Guides·19 August 2026·8 min read

Renewing the Photo on Your Driving Licence: The 10-Year Rule

A photocard licence must be renewed every 10 years. It costs GBP 14 online and GBP 17 by post, and driving on an expired photocard can attract a fine of up to GBP 1,000. Here is the process and the photo standard.

By Helal · Last updated 19 September 2026

A driving licence beside a calendar with the renewal date marked.

How often do you need to renew your driving licence photo?

Every 10 years. GOV.UK states it directly: "If you have a photocard driving licence, you must renew it every 10 years," and you will be sent a reminder before your current card expires. Renewing online costs £14; renewing by post costs £17.

The reason is stated just as directly by DVLA: "appearances change and it is important that photocard licences are updated every 10 years to ensure the police and other enforcement agencies have the best possible photograph." The card is an identity document used at the roadside, and a photo that no longer looks like you undermines the one job it has.

The expiry date people miss

The confusion at the heart of this is that a photocard licence has two expiry dates, and they are not the same thing.

Your entitlement to drive normally runs to age 70.
The card itself expires after 10 years.

The card's expiry sits in section 4b on the front. It is easy to look at a licence, see a date decades away in section 4a, and conclude you are fine. You are not — 4b is the one that matters for renewal.

Driving with an expired photocard is an offence. GOV.UK's guidance is that failing to renew and supply a photo that is a recent and true likeness means "you will be breaking the law and may have to pay a fine of up to £1,000." Against a £14 renewal, that is a poor trade.

How to renew, and what each route needs

Route	Cost	Photo
Online at GOV.UK	£14	Use your passport photo, or upload a new one
By post	£17	Send "a recent printed passport type photo"
At a Post Office	Varies	Photo taken or supplied at the counter

Online is the cheapest and the easiest, and the reason is the photo. GOV.UK states that when renewing online, "you'll be able to use your passport photo or upload a new one." DVLA reaches into your passport record — no booth, no print, no photo fee.

DVLA has also noted that drivers collectively miss out on substantial savings by not renewing online, and reports a five-day turnaround for online renewals against longer waits by post.

By post, you send your photocard, a printed photo and payment. Two details catch people:

The photo must be "a recent printed passport type photo" — the HM Passport Office standard, not any recent photo of you.
Do not sign the back of the photo. GOV.UK's guidance for renewals is explicit on this, and it runs against everybody's instinct. The printed photo standard requires photos to be "unmarked on both sides."

The photo standard, in full

DVLA does not maintain a separate standard. It asks for a passport-type photo and links to HM Passport Office's requirements. That means:

45mm high × 35mm wide printed, with your head measuring 29mm to 34mm from crown to chin
Plain cream or light grey background for prints; "plain light-coloured" for digital
Plain expression, mouth closed, eyes open and clearly visible
No shadows on your face or behind you
No head coverings unless worn for religious or medical reasons
No sunglasses or tinted glasses; no glare or reflection over the eye
Colour only, sharp focus, no other objects or people in frame
Printed to a professional standard on plain white photographic paper with no border, no creases or tears

Our detailed walkthroughs: size and framing, background colour, lighting, glasses, and how to take a perfect UK driving licence photo.

How to read the dates on your licence

The front of a photocard carries several numbered fields, and only one of them tells you when to renew.

Field on the licence	What it means
4a	Date the licence was issued
4b	Date the licence expires — the renewal date
4c	The issuing authority (DVLA)
5	Your licence number

The trap is that many people glance at the card, see a date far in the future, and assume they are covered. That date is usually the expiry of the driving entitlement, which normally runs to age 70, or it is the issue date in 4a. 4b is the card's expiry, ten years after issue, and it is the one that governs renewal.

Check yours now if you have not looked recently. It takes five seconds, and the penalty for an expired card is up to £1,000 against a £14 renewal.

What else to update while you are there

A renewal is a convenient moment to reconcile the record, though two of these are separate obligations that should not wait for a renewal:

Address. Updating your address is free and can be done at any time. It is a legal requirement to keep it current, not a renewal task.
Name. A change of name requires identity documents supplied with the application.
Medical conditions. Notifiable conditions must be reported to DVLA when they arise, not at the next renewal. Waiting for a renewal is not compliance.
Photo. This is the renewal task proper.

The address point is worth emphasising because the two are often conflated. Moving house does not restart your ten-year photocard clock, and renewing your photocard does not discharge your obligation to keep your address current.

Should you reuse your passport photo?

The online service offers it, and whether to accept depends on one question: how old is your passport photo?

Passports and photocards both run for ten years, and the two cycles are almost never aligned. If your passport was issued seven years ago, its photo is at least seven years old — and putting it on a licence you will carry for another ten means an eventual seventeen-year-old likeness on a document used to identify you.

Reuse it if your passport photo is recent and still looks like you. Upload a new one if it is more than two or three years old, or if your appearance has changed.

Full detail in can you use the same photo for your passport and driving licence.

What else changes at renewal

A photo renewal is a good moment to check the rest of the record:

Address. Updating your address on a licence is free and is a separate obligation from the ten-yearly renewal.
Name. A change of name needs identity documents supplied with the application.
Medical conditions. Notifiable conditions must be declared to DVLA when they arise, not only at renewal.

Why renewing online is the default advice

Three pounds is the least of it. The online route differs from the postal one in ways that matter more than the fee:

The photo problem disappears. Online, you can reuse the photo already on your passport record. Postal, you must produce a compliant printed photo — correct size, correct background, professional print quality, cut accurately, unsigned on the back. That is a whole additional task with its own failure modes.

Nothing goes in the post. A postal renewal means sending your photocard away and waiting for its replacement.

It is faster. DVLA has reported new licences arriving in about five days for online renewals.

Fewer things to get wrong. Each of the postal requirements — the photo standard, the correct payment, the right documents for a name change — is an opportunity for the application to bounce.

The online route is unavailable if you cannot verify your identity, typically because you do not hold a valid UK passport. In that case the postal route is the standard path, and the photo is worth getting right first time. Our walkthrough: how to print UK passport photos at home.

Renewing at 70 and beyond

The ten-year cycle changes at 70. From then, GOV.UK states, "once you reach 70, you must renew every 3 years" — and it is free. A new photo can be supplied at each renewal.

See renewing your driving licence at 70.

What happens if you have already let it expire

Renew now, by the same routes. There is no separate late process and no additional DVLA charge for having missed the date; the risk is the up-to-£1,000 fine for driving on an out-of-date photocard, which is avoided by renewing rather than by explaining.

If your photo is rejected during renewal, DVLA asks for another one. That is a delay, and with a card that may already be expired it is worth responding quickly. See your passport photo was rejected: what happens next — the recovery process is much the same.

If the passport-record shortcut is not open to you, our UK driving licence photo service checks a photo against the standard DVLA applies.

Frequently asked questions

How often do I need to renew my driving licence photo?

Every 10 years until you are 70, and every 3 years after that. The card's expiry date is in section 4b on the front of the licence.

How much does it cost to renew a driving licence photo?

£14 online and £17 by post. Renewals from age 70 are free.

What happens if I do not renew my photocard licence?

Driving on an expired photocard is an offence, and failing to renew with a recent and true likeness can carry a fine of up to £1,000.

Can I use my passport photo to renew my licence?

Yes, when renewing online — "you'll be able to use your passport photo or upload a new one." Consider how old that passport photo is before accepting.

Should I sign the back of my photo when renewing by post?

No. GOV.UK's renewal guidance says not to, and the printed photo standard requires photos to be "unmarked on both sides."

Which date on my licence is the renewal date?

Field 4b on the front of the card. Field 4a is the issue date, and the far-future date people often mistake for the renewal date is usually the expiry of your driving entitlement, which normally runs to age 70.

Does moving house reset my ten-year renewal?

No. Updating your address is free, separate, and required whenever you move. The photocard's ten-year clock runs from the card's issue date regardless.

How long does a driving licence renewal take?

DVLA has reported new licences arriving in about five days for online renewals; postal applications take longer, and applications needing medical or personal checks can take longer again.