Help with Finnish Driving licence!

[antstar]

Are you planning on living here for good? do you have permanent address in Belgium?

[adamo]

I am living in Finland permanently. My offical adresse is here.

[Hank W.]

Well, then go to http://www.poliisi.fi => licences and read about exchanging your license. The thing is you can change it now. If you don't change it and it has an expiry date, and you are still in Finland... then you can not exchange it any more. And if and when you move out of Finland you can exchange it back to your old one (I think if you go outside Finland you should exchange it back to the original, but...) Also the Finnish licence doubles as ID card in many places, so a bit less long stares...

[Deman]

To the OP...

Why don't you just learn to drive? If you're scared of failing your theory test then why don't you just learn the rules of the road?

[blaugrau]

Adamo, does your current driving licence have an expiry date? At least when you're EU, you don't need to exchange your driving licence at all to a Finnish one if it doesn't expire. If it does have a relatively near expiry date, then it's recommended to exchange it to a Finnish one, which is possible only within the first 18 months of your residence in Finland. If your EU driving licence expires after that and you didn't exchange it for a Finnish one, you need to retake a driving test in Finland.

My driving licence from my EU homecountry doesn't expire, so I won't exchange it.

EDIT: just noticed now that someone else had already said the same above, so no new info in this post. I'm a bit slow today, should try some coffee.

[adamo]

Hey blaugrau,

My driving licence is not time limited. So I think there is no need to exchange it.
Thx

[blaugrau]

indeed, no need at all to exchange it then!

[bigdaz1970]

if i change my uk license to finnish license , will i have to do any tests , as im a hgv driver in the uk .

thanks for any help

[timpal]

I have one of the old style pink paper driver's licenses that I received in the 1980s. Does anyone know, when I return to Finland, do I have to renew it for the newer plastic ones?

[EP]

I have one of the old style pink paper driver's licenses that I received in the 1980s. Does anyone know, when I return to Finland, do I have to renew it for the newer plastic ones?

I drive around with my pink paper card, and nobody has asked me to get a new one. Which is good: My 1970´s face definately looks better than my 2008 face. And with good imagination police can even guess that the person in the photo is me.

[Hank W.]

You don't *have* to - but you can't use it as ID anywhere any more.... so if you get one of the new ID cards then theres no reason to exchange it.

[timpal]

Ah haa, as they say.

Thanks EP, and Hank W. Basically I'll keep my old pink paper license then, and as far as ID, I can always use my passport if asked for. KELA kortti is before I left the old country, and I had a sairausvakuutuskortti from god knows when.

[Hank W.]

Well, the ID card has its benefits. It doubles as a passport travelling to Schengen countries and you get asked ID in stores as well as banks.

[ad]

Went to poliisi to exchange my UK licence for a Finland licence last week. I'd checked on their website and it said two photos, old licence, ID, fill out the form, pay the money.

The people in the office asked:
Q.Why do you want a Finland licence?
A. Because I live here now.
Q. But Why do you want a Finland licence?
A. Because I don't live in the UK anymore.
Q. But why do you want a Finland licence? etc

This went on for about five minutes before they accepted I wanted a Finland licence. I filled out the form and handed over my UK licence.
"What's this?" they asked,"what does this code mean? What's this for?" pointing out various features on the card. How the hell should I know?

Then it turns out they don't know their own regulations. They say I need a doctor's certificate to say I can drive. On the website it says you only need this if transferring from a Non-EU licence, which is why I went to the trouble of exchanging my old Australian licence for the UK licence in the first place.

p.s.How the hell will a doctor know if I can drive? Are they going to come for a couple of laps of the block or just listen through a stethoscope and say "Hmmm, All clear going forwards but I see you have trouble reverse parking..."

[Hank W.]

Thats the boonies for you The doctors certificate is to chack the endorsements, liek mine has "must wear glasses".