What changes with French driving licences in 2025?

Some major rules for French driving licences have changed this year, in a bid to speed up administrative delays and toughen penalties for road offences.

New measures

New measures, as outlined by specialist website Autoplus.fr, include:

• Registration number. Applicants can now retrieve their numéro d’enregistrement préfectoral harmonisé (NEPH, registration number) online. This number is required when registering for tests, changing driving schools, or re-registering more than five years after failing a test.

• Driving tests. The number of test places bookable by driving schools is now allocated based on the amount of training it has offered. The more pupils a school has, the more places it should have available for the tests. Independent candidates (those learning without a school) are still likely to have long wait times.

• Posting documents. New driving licences (and cartes grises, or vehicle registration document) will now be sent by lettre suivie (tracked letter), and no longer by lettre recommandée (registered post). This means that they will no longer require a signature on delivery, and will instead be posted into the recipient’s letterbox. This measure - introduced on January 2, 2025 - is designed both to make it easier for recipients to receive their important documents and to reduce postal costs.

• Lost, stolen or damaged licences. If your driving licence has been lost, stolen, or severely damaged, holders can now download une attestation de droit à conduire sécurisée (ADCS) - a certificate that attests to your right to drive for four months - from the mespoints.permisdeconduire.gouv.fr website. This can be printed or saved on to a smartphone, and used as proof of licence while a new photocard is being sent to you.

Read more: French driving documents can now be delivered via a simplified procedure 
Read also: Drivers can now get proof of driving licence online in France 

Changes within the European Union

The European Union is currently hardening its rules on driving infractions across all member states. 

The new laws will state that if a driver with an EU-issued licence breaks the law in one of the 26 other EU member countries, they now not only risk a three-month suspension of their licence in that country, but also being banned from driving in the country in which their licence was issued. 

This means that holders of licences issued in France could face a driving ban in France, even if the infraction was committed in another EU country.

This measure has been agreed by the European Union's Council of Transport Ministers, although its adoption and application is still ongoing.

International driving permits

When driving outside of Europe many countries currently accept a France-issued driving licence, but some countries require an international driving permit (IDP).

The French government is working to enable private companies to issue these in France, as waiting times for them can currently be up to nine months.

Official guidance regarding which countries require an international driving permit, as opposed to just a French driving licence, is available here. 

The new rules come ahead of the final deadline to change a paper licence to a photocard licence by 2033.