I have a california drivers license. going to spain (dual citizenship). ?

 

With Spanish/USA citizenship, I want to get a Spanish Drivers license. Spain no longer recognizes US licenses. The Autoescuela is very pricey. Im within an hour of Gibraltar. Can I go take a test in Gibraltar (UK territory), exchange US for UK license to drive, then go to Spain with that license to transfer for a Spanish one? Pain in the butt but since I'm close, will it work? Thx
Clarification, tourists may drive up to 6 months on a foreign drivers license. After that, a Spanish one is required by law. A AAA intn'l license will not work. Thx

 

So get an International Driver's License instead
http://www.international-license.com/index.php
My guy traveled all over the world that is all he had
to drive his rental cars he got his at the AAA in town.
Read this too:
http://travel.state.gov/travel/tips/safety/safety_1179.html

 

Taking the test in Europe is usually a bigger deal than doing it in the US. In many cases, you have to do driving school or a certain amount of hours with an instructor. I can not say if you can take the test in Gibraltar easily or if you need to be living there. The Gibraltar dept of transport has a website here: http://www.gibraltar.gov.gi/transport/transport_index.htm

Then you want to exchange US for UK license? According to the Gibraltar website, a Gibraltar license is not the same as a UK license but they accept EU licenses so it's very likely that Spain would accept and exchange a Gibraltar license if you managed to get one. Maybe best to check that out with Spanish authorities before you look into getting one in Gibraltar. You could exchange a Gibraltar license for UK license easily according to http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/DriverLicensing/DrivingInGbOnAForeignLicence/DG_4022562 but then you would have to be living in the UK.

According to http://www.dmv.ca.gov/dl/dl_info.htm California doesn't have any agreements with other countries for drivers license exchange. It basically says, if you come from another country, you have to take a test. Because of that, it's unlikely that you can exchange your California license anywhere. Agreements like that tend to work both ways.

Of course you can also check out which countries in the EU have the lowest licensing requirements and go there but the cost of that might just put you at the same level as the autoescuela. Complicated world, eh?