Ukrainian Driving Licence in the EU in 2026: Exchange, Translation and the International Permit under Temporary Protection

If you live in the European Union under temporary protection and use a Ukrainian driving licence, the main news is simple: there is no urgent need to exchange anything. The European Commission proposed extending temporary protection on 4 June 2025, the EU member states politically supported it on 13 June 2025, and the EU Council adopted the formal decision on 15 July 2025 (Implementing Decision (EU) 2025/1460) — protection will apply until 4 March 2027. The protection standards and the scope of rights remain unchanged.

This directly concerns drivers. The recognition of Ukrainian licences in the EU is governed by Regulation (EU) 2022/1280, and it is tied precisely to the period during which temporary protection is in force. That is, the extension of protection automatically extends the right to use a Ukrainian licence as well.

What Regulation (EU) 2022/1280 says

The Regulation has been in force since July 2022 and establishes the same rules for all EU countries. The key provisions for those who have temporary or corresponding national protection:

• Recognition without exchange. Article 3 expressly provides that valid Ukrainian driving licences are recognised within the territory of the Union "without their holders being required to exchange them" — and this until temporary protection ends.
• No certified translation and no international permit. Article 3(2) establishes that a driver may not be required to provide either a certified translation of the licence or an international driving permit (IDP).
• Old licences in Cyrillic. Old-style licences issued only in Cyrillic are also accepted without additional translation — this follows from Article 3(2) and the official clarifications of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine.
• All categories. The provisions cover passenger car, truck and bus categories (A, B, C, D and their derivatives).

If the licence is lost, stolen or has expired

The Regulation provides for separate situations:

• Loss or theft. If you have lost your Ukrainian licence or it has been stolen, an EU country may issue a temporary licence with the special code 99.01 in field 12 — for the duration of temporary protection, without taking a theory and driving test. Importantly: for categories C, CE, C1, C1E, D, DE, D1, D1E (trucks and buses), a check of medical fitness is mandatory (Article 6); for categories A, B and their derivatives, such a check may not be required. Such a licence is mutually recognised by other countries of the Union.
• Expiry after 2021. If Ukraine officially extends the validity of documents that expired after 31 December 2021, EU countries consider their holders as having a valid document (Article 5).
• Professional drivers. The qualifications of truck and bus drivers obtained in Ukraine are temporarily recognised in the EU — after additional training of between 35 and 60 hours and confirmation by a test (code 95.01, Article 4).

What the simplifications do NOT cover

The relaxations apply only to those who have temporary or corresponding national protection in an EU country. The following should be considered separately:

• Licences that expired before 2022 do not fall under these simplifications — they must be renewed or exchanged under the general rules.
• Citizens of Ukraine who are in the EU without temporary protection (for example, as tourists or under another status) are subject to the usual rules for licence recognition, not this special regime.

What happens after temporary protection ends

Recognition of Ukrainian licences under Regulation 2022/1280 lasts exactly as long as your temporary protection lasts. On 16 September 2025, the EU Council adopted a recommendation on a coordinated transition out of the temporary protection regime — countries are gradually preparing the transition to other residence statuses. When protection ends, the question of exchanging Ukrainian licences for local ones will be decided by each country separately in accordance with its legislation and bilateral agreements.

Therefore, if you plan to stay in a particular country for a long time, it makes sense to find out in advance from the local authority (for example, the body that issues licences) whether an exchange of a Ukrainian licence for a local one without an examination is possible — in a number of EU countries this is provided for by bilateral arrangements.

The bottom line for the driver

As long as you have valid temporary protection, you can legally drive in the EU on a Ukrainian licence — without exchange, without translation and without an international permit. Keep your licence with you, monitor the term of your own protection (extended to 4 March 2027) and the announcements of your country of residence regarding the transition to other statuses.