Replacing a UK driver's licence in Berlin

Hi everyone, i hope this is posted in the right place. If not, then my apologies to the moderators. My problem is, i mislaid my UK drivers license (paper and card) a while before i moved to Germany. It's going to be a heck of a hassle to get my replacement license from the UK authorities (they don't seem to expect people to leave the UK and still need to contact them for any reason). Anyway, is it possible for me to apply to the German authorities and kind of have my license transferred, even though i don't have my old one? Will it have the same entitlements, or just be sort of generic (like, will i need to do my bike test again etc)? I don't even know where to begin with this so any help would be greatly appreciated! I have a job lined up that requires my license so please help if you can. Thanks!!!

Sorry man, pretty sure you need to have your old license and a translated version of it too

Does it have to be an official translation or can you just translate it yourself?

If official where does one get that done?

You can get it translated at an ADAC office. Obviously they charge for the privilege – around €50 if I remember rightly. If the DVLA won't post to a German address, give them the address of a friend or relative in the UK who can then forward the new license on.

I think this has been discussed in the past but I don't have time to search.

As I remember, the DVLA won't supply a replacement licence to anyone outside the UK...and they do check you're a resident. However they will supply you with (acceptable) documentation to prove that you had a full UK (EU style) licence, how long for etc - that would allow you to get a German licence.

Have a look through http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/Drive...ence/DG_4022085
(ok...I had time to search for that...)

I have no idea where the ADAC office is...

I had my mother go into an auto registry office back in Canada when I lost my license while in Ireland. They were able to give me a temporary (1 year) license as long as I brought in my travel information to prove I was out of the country when I went back home to renew it.

The only ADAC that does the translation is the one down in Wilmersdorf (Bundesallee 29-30), and it is around €50 for the translation (only about 2 people in all of Germany, it seems, are certified to translate drivers permits.)

Thanks everyone! Just to update. I'm heading back to the UK for the weekend so i'll try to get an application in when i'm there and get it posted back to a friends house. It seems, however, that the UK govt has been tightening up on paperwork and security. If you have a new(ish) "Digital Passport" then the UK post office can sort of read your data off it and send it to the DVLA. If your Passport is older (guess what folks, mine is) then the DVLA expects you to POST your passport to them ("we'll send it right back, honest")!! Are they nuts?! When i lived in the UK half my post routinely went missing. It seems that unless you conform completely with how the govt expects you to live your life (ie, never leave UK except spain for a fortnight, or do anything out of the ordinary) it's impossible to get things done! I really don't know how i'm going to resolve this without having a prolonged (and very, very inconvenient and unwanted) stay in Blighty, but i'll try, and i'll keep you all posted. Thanks again for all your replies.