For the vast majority of motorists, UK driving licences last 10 years. It’s important to keep your licence up to date, as an expired licence could land you a fine of up to £1,000. We explain how to renew your driving licence, and how much it costs.
The process for renewing your driving licence in the UK depends on whether you have a photocard licence or an older paper licence. Most drivers now have a photocard licence, which needs to be renewed every 10 years.
You’ll receive a reminder to renew your licence around a month before its expiry date. This is the best time to do it in order to ensure you receive your new licence in good time.
Once you reach the age of 70, your licence will expire, so you’ll need to renew it at this point, and then continue to do so every three years. When your 70th birthday is approaching, you’ll receive a reminder and application form in the post from the DVLA.
Applying for a new licence online is the quickest, easiest and cheapest way to do so.
In this article:
According to the government’s website, to renew your UK driving licence online you’ll need:
To renew your licence online, visit the DVLA’s website and fill out the application form. If you have a digital passport, the DVLA will use the photo from it for your new licence.
If you’re over 70 years of age or will be in the next 90 days, it’s free to renew your licence online with the DVLA.
It takes around five days to receive a new licence when you apply online, according to the DVLA.
To renew your licence by post, you’ll need to collect a ‘D1’ pack from a Post Office branch, which contains the necessary forms. Once you’ve completed them, you’ll need to post them to the DVLA. Make sure to include a recent passport-style photo, your current licence and a cheque for £17.
It takes around four weeks to receive your new licence if renewing by post. Find out more about applying for a licence by post on the government’s website.
You can renew your licence in person at the Post Office. Make sure you bring your existing licence with you. They can take the photograph for your licence there and then. You should receive your new licence by post within three weeks.
If you’re in the market for new breakdown insurance, the RAC provides cover from just £5.95 a month.
If you choose to use this provider, then you could be eligible for three months free cover. This is added to your policy after 12 months and is available to new customers only. The offer ends 11 December 2023.
*Not available to members amending or renewing an existing policy or on purchases during a breakdown situation. You must purchase RAC Breakdown Cover online direct from RAC by 11/12/23, 8am. To be eligible for the offer you must keep your policy active for 12 months and your payments must be up to date. No cash or other alternatives available.
The cost of renewing your photocard driving licence is £14 online, £17 by post, or £21.50 in person at a Post Office.
If any of your personal details on your driving licence have changed, including your name, address and gender, you’ll need to renew it before its expiry date.
Failure to do so could result in a fine of up to £1,000.
Paper driving licences are no longer issued, and you can exchange them for a photocard licence for a fee of £20.
If you have a paper licence, it won’t expire until you turn 70. After this point, you’ll receive a photocard licence when you renew it.
It’s important that when you move home, you update the address on your driving licence. Failure to do so could see you fined up to £1,000.
You can change the address on your licence on the DVLA’s website. It’s free, and you’ll be sent a new driving licence in the post.
If your new address is abroad, you won’t be able to register it on your British licence. You’ll need to get in touch with the driving authority in your new country of residence.
Some of the products promoted are from our affiliate partners from whom we receive compensation. While we aim to feature some of the best products available, we cannot review every product on the market.
Although the information provided is believed to be accurate at the date of publication, you should always check with the product provider to ensure that information provided is the most up to date.
If you purchased a car on personal contract purchase (PCP) or hire purchase arrangement before January 28, 2021, you could be due thousands in compensation. Here, we explain how and why The country’s financial watchdog, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), launched an investigation into the mis-selling of car finance in January. While it’s yet to […]
There’s no doubt that having kids can be expensive, so it’s a good idea to make the most of kids-go-free holiday deals. After all, they mean more money in the bank or spent making those special holiday memories. When the holiday period comes along, there are plenty of parents looking into their purses, worrying about […]
Affording childcare is becoming more and more challenging for working parents. However, some companies are lending parents a hand in the form of subsidised nurseries, flexible working, support networks, and more. If you’re a working parent of a child, affording sky-high childcare can make things very difficult. The charity Corum has estimated that the average […]
Times Money Mentor shows you how in September with its free four-week newsletter course. Sign up now for a richer retirement. When you subscribe, you will also receive our weekly newsletter.
By entering your details, you agree these will be used according to our privacy policy. You can unsubscribe, although if you do you will stop receiving both newsletters.
Look out for the first email on 3 September. You'll also receive our regular weekly round-up of money matters.
Times Money Mentor shows you how in September with its free four-week newsletter course. Sign up now for a richer retirement. When you subscribe, you will also receive our weekly newsletter.
By entering your details, you agree these will be used according to our privacy policy. You can unsubscribe, although if you do you will stop receiving both newsletters.
Look out for the first email on 3 September. You'll also receive our regular weekly round-up of money matters.
Times Money Mentor is a trading name of News Financial Services Limited, which is an appointed representative of Richdale Brokers & Financial Services Ltd which are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) (FRN: 992057). In this capacity we are permitted to act as a credit-broker, not a lender. We have taken reasonable steps to ensure that any information provided by Times Money Mentor is accurate at the time of publishing. We do not provide any personal advice on any matter. Should you wish to raise any issue or concern, please contact us via care@timesmoneymentor.co.uk
Times Money Mentor has been created in conjunction by The Times and The Sunday Times with the aim of empowering our readers to make better financial decisions for themselves. We do this by giving you tools and information you need to understand the options available. We do not make, nor do we seek to make, any personal recommendations on any matter. Where we give providers or products a customer experience rating or a product rating, these are compiled against an objective criteria, using information which has been collected by our partners Defaqto and Savings Champion. In some cases, we may provide links where you may, if you choose, purchase a product from a regulated provider with whom we have a commercial relationship. If you do purchase a product using a link, we will receive a payment. This will help us to support the content of this website and to continue to invest in our award-winning journalism. News Financial Services Limited (Company Number 05891402) registered office 1 London Bridge Street. London SEl 9GF.
