Driving licenses issued up to and including December 31, 1998: All driving licenses - the grey, the pink and the unlimited card driving license - must be exchanged. The new, temporary EU driving licenses will then be valid for 15 years. The rights of your previous driving license will be converted into current law.
The exchange of driving licenses is staggered (see table below).
Current information on the exchange period for all old paper driving licenses (issued up to and including 31.12.1998):
For driving licenses issued up to and including December 31, 1998, the exchange period has already expired. We recommend that you apply for an exchange as soon as possible.
If you were born in one of these years but already have an EU driving license, you are currently not affected by the so-called “mandatory exchange” in question.
Further information can be found on the website of the Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport (opens in a new tab).
Driving licenses issued up to and including 31 December 1998:
Year of birth of the driver’s license holder | Date by which the driver’s license must be exchanged |
before 1953 | 19.01.2033 |
1953 - 1958 | 19.01.2022 |
1959 - 1964 | 19.01.2023 |
1965 - 1970 | 19.01.2024 |
1971 or later | 19.01.2025 |
Driving licenses issued after January 1, 1999:
Year of issue | Date by which the driving license must be exchanged |
1999 - 2001 | 19.01.2026 |
2002 - 2004 | 19.01.2027 |
2005 - 2007 | 19.01.2028 |
2008 | 19.01.2029 |
2009 | 19.01.2030 |
2010 | 19.01.2031 |
2011 | 19.01.2032 |
2012 - 18.01.2013 | 19.01.2033 |
Prerequisites
Procedure
Required documents
Forms
Fees
More information
Legal basis
Service hotline
You have questions? Call us: from any network, without an area code. Authorities number 115: Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. You can usually reach the authorities number 115 at fixed network tariffs and thus free of charge via flat rates. Sign language telephone: Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.