How To Renew Driving Licence In 2024?

A driver’s licence is a document that allows a person to operate a vehicle. If your driving licence has expired in the United Kingdom, you must renew it in order to drive. Around two million people hold expired driver’s licences. If you don’t renew it, you could face a fine of up to £1,000, so check soon. This guide explains how to check if your licence is valid, how to renew your driving licence in various ways as well to renew your driving licence if you’re 70 or over. Besides, we also address some frequently asked questions which may help you a lot with driving licence renewal.

How can I renew my driving licence online?

Residents of Northern Ireland can renew their driver’s licence online using the green link below. This service is only available to residents of Northern Ireland. It is more convenient to renew your licence online.

Before you begin

You will not be able to renew a lorry or bus driver’s licence using this online service. These licences can be renewed by the following:

• If a renewal reminder form (DL1R) has been given to you, fill it out and return it.
• or filling up and returning an application for a driver’s licence (DL2).

Post Offices have DL2 and DL1 forms available.

To renew your driver’s licence for a car, motorcycle, or tractor, you’ll need the following information:

• A photograph or a photo code – Before renewing your licence using the green link below, take a look at the guidelines for digital photos.
• A bank card or a debit card (if payment is needed)
• An email address that is valid.

Both your Northern Ireland driving licence number and expiry date (the date it expires) may be found on the plastic card part of your driving licence – The driving licence number is ‘5’, and the expiration date is ‘4b.’ You can update your address while renewing your driver’s licence online, but you can’t change your name.

If you want to get more about how to Change Name On Driving Licence, you can try to visit our blog.

Top 3 reasons to renew driving licence online

It is faster than filling out a paper application

GOV.UK offers an online driving licence renewal service that is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Customers are guided through the application by the user-friendly service, which takes only a few minutes to complete.

Your new licence should be issued within a week of submitting your online application. This is a lot faster than using paper to apply. By applying online, you will also save money. There’s a service for renewing a photo card driver’s licence, as well as a service for renewing your licence if you’re 70 or older.

Online service is simple to use

The DVLA’s online services have been meticulously planned and tested to make each customer’s journey as simple as possible. Before the application is started, customers are taken through the application in simple steps and told of all requirements.

When asked how easy or difficult it is to use the DVLA’s online services in a recent study, 94% of respondents said “easy” to “very easy,” with almost 97 percent of respondents saying they would use them again.

GOV.UK is a safe and secure website

According to data acquired by our Customer Insight team, certain customers may be cautious or nervous about transacting online. Customers stated that they would prefer to speak with someone 20% of the time, indicating a lack of faith in themselves or the service. You can be sure you’re on the official DVLA website when you use the official GOV.UK website and your information is safe and secure.

How to renew driving licence UK in other ways?

Apply at a Post Office

A letter will be mailed to you as a reminder. Take it to a Post Office that specializes in renewing DVLA photocard licences. You must additionally take the following steps:

• Your photocard licence if you have it
• The fee of £21.50.

You’ll need your photocard licence to apply at the Post Office if you don’t have a reminder letter. If your name has changed, you will not be able to apply at the Post Office. You’ll need to send your application in by post.

Apply by post

Processing applications sent by mail is taking longer than usual due to the coronavirus (COVID-19). A ‘D1 pack’ of forms can be obtained from a Post Office that handles DVLA photocard renewal or vehicle tax.  These items must be included with your completed forms:

• A recent passport photo (don’t sign the back of the photo)
• If you have one, your current photo card driver’s licence
• A £17 cheque or postal order made payable to the DVLA (no cost is required if you have a medical short-term licence or are over the age of 70).

If you’ve changed your name, you’ll also need to provide identification documents.

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How to renew your driving licence if you’re 70 or over?

If you’re 70 or older – or will be 70 in the next 90 days – you may renew your driver’s licence for free online with the DVLA. Because of the coronavirus, getting your driver’s licence may take longer than usual (COVID-19).

Renew online

If you apply online, your licence should arrive within one week.

If you’re 70 or older, or will be 70 in the following 90 days, you can utilize this service to renew your British driving licence.

• Your British driver’s licence has expired or will expire within 90 days.
• You live in the United Kingdom (Northern Ireland has a separate service)
• You have the bare minimum of vision.
• You are not unable to drive for any reason.

After the age of 70, you must renew every three years. When you renew your driver’s licence, you have the option of changing your licence photo. You cannot renew a C1 (medium-sized vehicle) or D1 (minibus) entitlement using this facility; you must do so via mail.

What you’ll require

If this is your first time using this service, you must first register at:

• A contact email address
• Addresses of all the places you’ve lived in the past three years
• Your Social Security number (if you know it)
• A valid passport number from the United Kingdom (if you want to change the licence photo).

Once you’ve submitted your application, the DVLA will send you a confirmation email. You may be requested to participate in research via email, but you have the option to decline.

Read more: How To Apply For A National Insurance Number?

Driving while DVLA has your licence

• If you meet all of the following requirements, you can drive while your licence is being renewed:
• Your doctor has given you permission to continue driving
• You had a valid driver’s licence
• You can only drive under the terms of your previous driver’s licence
• It’s been less than a year since you submitted your application
• Your previous driver’s licence was not revoked or denied due to medical reasons
• You haven’t been disqualified yet
• You were not disqualified as a high-risk offender on or after June 1, 2013.

Other ways to apply

If you meet all of the following requirements, you can drive while your licence is being renewed:

• Your doctor has given you permission to continue driving
• You had a valid driver’s licence
• You can only drive under the terms of your previous driver’s licence
• It’s been less than a year since you submitted your application
• Your previous driver’s licence was not revoked or denied due to medical reasons
• You haven’t been disqualified yet
• You were not considered a high-risk offender on or after June 1, 2013.

FAQs – Renew Driving Licence

What is a driver’s licence with a photocard?

It’s a pink card with the driver’s photo on the front, as is the case in the United Kingdom.

These are the only type of driving licence granted by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency, and they were first issued in 1998. (DVLA).

You may have an old-style paper driver’s licence that is still valid. You can apply to the DVLA to replace your paper driver’s licence with a photocard driver’s licence.

Why is it necessary for me to renew my photo card driver’s licence?

Up to the age of 70, your photocard must be renewed every ten years. It is prohibited to drive without a valid driver’s licence, and if you are detected, you will face the following penalties:

• If you’re stopped by the police, you might face a fine of up to £1,000
• It’s possible that you’ll have issues getting car insurance
• When driving in another country, you may be breaking local regulations
• It is possible that car rental companies could refuse to provide you with a vehicle.

It’s critical that licences are updated every ten years; having the most up-to-date licence means you’ll have the most up-to-date security measures to protect you from fraud. This will also help to prevent impersonation of a driver’s licence, preventing disqualified and dangerous drivers from getting behind the wheel.

Read more: Things You Need To Know About Provisional Licence.

What if I have an old paper driver’s licence?

You do not need to renew your paper driving licence unless you have reached the age of 70 or your personal information has changed since your licence was issued. You can update your paper licence to a photocard at any time by submitting an application.

How much does it cost?

If you renew online, the charge is £14, and if you renew by post, the fee is £17. A few weeks before your licence expires, you should receive a notice and form. However, because many people forget or overlook this, it’s important to keep track of when yours expires.

Though the photocard must be renewed every ten years, driving licences are generally valid until you reach the age of 70, following which they must be renewed every three years. This is free if you only need to alter your address or name, or if you’re over 70 and merely need to renew it. You can edit your name and address for free an unlimited number of times.

Is it necessary to renew my licence before it expires?

A month or so before your existing licence expires, you’ll get a reminder to renew, and that’s the best time to do it. If you renew your licence online, the DVLA says you should receive your new licence within one week, but owing to the pandemic, it may take longer. Renewals sent through the mail can take up to three weeks. Because having your new licence in hand is the safest option, the best method to assure that is to renew around four weeks before it expires (unless your licence expires during the coronavirus extension period).

Your new licence will begin to operate on the date your renewal is authorized, not the date your current licence expires.

Is it possible for me to drive while I wait for my new driver’s licence?

If your licence expires while your renewal application is being processed, the DVLA says you can keep driving as long as you meet certain conditions, such as only driving vehicles that you were allowed to drive on your previous licence, not being told not to drive by a doctor or optician, and not being disqualified from driving.

If you have a full, automatic-only, or provisional UK driving licence issued by the DVLA, you must renew your driving licence every ten years unless you are above 70, in which case you must renew every three years. If you do not renew your driver’s licence before your 70th birthday, you will be unable to drive legally. If you continue driving, your driver’s licence and insurance will be revoked, and you will be committing a major offense with serious consequences, including a hefty fine and the seizure of your vehicle by the police.

Thanks to the convenience of the internet, updating the information on your driver’s licence or the licence itself is now a simple operation. If you don’t have access to the internet, you can still obtain the necessary forms and complete the renewal process at a Post Office or by post.

If you wish to obtain a new licence, it’s extremely important to take our Theory Test Practice to reach your highest score and pass your exam the first time.