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DRIVING

Spain extends UK driving licence validity until December 31st

The British Embassy in Madrid announced on Monday that Spanish authorities have again extended the period of validity of UK driving licences in Spain a further two months until December 31st 2021. 

Published: 27 October 2021 10:15 CEST
The new extension gives thousands of UK driving licence holders in Spain more time to legally drive in the country. Photo: Emmanuel Acua/gov.uk
The new extension gives thousands of UK driving licence holders in Spain more time to legally drive in the country. Photo: Emmanuel Acua/gov.uk

“The Spanish government has announced that valid UK licences will continue to be recognised for driving in Spain until December 31st 2021,” The UK Embassy headed by ambassador Hugh Elliott wrote in a Facebook post on Monday evening.

The extension means UK licence holders who reside in Spain can continue legally driving in Spain for an extra 92 days.

This is the second extension Spain has given British licence holders since Brexit meant their UK-issued documents became unrecognised by the common EU framework, the first extension being announced in late June and which was due to end on October 31st.

In a previous post, the British Embassy wrote that “if you are one of the UK Nationals who successfully registered their intent to exchange their licence by December 30th 2020, you will still be eligible to exchange it for a Spanish one until December 31st 2021 without having to take a practical test”.

READ ALSO: Q&A – How to pass Spain’s driving test and get a Spanish licence

That means that those who registered their intent to exchange also have an extra two months in which to complete the process and get round the hold-ups and other bureaucratic issues they’ve been experiencing with the DGT, all while still being able to drive.

“We know that some people who tried to register their intent have subsequently found out that they were unsuccessful in doing so,” the British Embassy added.

“If this is your situation and you are unclear as to why, you should contact the DGT directly to discuss further. https://www.dgt.es/es/contacto.shtml.”

This new extension gives thousands of other Brits in Spain who didn’t register their intent to exchange some extra time to drive in the country and sit a Spanish driving test, as from 2022 they will need to be Spanish licence holders to drive here (unless there’s a third extension).

The Spanish government's announcement of the extension until December 31st of UK driving licence validity, as well as other transitional measures such as reciprocal health assistance and access to universities for the next academic year.
The Spanish government’s announcement of the extension of UK driving licence validity until December 31st, as well as other transitional measures such as reciprocal health assistance and access to universities for the next academic year.

“We continue to negotiate with the Spanish government about the long-term arrangements for the UK driving licence exchange,” the UK Embassy added with regard to a potential deal that would mean UK licences remained valid in Spain post-Brexit. 

“We understand the uncertainty around this issue is unsettling.

“If you want to take action now, you could, if you wished, apply for a Spanish licence. This includes taking both a practical and theory test. 

“We are aware that there are currently waiting lists to get a test appointment in some areas.

If you moved to Spain after January 1st 2021, your British driving licence is valid for six months from the date of your TIE or until December 31st, whichever date is later.

This doesn’t apply to British tourists with UK licences visiting Spain who are for example renting a car during their holidays. The issues affect UK licence holders who are residents in Spain.

Unless Spain has a bilateral agreement with a third country for the recognition and exchange of licences, most non-EU driving licence holders have six months from their arrival in Spain to use their foreign licences.

After that, they have to sit theory and practical tests and get a Spanish licence from scratch.

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BRITONS IN SPAIN

FACT CHECK: Spain’s ‘£97 daily rule’ isn’t new nor a worry for British tourists

The British tabloids are at it again causing alarm over the so-called '£97 daily rule’ which Spain is apparently imposing on UK tourists, who in turn are threatening to ‘boycott’ the country. 

Published: 15 April 2024 14:28 CEST
Updated: 20 April 2024 07:22 CEST
FACT CHECK: Spain's '£97 daily rule' isn't new nor a worry for British tourists

American playwright Eugene O’Neill once said: “There is no present or future – only the past, happening over and over again – now”.

In 2022, The Local Spain wrote a fact-checking article titled ‘Are UK tourists in Spain really being asked to prove €100 a day?‘, in which we dispelled the claims made in the British press about Spain’s alleged new rules for UK holidaymakers.

Two years on in 2024, the same eye-catching headlines are resurfacing in Blighty: “’Anti-British? Holiday elsewhere!’ Britons fume as tourists in Spain warned they may be subject to additional rules” in GB News, or “’They would be begging us to come back’: Brits vow to ‘boycott Spain’ over new £97 daily rule” in LBC.

The return of this rabble-rousing ‘news’ in the UK has coincided with calls within Spain to change the existing mass tourism model that’s now more than ever having an impact on the country’s housing crisis.

Even though Spaniards behind the protests have not singled out any foreign nationals as potential culprits, the UK tabloids have unsurprisingly capitalised on this and run headlines such as “Costa del Sol turns on British tourists”.

READ MORE: Why does hatred of tourists in Spain appear to be on the rise?

What is the so-called ‘£97 daily rule’?

Yes, there is theoretically a ‘£97 a day rule’, but it is not a new rule, nor one that applies only to UK nationals specifically, and not even one that Spain alone has imposed (all Schengen countries set their financial means threshold).

As non-EU nationals who are not from a Schengen Area country either (the United Kingdom never was in Schengen), British tourists entering Spain could have certain requirements with which to comply if asked by Spanish border officials.

Such requirements include a valid passport, proof of a return ticket, documents proving their purpose of entry into Spain, limits on the amount of time they can spend in Spain (the 90 out of 180 days Schengen rule), proof of accommodation, a letter of invitation if staying with friends or family (another controversial subject in the British press when it emerged) and yes, proof of sufficient financial means for the trip.

Third-country nationals who want to enter Spain in 2024 may need to prove they have at least €113,40 per day (around £97), with a minimum of €972 (around £830) per person regardless of the intended duration of the stay. It is unclear whether this could also possibly apply to minors.

The amount of financial means to prove has increased slightly in 2024 as it is linked to Spain’s minimum wage, which has also risen. 

Financial means can be accredited by presenting cash, traveller’s checks, credit cards accompanied by a bank account statement, an up-to-date bank book or any other means that proves the amount available as credit on a card or bank account.

Have Britons been prevented from entering Spain for not having enough money?

There is no evidence that UK holidaymakers have been prevented from entering Spain after not being able to show they have £97 a day to cover their stay, nor any reports that they have been asked to show the financial means to cover their stay either. 

17.3 million UK tourists visited Spain in 2023; equal to roughly 47,400 a day. 

Even though British tourists have to stand in the non-EU queue at Spanish passport control, they do not require a visa to enter Spain and the sheer number of UK holidaymakers means that they’re usually streamlined through the process, having to only quickly show their passports.

The only occasional hiccups that have arisen post-Brexit have been at the land border between Gibraltar and Spain (issued that are likely to be resolved soon), and these weren’t related to demonstrating financial means. 

Therefore, the British press are regurgitating alarmist headlines that don’t reflect any truth, but rather pander to the ‘they need us more than we need them’ mantra that gets readers clicking. 

To sum up, there is a £97 a day rule, but it is not new, it has not affected any British tourists to date, and it is not specific to Spain alone to potentially require proof of economic means. 

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