowledge or full test is typically required depending on Mexican state. Mexicans moving to Canada must sit the provincial test.

EU Directive 2006/126/EC mandates full mutual recognition of driving licences across all EU/EEA member states. A licence issued in any EU/EEA state is valid across the bloc. No exchange or test is required when moving between EU member states; administrative exchange is optional/administrative only.

One of the rare non-English-speaking country pairs with full mutual exchange. German holders in Japan exchange with no practical test but must provide a certified German-to-Japanese translation of the licence. Japanese holders in Germany exchange with no test; an official Japanese-to-German translation is required.

France and Morocco maintain one of the most active bilateral licence exchange agreements given the large Franco-Moroccan diaspora. No test is required in either direction; both countries use French as a licence language.

Spain and Argentina have a bilateral agreement allowing licence exchange without a test in either direction. As both countries use Spanish, no translation is required. Argentine holders in Spain should exchange via the DGT before the 6-month residency mark to avoid complications.

Bilateral Spain–Chile agreement in force with no test in either direction. Chilean licence holders in Spain have 6 months from residency registration to exchange; Spanish licence holders in Chile have 1 year.

Strong bilateral relationship. No test required in either direction. Both licences are issued in Portuguese; no translation needed. Brazil→Portugal exchange is handled by the IMT (Instituto da Mobilidade e dos Transportes); Portugal→Brazil by DETRAN of the relevant Brazilian state.

Portugal and Cape Verde (former Portuguese colony) maintain a bilateral exchange arrangement with no test required. Both licences are in Portuguese.

Under the Union State treaty framework, Russian and Belarusian licences are mutually recognised with seamless exchange and no test. Licences from both countries are in Cyrillic and share the same categories.

Switzerland is not an EU/EEA member but has bilateral agreements with the EU under the bilateral accords. EU/EEA licence holders in Switzerland can exchange for a Swiss licence within 12 months without a test. Swiss licence holders can exchange for an EU licence in any EU member state without a test (timelines vary by member state).

Mercosur mutual licence recognition covers Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay. No test required. Licence categories must correspond. Spanish/Portuguese language licences accepted without translation.

The UAE acceded to the Hague Apostille Convention in Jan 2025, but licence exchange is a separate bilateral matter. Germany, France, Netherlands, and several other EU states accept UAE licence exchange with no test. Most EU states require an official Arabic-to-local-language translation of the UAE licence. Check with the specific EU member state.

Saudi Arabia accepts a valid US licence for exchange with no test if presented within 3 months of iqama (residency permit) issue. A certified English-to-Arabic translation is required. In the reverse direction, Saudi licence holders moving to the US cannot exchange — they must sit the relevant US state driving test.

The UK is on the Saudi approved-exchange list. A valid UK photocard licence exchanges for a Saudi licence with no test within 3 months of iqama issue; a certified translation is needed. Saudi licence holders in the UK cannot exchange — they must pass the full UK theory and practical tests.

Japan and South Korea have a bilateral exchange agreement with no practical test. Official translation of the licence (Japanese↔Korean) is required. Knowledge test is waived for both directions.

Mutual exchange with no test required. Australia and South Africa are both right-hand-drive countries with similar road rules, facilitating the agreement.

Mutual exchange in both directions with no test required. Both countries drive on the left and have similar road rule frameworks.

Switzerland accepts US licences for exchange without a test within 12 months of registering Swiss residency. US states vary: most do not list Switzerland for exchange, so Swiss holders moving to the US typically must sit the state test.

Bilateral agreement in place with no practical test in either direction. UK holders in Japan must provide a certified English-to-Japanese translation; Japanese holders in the UK must provide a translation of their licence details.

Same as the USA↔Germany entry above, listed again here from the German perspective. German licence holders moving to the US should note that not all states accept German licences for direct exchange — check the individual state DMV.

All Canadian provinces and the UK have bilateral exchange arrangements. Canadian licence holders may drive in the UK for up to 12 months then exchange without a test. UK holders may exchange for the provincial licence upon establishing residency.

France and Algeria maintain a bilateral licence exchange agreement — one of France's busiest given the large Franco-Algerian diaspora. No test required in either direction; French is used in both licences.

India is on the UAE approved-exchange list. Indian licence holders can exchange for a UAE licence with no test within 3 months of iqama, with a certified Hindi/regional-language-to-Arabic translation if required. UAE licence holders returning to India cannot exchange directly and must sit the Indian RTO test.

Mutual exchange in both directions with no test. Both countries use similar common-law road rule frameworks derived from British practice.