Exchange driver's licence from an EU state

Hello,My wife and I are third-country nationals (non-EU citizens) who lived in the EU for many years before coming to Cyprus. - @notlost-justlookingaround

Why does your profile say you're French?

Full driving license: Valid for 15 years for cars and motorcycles, and 5 years for buses and trucks.

We printed and completed forms TOM 7, then went to the driving licence centre. We collected our Cyprus driving licences within a week at the post office!!!!!!!!! We even got a text to tell us to collect the licences.

There is a translation of the TOM 7 form on the website.

We had UK driving licences.

@Neptune3

Excellent, thanks.

Where is the "Driving Licence Centre"?

Is it the same as the district Citizen Service Centre?

Or is it done through the Department of Transport office in my district?

Or other?

Did you lose your UK licence when you did the conversion?

We travel quite a bit, and having no driver's licence when we're abroad would not be pleasant.

You make the Transport Department sound competent and useful... Unlike the Immigration Department which is neither based on past experience.

The Department of Transport in Larnaca, where you do the driving tests, was amazingly adequate that day. We were gobsmacked at the efficiency. I had to pay a nominal amount for the Cypriot licence because I am not a pensioner. We didn't need an appointment, but rather we had to submit our form into a sort of "postbox hole" and  then we were called in to the office within a few minutes to go through the form. 

@notlost-justlookingaround Only the ministry of transport - we tried the citizen help centre but they declined. You can find the location on Google maps.

Just completed mine today - very tricky for me. Quite stressful since they are pretty unfriendly about the whole scheme.

First you need an appointment for exchange,  we waited 4-6weeks

Evidence of 6months residency is absolute and only by utility bills.... lease contract that I offered was rejected. Mobile phone bill was a possibility, but only if submitted with 6months of bank statements .

I am UK citizen with UAE driving licence. They refused to accept that and stated that only UAE citizens could be accepted. I doubt that is legally accurate, but they were adamant.

On the other hand  they were happy to work off an expired UK licence (mine was 12years expired which caused raised eyebrows and confusion).

No need to take photos, they do that there

Licence can be collected in 3weeks and the cost was €40. Temporary licence issued in the meantime

Good luck !!

And this was in Pafos

Thanks for the info.

Glad to see they issue a temporary licence while the ink dries on the cards they print up...

Any ideas if that temporary licence is good outside Cyprus or the EU?

An update on this process, at least in Limassol district.

Sadly, Limassol is not as useful as Larnaca it seems and you can't just walk in with paperwork as Neptune3 was able to do.

We went into the MOT office in Limassol before Christmas to ask the million euro question "How does this all work?"

In short, send an email with copies of your existing driver's licence and residency permit and they will send you an appointment date "sometime in the distant future as everybody wants a new licence and we are very busy"

So, we did and they replied shortly after christmas(es) with an appointment date in May 2026 when we kill a small forest and hand over a bag of paper.

We have asked about changing the date to align with planned travel, but have no response yet.

For dependent spouses who do not have utility bills in their nane, the marriage certificate will suffice as proof of residency in lieu of bills. However, the  supporting spouse must have utility bills in their name to prove physical residency.

We have asked about separating the appointments since my wife will be travelling after the existing licence gets handed in and a paper one received while they print the new Cyprus licence, but haven't received a reply yet.

for other reference, the Cyprus licence is valid for 15 years, or until you are 70 at which time you have to have a medical and do a renewal again.

so, if you are 55 your new iicence is valid for the full 15 years, but if you are 60 as an example, the it is oinly valid for 10.

If you're 69, then the renewal is only valid for 1 year.

Update to my update...

As our scheduled appointment in Limassol to change our driver's licence was 2 days before our holidays in June, we decided to try our luck in Larnaca since they don't use appointments. It's first come, first served.

Unless you are not from Larnaca, then they will accept your application, but it is only reviewed after all Larnaca based applications are looked at, and then only if they have the time.

Here's our experience.

Day 1: Drive to Larnaca at a "civilised" hour and realise the error of our ways when we arrive and see the applications box has been closed for the day and they were not accepting any further applications for renewal or first licence that day.

We were advised by the receptionist to come back when the office opened at 08h00.

Day 2: Drive to Larnaca at a most-definitely-uncivilised hour to avoid rush hour through Limassol.

Arrived Larnaca TOM at 07h30 and the doors were already open, and the line to get a number at the receptionist was already out the door awaiting the arrival of the receptionist at 08h00 (ish).

Note: If you are exchanging / renewing / or getting licence, do not stand in line at the receptionist to get a number.

You do not need a number to exchange licences. you DO need to stand by the box on the wall where the applications are put into when the examiner opens the box as he then closes the box for the day when it is "full".

They typically review 20-25 applications a day and another 10 to 15 walk away disappointed when they get there and the box is closed.

On this day, the box opened at 08h00 and closed at 08h30. It was a "light" day he said.

(First application is examined at 09h30 after the driver's tests have been completed - He does both.)

He then reviews all the applications to catch any out of towners trying to subvert the system and comes out and advises you (us) that locals get served first, and you (us) are going to be there all day before getting the "come into my office" or "here's your application, better luck next time" speech.

Even though the sign says they examine between 09h30 and 11h30, the sheer volume of applications for licences means they often keep going through the pile until it is finished, or 13h15 which is when they start written tests and he does them also.

We got the "better luck next time" speech at 13h10 and went home 40 EUR poorer for the wasted fuel.

Day 3: My wife decided to give it a go again since she needs a driver's licence this summer. I had better things to do and will go through the process in Limassol in June at our regularly scheduled time.

Arrived 07h30 again.

Box opened 08h00.

Box closed 08h05.

she got the same speech as beginning of day 2, but got the "you're still here? Come in" version at 13h10 and the application was successfully reviewed.

Step 2: photos and payment.

This is where you go to the receptionist, take a number and wait, but they had already closed that side of the TOM, so she had to go back another day.

Day 4: pay and photos.

Again, arrive stupid early to get a number that has less than 6 digits and has a good chance of getting called that day.

she was still there for 2-3 hours even being there before the place opened.

To summarise. You can get your licence exchanged in a "reasonable" hurry if you live in a district which only reviews the applications through appointments by going to Larnaca TOM and rolling the dice .

And by reasonable hurry, I mean plan on 2 weeks driving to Larnaca waiting for the stars to align and the examiner to realise you're obviously not going away vs 6 months to get an appointment from Limassol.

And for the record, once you've paid and  been photo'd they give you a sheet of paper with your picture, the list of vehicles licenced to drive and a big caveat - valid for 30 days in Cyprus only.

Presumably, they send your new licence to wherever you asked them to send it (district TOM, Citizen Service Centre or mailed somewhere - theoretically your home for only 3+ EUR for postage) within those 30 days.

Dare to dream.

Pack a lunch and be prepared to sell a small child to pay the fuel bill(s) to get to Larnaca TOM if you live in another district.

You'll need at least 2 trips.

@notlost-justlookingaround

Uncivilised hour 7.30am? 😂 Try 4.30 am, and people are already lining up, and that was in Vienna. I still dont understand why you want to change your license, why you clearly state that you are French.

Final update.

So, made it to my appointed time at the (very empty) Limassol TOM office and handed my pile of dead trees to the examiner.

He very quickly handed them back and asked where the original electrical bills were.

I pointed at the printed copies of the bill EAK sends by email and he said that they were copies, not originals, and I needed both. That was most definitely not in the brochure...

Since I delete the emails after downloading and paying the bills, I had a problem (#1) and could not "prove" that I lived in Cyprus for the past 6 months.

After a bit of arguing, we finally agreed that the email from the mobile phone provider was sufficient proof of my residence. I didn't bother pointing out that there was only one month of "proof" and I didn't have a printed copy of it, as I had a plane to catch in 2 days (problem #2) and really couldn't come back next week with signed affidavits from EAK stating I was indeed a customer and therefore resident.

Once we got over that speedbump, the rubber stamp came out and I was on my way to not being able to drive on my upcoming vacation since the temporary licence they issue once the procedure is completed is only valid in Cyprus for a period of 1 month.

Which was a potential problem since I was out of the country for a month less a day and you need to hand in the temporary licence to receive the actual licence.

But, I managed to get the licence in hand a few days before my temporary residency permit expired, which would have been a massive problem since you need to have the (valid) plastic residency card in your hand during the application process otherwise you can not get a Cypriot licence if you are  not a resident here.

And you are not officially a "resident" here during the time Nicosia ignores your residency application / renewal.

quick recap.

1. you must be a resident in Cyprus for at least 6 months (185 day rule in calendar year) in order to receive a Cypriot issued driver's licence.
2. you must have the actual plastic residency permit (permanent or temporary) in order to exchange the driver's licence you arrived with. The application / renewal receipt can get you back in the country, while the residency permit application is being reviewed, but won't get you a licence.
3. a driver's licence issued by a EU member state  is valid here until it expires. Then is can be exchanged for a Cypriot one fairly easily as long as you are resident here as per above. there is no requirement for a written test or practical test as long as the EU licence is still valid. If it expires before exchanging it for a new Cyprus issued one, then you technically don't have a driver's licence and will probably have to write the test again as a bare minimum.
4. a valid driver's licence issued by a non-member state (not EU) may be eligible for a direct exchange without need for written or practical test, but licences issued by some non-EU states may be required to write the written exam and/or do a road test. The TOM website should have an updated list of which countries are exempt from testing in Cyprus.
5. give yourself months to go through the process if you live in a district which requires an appointment to submit and review the application. Limassol gave us an appointment almost 6 months after we requested one. Most districts require an appointment. Larnaca does not and only accepts walk-ins, but gives priority to Larnaca residents and those coming in from other districts to try their luck may be needing 2 or 3 visits to complete the process since you won't be seen  until the end of the day. If they have time.
6. Be prepared to kill a small forest to weight them down in paper, and keep originals of everything required, even if it's an email from the utility provider.

This website gives a fairly thorough explanation of the process, but falls short on reality depending on the district and examiner you deal with.

https://philippoulaw.com/articles/drivi … -residents