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Exchanging a foreign driving licence for a Dutch driving licence in the Netherlands

Do you have a foreign driving licence and do you live in the Netherlands? You can drive temporarily in the Netherlands on your foreign driving licence. Later, you have to exchange your driving licence at your municipality.

Whether or not you are allowed to drive on your foreign driving licence depends on when you come to live in the Netherlands, and which country you were granted your licence. The rules applicable to you can be found on the Rijksdienst voor het wegverkeer – RDW (Netherlands Vehicle Authority) website.

The exchange of your foreign driving licence is subject to certain conditions. For example you must be registered in the Personal Records Database (Basisregistratie Personen – BRP) at your municipality. You can find all the conditions for exchanging your foreign driving licence on the RDW website.

You can also check whether you can exchange your driving licence (in Dutch) with the RDW chatbot. Choose "Rijbewijs omwisselen" and by answering a few questions the chatbot can provide your answer.

You can apply to exchange your foreign driving licence at your municipality. On the RDW website you can find out the steps to take to exchange your foreign driving licence.

If it is not possible to exchange your licence, you will have to take a theory and practical driving test at the Centraal Bureau Rijvaardigheidsbewijzen – CBR (central office for driving licences). On the CBR website you can find out more information about the licence classes that can be exchanged.

This is how it works for you

Your (future) place of residence falls under:
Informatie:

Here is some information from your municipality.

Exchanging a foreign driving licence for a Dutch driving licence in the Netherlands

If you meet certain conditions, you can exchange your foreign driving license for a Dutch driving license. To exchange your driving license, go to the municipality where you are registered. 

The municipality will forward the application and your foreign driving license to the RDW. So you temporarily don't have a driver's license!

If you send the application directly to the RDW yourself, the application will not be processed.

  • You must live in the Netherlands and be registered with a municipality to exchange a foreign driving licence. 
  • You must hand in your foreign driving licence when you apply. You are not allowed to drive until you have received your new driving licence.

  • valid ID;
  • foreign driver's license; 
  • 1 good passport photo (pasfoto); In some cases you must also have a declaration of suitability; 
  • If your driver's license is missing or stolen, you must report it to the city office; 
  • The driving license that you obtained outside the Netherlands and that you offer for exchange for a Dutch driving license will always be returned to the country of origin, or the country where the driving license was issued. It is therefore not possible to return this driving license to you.

  • Make an appointment: Activity(s) | Municipality of Vlaardingen (mijnafspraakmaken.nl)
  • Application is sent by the municipality to the RDW.
  • From the moment the RDW processes the application, it takes approximately 10 working days before everything is processed. The condition is that all information is correct and the application meets all conditions.
  • The municipality is dependent on the RDW and cannot guarantee the 10 working days. The application may therefore take longer, depending on how busy the RDW is.
  • When you receive a letter from the RDW stating that the driver's license can be collected, you can report to the municipality.
  • The municipality has no access to the RDW process. If you would like more information, please call 088-0087447, option 7.
  • More information about exchanging a foreign driving license:  website RDW

Check the costs on https://www.vlaardingen.nl/Onderwerpen/Paspoort_rijbewijs_uittreksels/Rijbewijs/Vragen_en_antwoorden/Hoe_kan_ik_een_buitenlands_rijbewijs_omwisselen

It takes 2 to 4 weeks for the licences to be exchanged. You will receive a letter from the Rijksdienst voor het Wegverkeer – RDW (Netherlands Vehicle Authority) when you can collect your driving licence. You must collect your driving licence in person. You have 3 months to do this after you have received the letter from the RDW. After that time, the driving licence will be destroyed.

Questions about this topic?

Contact the Municipality of Vlaardingen