Exchanging a driving licence from an EU/EEA country

You can exchange a licence issued in an EU/EEA country for a Norwegian licence in 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.

New rules from 1 January 2027

As from 1 January 2027, we are making some changes to the rules for EU/EEA driving licences issued upon exchange of a driving licence from a country outside the EU/EEA.  

In some cases, such a driving licence may be exchanged directly. This means that the licence may be exchanged for a Norwegian one without you having to take any tests. Also, in some cases, you can have your licence exchanged after passing a theory test and/or a practical driving test. 

The categories on your EU/EEA driving licence may be treated differently when you apply for exchange; see the headings below. If the conditions for direct exchange or exchange after passing tests are not met, you cannot have your driving licence exchanged for a Norwegian licence. 

Direct exchange 

Your driving licence may qualify for direct exchange if you passed a theory test and/or a practical driving test when you exchanged your original driving licence in an EU/EEA country. 

Category AM 

You can have this category exchanged directly if you passed a theory test. 

Category A1, A2 or A 

The A category you passed the test for, as well as lower A categories, can be directly exchanged if you passed a theory test and a practical test. 

Category B 

Your driving licence for passenger cars can be directly exchanged for a Norwegian licence for Category B and AM if you passed a theory test and a practical driving test. 

Category BE, C1E, D1E or DE 

The category you passed the test for, as well as equivalent and lower categories, can be exchanged directly if you passed a practical driving test. 

Category C1, C, CE, D1 or D 

The category you passed the test for, as well as equivalent and lower categories, can be exchanged directly if you passed a theory test and a practical driving test. 

Have you upgraded your driving licence to include a new category in an EU/EEA country? 

The category you upgraded to include, as well as equivalent and lower categories, can then be exchanged directly. 

Equivalent and lower categories

If you hold a driving licence for one category, you also hold a licence for the categories that are lower or equivalent. That they are equivalent means that they are on the same level. 

Categories are ranked in the following ascending order, from lowest to highest: 

Did you have your driving licence from Switzerland or Great Britain exchanged for an EU/EEA driving licence? 

You can then have all the categories on your driving licence exchanged directly. 

Did you have your driving licence exchanged for an EU/EEA driving licence before 19 January 2013, and have you had normal residence in Norway since before this date? 

You can then have all the categories on your driving licence exchanged directly. 

Exchange after passing the theory test and/or practical driving test 

If your driving licence does not meet any of the criteria specified under "Direct exchange," you can have it exchanged after passing tests. The condition is that the answer is yes to one of the two questions below: 

Did you hold an EU/EEA driving licence for at least two years before you took up normal residence in or moved back to Norway? 

You can then have your driving licence exchanged after passing tests. 

  • Category AM can be exchanged after you have passed the theory test. 
  • Categories A1, A2, and A can be exchanged after you have passed the theory test and the practical driving test. 
  • Categories B can be exchanged after you have passed the theory test and the practical driving test. 
  • Categories BE and heavy categories can be exchanged after first passing tests for Category B and then passing the practical driving test for the heaviest category you wish to exchange. 

The rules for exchange in this case are the same as for exchanging a driving licence from a country outside the EEA: Exchanging a driving licence from Australia, Canada, Israel, Monaco, New Zealand, San Marino, South Korea or USA

Is the country your original driving licence is from one of the countries outside the EU/EEA from which we grant exchange? 

Is your original driving licence from Australia, Canada, Israel, Monaco, New Zealand, San Marino, South Korea, the USA, Japan, or Greenland? Then you may be granted an exchange pursuant to the rules that apply to exchange from these countries. 

See the rules that apply here: 

Not entitled to exchange 

For your EEA driving licence to entitle you to an exchange in Norway, one of the following points must apply to you. You:    

  • held an EU/EEA driving licence for at least two years before taking up normal residence in or moving back to Norway 
  • passed tests when your original driving licence was exchanged for an EU/EEA licence 
  • have upgraded your driving licence to include to an equivalent or higher category in an EU/EEA country 
  • have an original driving licence from a country outside the EU/EEA from which exchange may be granted 
  • hold an EEA driving licence from before 19 January 2013 and have had normal residence in Norway since before this date 

If you cannot answer yes to any of these, you are not entitled to an exchange. 

How to exchange your EU/EEA driving licence

You may hand in your application and your original driving licence at a Driver and Vehicle Licensing Office or send both documents by post. If you send them by post, you will not receive a temporary driving permit.    

You need to book an appointment at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Office in order to hand in the application. 

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

Application for driving licence (PDF)

Find a driver and vehicle licensing office

Book an appointment at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Office

Temporary driving permit

When you submit the completed application form and your original driving licence, we will consider whether we can grant you a temporary driving permit. If you would have been allowed to keep driving with the driving licence you are submitting, you will be issued a temporary driving permit. This permit is only valid in Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark.  

You need to show valid proof of identity to be issued a temporary driving permit. 

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.

Find a Driver and Vehicle Licensing Office (trafikkstasjon)

Book an appointment at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Office

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.

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.

Foreign driving licence in Norway