Moldova and Spain have completed the internal procedures needed for implementing  the Agreement on the mutual recognition and conversion of national driving licenses. The document is to take effect on September 29.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs notes that Moldovans residing in Spain will be able to replace their Moldovan driving licenses with Spanish ones without passing knowledge or drive tests if they were obtained before the agreement took effect.

Those willing to obtain the Spanish equivalents for categories C1, C1+E, C, C+E, D1, D1+E, D and D+E will have to take a skills and behavior control test in a closed circuit and a drive test on public roads open to general traffic.

In the case of licenses issued after the entry into force of the agreement, these must be obtained in the state where the applicant has legal residence.

The old driving license must be returned to the issuing authority.

The agreement with Spain was signed in Chisinau on April 18.

According to the MFA, this is the first agreement with a EU member state that provides for verification of the authenticity of documents through the exchange of digital data in real time, directly between the competent Moldovan and Spanish authorities. This means administrative procedures are simplified, as costs and processing times are reduced.