To be exchanged, your license must meet the following conditions:

• Be valid

• Have been issued by a State practicing the reciprocal exchange of driving licenses with France

• Have been issued by the country in which you lived before settling in France
• Be written in French or be accompanied by an official translation.
  > To read: the Réfugiés.info sheet “Request the official translation of a document”

You must apply to exchange your licence within one year of obtaining your instruction extension certificate (API), a temporary residence document issued while you wait for your residence permit to be issued, indicating that you are a refugee, a beneficiary of subsidiary protection or a stateless person.

To exchange your driving license, you need these documents in digital version:

• Copy of your original double-sided driving license in color,
  > To read: the Réfugiés.info sheet “Scan a document”
• Official translation of the license into French,
• Proof of identity (API or residence card),
• Proof of address less than 6 months old: documents accepted here ,
• Proof of normal residence if you do not have the nationality of the country where the license is issued (for example: employment contract in the country where you lived before and where you had the license),
• Digital photo signature.
  > To read: the Réfugiés.info sheet “Making and using an e-photo”

The exchange of the driving license is done online only on the ANTS website.

You must first create an account on the ANTS website.

After creating your account, you can access the online service that allows you to make the request.

To follow your request, you can go to the ANTS website by logging into your space.

You can find all the answers to the most frequently asked questions by clicking on this link.

You can also contact ANTS:

• If you live in Paris: via this form.
• If you live outside Paris: via this form at the bottom of the page.
• by telephone at 34 00 in mainland France (non-premium rate number / Monday to Friday from 7:45 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.)

You will be informed on your space on the ANTS website and by email or SMS.

You will be told how to send your foreign license and collect your new license.

When the administration receives the original of your permit, you can download a secure deposit certificate (ADS) from the ANTS website.

This certificate allows you to drive while waiting to receive your French license, within the limit of the recognition period of your foreign license.

If your file is refused, appeal solutions will be indicated on the refusal decision.

You can also choose to retake the driving license exam. As a holder of a foreign driving license, you do not need to do the 20 hours of practical training (the "driving hours") for learning to drive, by registering as a "free candidate" (i.e. without going to a driving school).

> To read: the Réfugiés.info sheet “ Take the driving test as a free candidate ”