Driving licence and car

Steps

1. Check that your licence is enough. Great Britain: EU or EEA car or motorcycle licence valid until you are 70 (or 3 years after you settle if you were 67 or older). Exception: if your European licence itself comes from the exchange of a non-European licence, you can only drive for 12 months. Northern Ireland: you drive for as long as your licence is valid; lorry and bus entitlements follow shorter rules.
2. Exchange it if you want to or have to. In Great Britain, the exchange is done by post with the DVLA using form D1 ("Exchange a non-GB driving licence" tool on gov.uk), with no test. In Northern Ireland, form DL1 (at main post offices), original identity documents, photo, proof of residence and payment, sent to the DVA; you must normally reside there.
3. If you import your car, notify HMRC within 14 days (NOVA, Notification of Vehicle Arrivals). If you had it brought in by a carrier, the customs declaration and the payment of VAT and duty generally go through them, at the border. If you bring it yourself (ferry or tunnel), you contact HMRC's CARS team within 14 days: they make the NOVA notification for you, once any duty and VAT have been paid.
4. Apply for the moving relief (Transfer of Residence relief) before using it, with form ToR1: it avoids VAT and duty if you have lived outside the United Kingdom for at least 12 months in a row and owned the vehicle for at least 6 months before your move. The vehicle must be imported within 12 months of your arrival, and cannot be sold, lent or hired out for 12 months.
5. Have the vehicle approved. For a car already approved and registered in the EU, ask the manufacturer for the European certificate of conformity; if it is left-hand drive, you also need a GB conversion IVA certificate (contact: Vehicle Certification Agency). A vehicle registered or manufactured more than 10 years ago may be exempt (checking tool on gov.uk). The GB conversion IVA certificate costs £100; it does not exist for lorries over 3.5 tonnes.
6. Register and tax it with the DVLA (fee of £55 for a first registration, by cheque or postal order). You receive a British number for your plates. Before completing these steps, you may only drive to go to a booked test (MOT or approval).
7. Insure it (at least third party, third party) before taking to the road, and take the MOT test (MOT) every year once the car is 3 years old.

Documents

• Your European licence (in Northern Ireland, the DVA returns it to the authority that issued it after the exchange) and an identity document.
• Form D1 (Great Britain) or DL1 (Northern Ireland), ID photo for Northern Ireland.
• For the car: foreign registration certificate, NOVA reference, ToR1 authorisation if you apply for the relief, European certificate of conformity (and GB conversion IVA certificate if left-hand drive), MOT if it is more than 3 years old, insurance certificate.

Costs and timelines

• Licence exchange (Great Britain, rates displayed in October 2026): £43 by post if you have never held a British licence; free if you have held one; no online exchange. In Northern Ireland, exchanging an EEA or other country's licence costs £62.50 (DVA fees page, October 2026).
• Import: 20% VAT (standard rate) and any customs duty if you are not entitled to the relief. Example from the UK customs tariff (October 2026, used petrol car of 1,500 to 3,000 cm³, code 8703 23 90 00): duty of 10% as a general rule, 0% for a car of EU origin under the EU-UK trade agreement, provided you can prove that origin (rules of origin). A car manufactured outside the EU (Japan, Korea…) does not necessarily benefit from the EU rate, even if bought in Europe (the tariff also lists a preferential rate of 0% for Japan and South Korea: check the origin conditions in the tariff). The 20% VAT remains due even when duty is at 0%.
• Registration: £55 (first registration and tax with the DVLA).
• Vehicle tax (Vehicle Excise Duty, cars registered since 1 April 2017, rates displayed in October 2026): the first year depends on CO2 (from £10 at 0 g/km up to £5,690 above 255 g/km), then £200 a year (£210 in 12 monthly direct debits). Supplement of £440 a year for 5 years if the list price exceeds £40,000 (£50,000 for an electric car).
• MOT: every year from 3 years old; fine of up to £1,000 without a valid MOT. In Northern Ireland, the first test takes place when the car is 4 years old, then every year, at DVA test centres (nidirect, October 2026).

Common pitfalls

• Driving your foreign car as if nothing had changed. If you live in the United Kingdom, the temporary import tolerance (less than 6 months) only applies to those who are not normally resident there. Driving without having completed the procedures can lead to prosecution.
• Forgetting to apply for the ToR1 in time. The relief must be approved by HMRC before it is used; for a shipped vehicle, ask for the reference before dispatch.
• Believing you must exchange your licence straight away. With a European car licence, you are not required to in Great Britain before you are 70 (except for those aged 67 and over, and licences resulting from a non-EU exchange).
• Underestimating driving on the left and roundabouts going the other way: take a few hours with an instructor if needed.
• Driving without insurance. It is compulsory; the legal minimum is third-party insurance.

What changes by country of origin

• EU and EEA licences: rules above (70 years, or 3 years from 67 in Great Britain).
• Swiss licence: Switzerland is one of the DVLA's "designated countries", with stricter rules than for the EU: in Great Britain, you can drive with your Swiss licence for 12 months from the moment you become resident, and you have 5 years to exchange it; after that, you need a provisional licence and must retake the theory and practical tests (gov.uk, October 2026). In Northern Ireland, a Swiss licence is also exchanged with form DL1.
• Ireland: free movement of vehicles between Great Britain and Northern Ireland is provided for British residents; a vehicle coming from an EU country (Ireland included) into Northern Ireland is not subject to customs duty; VAT is in principle only due if it is new (less than 6,000 km or used for at most 6 months), and the NOVA notification to HMRC still has to be made (gov.uk, "Importing vehicles into the UK").