Driving in the United Kingdom as a French driver
In the United Kingdom you drive on the left, the opposite of France, so the steering wheel is on the right and you go clockwise around roundabouts. Your French licence is all you need to drive in the United Kingdom.
Unless signposted otherwise, the limits are usually 30 mph in towns, 60 on country roads and 70 on motorways, or about 48, 97 and 113 km/h. Watch for fixed, mobile, average speed and red light cameras.
The United Kingdom and France side by side
The rows in yellow are different from home.
| Rule | United Kingdom | France |
|---|---|---|
| Drive on the | Left | Right |
| Speed units | mph | km/h |
| Alcohol limit | 0.08 | 0.05 |
| Holding a phone | Banned | Banned |
| Turn on red | No | No |
| Unmarked junctions | No fixed rule | Traffic from the right |
| Roundabouts go | Clockwise | Anticlockwise |
| Passing on the inside | Only in slow traffic | Banned |
The rules that catch French drivers out
The most important first.
They drive on the left
In the United Kingdom you drive on the left. At home you drive on the right. The steering wheel is on the right, and in a manual car you change gears with your left hand. Habit puts people on the wrong side when they pull out of a car park or turn into a quiet street, so say it out loud for the first day. At junctions, the nearest traffic comes from your right, so look right first.
Drive on the left, and go clockwise round roundabouts
Traffic keeps to the left. At roundabouts you give priority to traffic coming from your right, and go round clockwise. Look right first when you join. At home you go anticlockwise.
The national speed limit sign is not a derestriction sign
A white disc with a black diagonal band means the national speed limit applies. For a car that is 60 mph on a single carriageway and 70 mph on a dual carriageway or motorway.
Street lights usually mean 30 mph, or 20 mph in Wales
On roads with street lights, a 30 mph limit usually applies unless signs show otherwise. In Wales the default on these roads has been 20 mph since September 2023, and there are no repeater signs.
No turning on a red light
You must not cross the stop line while the light is red. There is no left turn on red. Only a green filter arrow lets you go.
Don't hold your phone, even in a queue
Holding a phone or sat nav while driving is illegal even when you are stopped at lights or in traffic. The penalty is £200 and 6 penalty points.
Smart motorways: obey the red X and the red circle
A red X above a lane means the lane is closed, and driving in it is a £100 offence with 3 points, caught by cameras. A speed limit shown in a red circle on an overhead sign is the legal limit.
Scotland's drink-drive limit is lower
The limit in Scotland is 50 mg of alcohol per 100 ml of blood, against 80 mg in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The safest choice is not to drink at all before driving. The blood alcohol limit is 0.08. That's higher than the 0.05 at home, but the safe choice is the same: if you drink, don't drive.
13 more rules worth knowing
Yellow box junctions
Criss-cross yellow lines mark a box junction. You must not enter the box until your exit road or lane is clear. You may wait in it to turn right if only oncoming traffic or other right-turning vehicles stop you. In London, a penalty for this is £160.
Bus lanes have hours
Don't drive in a bus lane during its hours of operation, shown on the signs. You may enter one to stop, load or unload where this is not prohibited. In London, a bus lane penalty is £160.
London charges you must pay yourself
Central London has a Congestion Charge of £18 a day, from 7am to 6pm on weekdays and 12pm to 6pm at weekends and on bank holidays. All of Greater London is an Ultra Low Emission Zone. Hire car drivers must pay these themselves online, or face a £180 penalty plus a hire company fee.
The Dartford Crossing is paid online
The M25 crossing east of London costs £3.50 for a car between 6am and 10pm. Pay online, by phone or at a Payzone shop by midnight the day after you cross, or you get a £70 penalty.
Give way to pedestrians at side roads
When turning into or out of a side road, give way to pedestrians crossing or waiting to cross it. At a zebra crossing you must give way once a pedestrian has stepped onto it.
Speeds are in mph
Speed signs and your speedometer's main scale are in miles per hour. 30 mph is about 48 km/h, 60 mph is about 97 km/h, 70 mph is about 113 km/h.
Speed limits
Country roads are 60 mph (about 97 km/h) here, faster than the 80 km/h at home. Motorways are 70 mph (about 113 km/h) here, slower than the 130 km/h at home.
Congestion Charge
Charging hours are 7am to 6pm Monday to Friday, and 12pm to 6pm on Saturdays, Sundays and bank holidays. TfL suspended the charge from 25 December 2025 to 1 January 2026. Driving in the zone during charging hours costs £18 a day if paid in advance or on the day, or £21 if paid by midnight on the third day after travel. Electric cars get 25 per cent off only when registered for Auto Pay. Where: Central London. Fine: £180, reduced to £90 if paid within 14 days. It rises to £270 if not paid or challenged within 28 days. When you hire a car, paying the charge is your job. If the hire company has to deal with a penalty for you, it adds a fee. Budget charges £25 plus VAT.
Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ)
Petrol cars must meet Euro 4 and diesel cars Euro 6, or pay £12.50 a day. The zone runs 24 hours a day, every day except Christmas Day. Where: All London boroughs, up to but not including the M25. Fine: £180, reduced to £90 if paid within 14 days. Vehicles registered outside the UK must be registered with TfL's partner EPC plc, even if they meet the standards.
Clean Air Zones
Only Birmingham and Bristol charge private cars. Cars that meet Euro 4 (petrol) or Euro 6 (diesel) don't pay. Other cars pay £8 a day in Birmingham, inside the A4540 Middleway ring road, and £9 a day in Bristol, where the charge runs midnight to midnight every day. Where: Bath, Birmingham, Bradford, Bristol, Portsmouth, Sheffield and Tyneside (Newcastle and Gateshead). Fine: £120 plus the daily charge in Bristol, reduced to £60 plus the charge if paid within 14 days. Birmingham's penalty is also £120. Pay on GOV.UK up to 6 days before you travel or by 11:59pm on the sixth day after you drive in.
Low Emission Zones (Scotland)
Petrol cars must meet Euro 4 and diesel cars Euro 6. Vehicles that don't meet the standard can't pay to enter. Cameras check every vehicle 24 hours a day, including public holidays, and the registered keeper of a vehicle that doesn't meet the standard gets a penalty charge notice. Where: City centres of Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow. Fine: £60 for a car, reduced to £30 if paid within 14 days. It doubles with each further breach, up to £480, and goes back to £60 after 90 days without a breach. You can't register or pay in advance. The online vehicle checker can't check vehicles registered outside the UK.
Toll roads
The Dartford Crossing on the M25 east of London charges cars £3.50 between 6am and 10pm, paid online, by phone or with cash at a Payzone shop by midnight the day after you cross. Two tunnels in east London also charge. The M6 Toll near Birmingham has barriers where you pay by contactless card. Dartford Crossing: crossings between 10pm and 6am are free. Dartford Crossing: the charge applies at weekends and on bank holidays too.
Your French licence is enough
With a French licence, your own licence is enough. You don't need an International Driving Permit. Visitors with an EU or EEA licence can drive for up to 12 months from when they enter Great Britain. GOV.UK does not ask for an International Driving Permit.
Open the United Kingdom in the app, set to a French licence, and keep all of this with you offline.
Open it in the appSpeed limits compared with home
Signs here are in mph. The black marks show your limits at home, converted.
Who goes first
Roundabouts go clockwise
Right is the long turn
Signs that look different from home
Speed limit
The maximum speed in miles per hour until another speed limit sign.
Speed camera
Cameras enforce speed limits or other traffic rules on this road.
Yield
Give way to traffic on the major road.
Roundabout ahead
Roundabout ahead.
Entry to 20 mph zone
A 20 mph limit applies throughout the zone.
Railway crossing with barriers
A railway level crossing with a barrier or gate is ahead.
Signs you won't know from home
The national speed limit applies: for cars, 60 mph on a single carriageway and 70 mph on a dual carriageway or motorway.
Average speed cameras measure your speed between two or more points.
Mini-roundabout ahead. Give way to vehicles from the immediate right.
You are entering the London Congestion Charge zone.
A lane ahead, running with the traffic, reserved for buses and cycles during its hours of operation.
The 20 mph zone ends and the limit shown begins.
The road you are about to turn into has a bus lane.
No stopping during the times shown, except as long as needed to set down or pick up passengers.
Oncoming traffic has priority through the narrow section ahead.
Speed cameras
Fixed speed cameras are painted yellow or covered in yellow reflective sheeting, and are signposted with a camera sign. Police also use marked mobile camera vans, average speed cameras, red light cameras and cameras that enforce red X lane closures on smart motorways. Within 14 days, a Notice of Intended Prosecution goes to the registered keeper, which for a hire car is the hire company. The keeper must name the driver within 28 days. Hire companies pass penalties on to the driver and may add an admin fee.
Before you drive
- Your driving licenceThe physical card, not a photo or a digital licence.
- Your passportHire companies and police ask for ID.
- Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ)Vehicles registered outside the UK must be registered with TfL's partner EPC plc, even if they meet the standards.
- Clean Air ZonesPay on GOV.UK up to 6 days before you travel or by 11:59pm on the sixth day after you drive in.
- Low Emission Zones (Scotland)You can't register or pay in advance. The online vehicle checker can't check vehicles registered outside the UK.
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Where French drivers drive next
The United Kingdom for drivers from elsewhere
Sources: the official United Kingdom sources listed on the the United Kingdom guide, checked 15 October 2026.