Exchanging a driving licence from an EU/EEA country
You can exchange a licence issued in an EU/EEA country for a Norwegian licence for the corresponding category. You are not required to take new tests.
Once you have received a Norwegian driving licence, your foreign driving licence will be returned to the issuing country. Your Norwegian driving licence will then be valid in all countries within the EU/EEA.
You cannot exchange national categories that fall outside the international categories of the Driving Licence Directive.
If you originally obtained your driving licence in a country outside the EU/EEA
If you obtained an EU/EEA driving licence by exchanging a licence from a country outside the EU/EEA, the rules for exchange depend on where you originally obtained your driving licence.
Your application will be processed according to the rules that apply to the country in which your driving licence was originally issued:
- If your EU/EEA driving licence was obtained based on an exchange from a non-EU/EEA country listed in Section 10-2 of the Norwegian Driving Licence Regulations (Lovdata, Norwegian only), you may exchange it for a Norwegian driving licence, provided that the other conditions of the provision are met.
Example: If you have a Spanish driving licence that was issued upon exchange of a US driving licence, this will be processed as a US driving licence. - If your EU/EEA driving licence has been exchanged from any other country outside the EU/EEA, you cannot exchange it for a Norwegian driving licence.
Example: If you have a Polish EU/EEA driving licence that was issued upon exchange of a Russian driving licence, this will be processed as a Russian driving licence. Consequently, you cannot exchange it for a Norwegian driving licence.
In some cases, however, you may still be entitled to a direct exchange of an EU/EEA driving licence that was issued upon exchange of a driving licence from a country outside the EU/EEA.
- If your driving entitlement was upgraded in an EU/EEA country, the categories below the one you added will be considered EU/EEA categories.
Example: If you have a Polish EU/EEA driving licence issued upon exchange of a Russian Category B driving licence, and you upgraded it to include Category C in Poland, your Category B will also be considered Polish. - If you passed a practical driving test and a theory test when you exchanged a non-EU/EEA driving licence for an EU/EEA driving licence, you may exchange your EU/EEA driving licence directly.
- If you have held a valid driving licence in one or more EU/EEA countries for a continuous period of at least ten years before you took up normal residence or moved back to Norway, your driving licence will be processed according to the rules for ordinary EU/EEA driving licences.
Example: If your driving licence was issued in Spain upon the exchange of a driving licence from Morocco, you will normally not be entitled to exchanging your driving licence. However, if you held a valid Spanish driving licence for a continuous period of at least ten years before moving to Norway, you may exchange your Spanish driving licence directly for a Norwegian one.
Special transitional rules apply if you took up normal residence in Norway before 19 January 2013 and have an EU/EEA driving licence that was issued before this date. Your driving licence will then be processed according to the rules for ordinary EU/EEA driving licences.
How to exchange your EU/EEA driving licence
When you apply to exchange your driving licence from another EU/EEA country, we need you to submit
- a completed application form on paper. You do not need to fill out the personal health statement.
- your original driving licence
You need to book an appointment at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Office in order to hand in the application.
You can choose to send the application and your driving licence by post, but then you will not receive a temporary driving permit if you are entitled to one.
Temporary driving permit
If you are entitled to a temporary driving permit when submitting your application, you need to present valid proof of identity. A temporary driving licence is only valid in Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark.
For how long will the categories in your Norwegian driving licence be valid?
Light categories are normally valid for 15 years. “Light categories” include mopeds (AM/M), passenger cars (B, B96, BE), motorcycles (A1, A2, A), snowmobiles (S) and tractors (T).
Heavy categories will have the same validity as the driving licence you exchanged, or they will be valid for five years after you took up normal residence in Norway, if this is shorter. Heavy categories include lorries (C, CE, C1, C1E), buses (D, DE) and minibuses (D1, D1E). If you submit a health certificate, your heavy categories will be valid for five years from the date when your health certificate was issued.
In some cases you must submit a health certificate
You need to submit a health certificate from a doctor if you apply for an exchange of heavy categories and
- your foreign driving licence for heavy categories has expired
- you have had normal residence in Norway for more than five years
We need the original version of your health certificate. It must not be more than three months old when we receive it.
Ask your regular doctor if (s)he can send your health certificate digitally to the Norwegian Public Roads Administration. Your certificate will then be registered here as soon as the doctor has sent it.
If your doctor is unable to do so, you can send your health certificate by post to your nearest Driver and Vehicle Licensing Office. You can also hand it in yourself. You need to book an appointment before you go to a Driver and Vehicle Licensing Office.
Was your application for exchange denied before 1 March 2017?
On 1 March 2017 the procedural rules for the exchange of driving licences issued in EU/EEA countries were changed. If your application to have your licence exchanged was denied on the basis of Section 1-2 of the Regulations relating to Driving Licences, you may file a new application. The changes to the rules relate to where you have normal residence or reside as a student at the time of issue of your driving licence.