Is it time for you to renew your Dutch driving license? To make clear if you license is about to expire or has been expired, you can check the declaration “Valid until” on the driver’s license. It should be noted that there are different regulations of a Dutch driving license renewal in the Netherlands or abroad. If you need to renew your license recently, I believe this article will help you a lot.
How to Renew a Dutch Driving License in the Netherlands
If you live in the Netherlands, you have two options to renew your driving license: apply in person or online.
Renew Your Dutch Driving License Personally
To apply for a new driver’s license in person, you should follow the below steps:
- Visit the website of the municipality where you are registered and make a appointment to renew your driving license.
- Bring the following documents to the appointment: the proof of your identity, one color passport photo that meets Dutch passport photo requirements, and your existing Dutch driving license.
- Pay for the driver’s license renewal during the application. The cost varies by municipality so you’d better check it first on the official website or consult professionals. Generally speaking, the price is related to the size of the municipality, the number of counters and the opening hours.
- Pick up your renewed driving license a few working days later. In most cases you will be informed the date on which you can pick up your license when you apply for it.
image resource: wikipedia
Renew Your Dutch Driving License Online
To process a driving license renewal online, you should confirm whether you are eligible or not first and then know about how to accomplish an online renewal.
- Requirements for an Online Renewal
✓ You have a Dutch driving license.
✓ You are registered in a municipality that can provide an online renewal. To know wether an online renewal is possible, you can check if your municipality is listed in Rijbewijs online verlengen | RDW. If it is not listed in the site, you are unable to renew your driver’s license online and can only apply at the town hall.
✓ You have a smartphone with NFC reader (Android version 7.0 or higher, iPhone 7 or higher).
✓ You have downloaded the DigiD app to which you added the ID-check or login with your identity card with PIN code.
- Steps to Renew Online
✓ Start by having a new passport photo in a photo booth or by a photographer recognized by the RDW (the Neverlands Vehicle Authority) with your current driving license or driving license number. You can not use the passport photo that you already have. You can search in the site Locatiewijzer | RDW to find a recognized photo booth or photographer.
✓ The photographer or photo booth will send your passport photo and signature to the RDW through a secured digital procedure. You will receive an e-mail sent by the RDW after a few minutes, which will let you know whether your photo is approved or not. Please note that the approval of your photo does not mean you have applied for renewal.
✓ Enter the DigiD app and press the “Renew driving license” button (only available in Dutch) to apply for your new driving license.
✓ Pay the fees via IDEAL.
✓ Wait for two working days and you will receive an email to inform you that your driver’s license is ready.
✓ Check your municipality’s website to see if you need to make an appointment to pick up your license. Remember to bring your current driving license together. Furthermore, notice that you must collect your new license within three months, or you will have to apply again.
If you would like to get your new driver’s license faster, you can choose to make an urgent application, which will create an extra cost. You new license will be ready the next working day. Notice that this procedure only works when you submit your application before 2:30 p.m.
How to Renew a Dutch Driving License Abroad
If you are going to renew your Dutch driving license outside the Netherlands, there will be a different process.
- Requirements for Renewal Abroad
You are eligible to renew your Dutch driving license through the RDW if you meet the requirements as follows:
i. You are a Dutch national or a national of another EU/EFTA country.
ii. You now live outside the EU or the EFTA. Or you live in the Caribbean parts of the Netherlands.
iii. You are not a registered resident in the Netherlands.
Note that the RDW does not send mails to foreign addresses. Therefore, you must have an accessible address in the Netherlands to receive the application form and your driving license.
- Steps to Renew Abroad
When you confirm that you qualify, follow the below steps to renew your driving license:
i. Request an application form for your driver’s license renewal on the website https://www.rdw.nl/en/driving-licence/dutch-driving-licence-abroad. Fill it out completely and legibly.
ii. Gather all the required documents, including your Dutch driving license, a photocopy of your valid travel document, a completed and signed application form, a color passport photo that meets the requirements for Dutch passport photos. Besides, additional documents are needed in the following situations:
- If you are 75 or above, you should provide a declaration of medical fitness (Verklaring van Geschiktheid, VvG) from the Central Office for Motor Vehicle Driver Testing (CBR).
- If you are 70 or above and your driver’s license will expire after the 75th birthday, you should provide a declaration of medical fitness from the CBR.
- If you are applying for a category C or D driving license, you should provide a declaration of medical fitness from the CBR. Also, you can choose to permanently or temporarily renounce your category C or D license and sign a waiver, which is available from the RDW. When you want to reinstate it, you have to complete a medical examination and apply for a declaration of medical fitness.
- If the period of validity of your driver’s license is limited for medical reasons, you should provide a declaration of medical fitness from the CBR.
- If you deregistered from a Dutch municipality before October 1st, 1994, you should submit proof of deregistration from the Central Population Registers Office from the municipality of The Hague, or a certificate of residence issued in the recent 6 months.
- If you are studying abroad and your parents are in the Netherlands, you should provide the below documents in Dutch or English: proof of your address registration abroad, proof of your enrollment in an educational institution abroad, and proof of your personal ties to the Netherlands.
iii. Submit the above documents to the RDW:
RDW, Unit Rijbewijzen
Postbus 9000
9640 HA Veendam
Nederland
iv. Pay the fees for your renewal application. Once your payment is accessible, the RDW will process your application within 10 working days.
Conclusion
To renew your Dutch driving license in the Netherlands or aboard, what you should do first is to confirm whether you meet the application requirements. Are you a Dutch citizen? Have you been registered in a Dutch municipality? Have you dowloaded the DigiD app? After checking with these, follow the steps on the above, and then you just need to wait for the arrival of your new license!
FAQs
a. My driving license was lost, what should I do?
You must report this issue to the municipality at once, which can be done in the department of Civil Affairs/ Public Affairs. If your license was lost abroad, it is also essential to make a report. Then you must apply for a new driver’s license.
b. How much does it cost to renew a driving license?
The cost of a driving license renewal varies by municipality and by situation. Generally speaking, the average cost of renewal is about 40 euro. If you’d like an urgen application, there will be an additional cost of around 30 euro.
Erin Lo