The DGT has issued a warning about potential scams to obtain a driving licence, pointing out that it is essential to pass an exam to obtain a driving licence in Spain, except in some cases where an exchange agreement is in place.
Non-EU foreigners must exchange their licence, if they already have one, for a Spanish one if they are citizens of countries with which there is an exchange agreement. If there is no exchange agreement with the country of origin, it is mandatory to pass a theoretical and a practical exam.
For UK nationals, who now fall into the non-EU category, there is still a very short-term agreement in place for the exchange of some licences.
Given the proliferation of Internet pages that offer to obtain a driver’s licence without the need to take any type of knowledge test, neither theoretical nor practical, the General Directorate of Traffic wants to alert everyone that this practice and belief is completely impossible.
In Spain it is essential to pass an exam in order to obtain a driving licence or, for non-EU foreigners who already have one, exchange it for a Spanish one in case of being a citizen of countries with which there is an exchange agreement. In this DGT link you can check if there is an agreement with the country of origin and how the exchange should be made.
Ghost and mobile web pages that do not support calls
The Central Research and Analysis Group (GIAT Central) of the Traffic Group of the Guardia Civil, has been investigating in recent weeks several pages of this type in which it is offered to obtain a “legal” Spanish driving licence simply paying an amount of money that, for example, in the case of permit B amounts to 850 euro.
These types of pages usually always use the same procedure to defraud users. They are advertised on the Internet, with a mobile phone number as the only way of contact, through which they ask the interested party to send all the complete information (name, surname, ID, date of birth, etc.), in addition to a photograph of the owner and another of the firm.
Once, supposedly, they have verified the authenticity of the data, they send the number of the current account in which the requested amount must be deposited by bank transfer and, after receiving the payment of said amount, they disappear without a trace.
They are usually temporary web pages, with Spanish telephone numbers of non-existent holders, which do not allow calls to be received but only data and which, furthermore, are constantly changing so as not to leave traces of their activity.
These types of scams are usually directed at migrants from third countries who are led to think that it is possible to obtain a driving licence without taking any prior examination, which is why the DGT insists on making it clear that this is impossible.
