Yes, Indians can drive in France with their Indian Driving License (DL) or with a valid International Driving Permit (IDP). The IDP should always be accompanied by the Indian DL. If these documents are only in English or any other language, a French translation is mandatory.
However, the the right to drive is also dependent on your type of French visa or resident permit.
Student Visa
You can drive a a car in France (equivalent to the one described in your DL or IDP) during the entire duration of the studies. For example, if you are enrolled in a bachelors degree of 3 years, you can continue driving during the entire course duration.
But, the following requirements must be satisfied,
- You should be atleast 18 years old.
- The Indian DL or IDP should be valid and not be expired.
- It should have been obtained in India before entering France.
- It should be written in French (IDP already has a French translation in it) or be accompanied by an official French translation.
- It should have all the information about any medical prescriptions (if available).
- It should not be sanctioned anywhere in France, by a cancellation or invalidation of your right to drive. Please, note that the French DL points system is applicable for foreigners too.
If you want to continue driving after the graduation, you should obtain a French Driving License. For example , a Permis B for driving a car.
Note: It is not recommended to continuedriving on APS because it’s not a student resident permit.
Short Stay Visa (upto 90 days)
If you have come to France for a short duration, you can drive with your Indian DL or IDP. For example: Tourist, Holidays, Short Term work, Attending Conferences/Workshops, etc.
- The DL is valid during the entire duration of the stay, upto 90 days.
- The driver and the DL should satisfy the same conditions as mentioned in the Students section above.
Long Stay Visa (more than 90 days)
If you have a long stay visa (for example – people with Salaried Visa, Talent Passport, etc), you can drive upto one year.
- The driver and the DL should satisfy the same conditions as mentioned in the Students section above.
- The Indian DL or IDP is valid during the first year of the visa.
If you want to continue driving after this period of 1 year, you should obtain a French Driving License. For example, a Permis B for driving a car. The Indian DL or IDP cannot be exchanged with a French Permis B.
Additional Information
- French DL has a points system of 0 to 12 points.
- Upto 6 points can be reduced for a single traffic violation.
- Also, there are chances of losing all the points simultaneously, if multiple violations are committed.
- As a result, a DL with 0 points will become invalid. So, Follow the Code de la route (Traffic Rules) rigorously.
- The Code de la route can be checked here
- Recently, the Code has been modified. So, the points system is applicable to people driving with an Indian DL or an IDP too.
- Points will be reduced virtually and you will be informed about it electronically or via a letter. It will be done after the payment of the corresponding fine amount.
- The process for recovering the points lost is same as the one for a French DL.
- However, there is a lack of clarity about the virtual system of tracking the points for foreigners. This information will be updated soon.
Sources & References
- All the info about driving rules in France and the fines to be paid incase of traffic violations can be found here.
- Finally, driving without a valid DL in France may lead upto 1 year imprisonment and a fine of 15000 €. So, Please don’t take any unnecessary risks.
“Drive safely. Respect the rules. Enjoy your drive in France.”
