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BC Drivers License back to Irish Query

  • 02-04-2013 08:43PM
    #1
    GirlSans
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4 ✭


    Hi, I'm hoping someone here might be able to shine some light on this for me. I've been accepted onto IEC 2013 and am going to Vancouver in the Autumn. When I arrive there I hope to buy a car and get a British Columbian driver's license. At the moment I'm living in London (have been here for the last 2 years) and my plan is to exchange my current Irish license for a UK one enabling me to do a straight swap for a BC one when I arrive in Vancouver hopefully avoiding having to sit a driving test.

    http://www.icbc.com/driver-licensing/moving-bc/moving-dl/most-countries

    What I'm worried about is when I return to Ireland in 2 years time will I be able to retrieve my Irish license (I passed my test in 2009) or will I need to retake the test?

    Any advice would be greatly appreciated :)


Comments

  • #2
    fergusb
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 331 ✭✭fergusb


    I thought there was something which meant you had to have a license for 2 years to convert it. http://www.icbc.com/driver-licensing/moving-bc/moving-dl/most-countries

    I'm not sure if they would accept that you had an Irish License for 2 years and then a UK license for 6 months.

    In terms of getting your Irish license back, from what I was told, you can get your Irish License back easily as long as the original license is still in date (so before 2019). After then, you would have to re-sit the test again.


  • #3
    rusheen
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 167 ✭✭rusheen


    GirlSans wrote: »
    Hi, I'm hoping someone here might be able to shine some light on this for me. I've been accepted onto IEC 2013 and am going to Vancouver in the Autumn. When I arrive there I hope to buy a car and get a British Columbian driver's license. At the moment I'm living in London (have been here for the last 2 years) and my plan is to exchange my current Irish license for a UK one enabling me to do a straight swap for a BC one when I arrive in Vancouver hopefully avoiding having to sit a driving test.

    http://www.icbc.com/driver-licensing/moving-bc/moving-dl/most-countries

    What I'm worried about is when I return to Ireland in 2 years time will I be able to retrieve my Irish license (I passed my test in 2009) or will I need to retake the test?

    Any advice would be greatly appreciated :)

    No you wont have to redo your test in ireland.

    If you "lose" your license in ireland ,providing its still valid, is go to your local motor tax office with a small fee, I think e10 and two passport pics and ask them for a replacement. pretty straight forward.

    I would get your UK license ASAP . You want to show the BC authorities you have UK license for a while and say you actually drove in the UK .
    Apparently they have coped on to people just exchanging their irish one for UK as a way for bypassing the test here.
    But seeing as you actually haved lived in London your more genuine .

    Also no harm in getting a international driving permit from the AA .


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