The driving license in card format has, on the back, a table detailing each category obtained. Column 11 of this table indicates the expiration date of each category of the license, line by line. This date does not correspond to the expiration of the physical document (noted on the front, marker 4b), and the confusion between these two pieces of information regularly generates administrative difficulties or situations of unintentional violation.
Column 11 of the license: what it indicates for each category
The back of the European license is presented in the form of a table. Column 9 lists the categories obtained (A, A2, B, C, D, etc.), column 10 mentions the date of first issuance, and column 11 displays the date until which each category remains valid.
To fully understand the validity date column 11 driving license, it must be read category by category. The same physical license can show different dates in column 11 depending on the lines: category B may be valid until 2035, while a category C listed just below expires much earlier.
Column 12, adjacent, completes this table with harmonized European codes indicating restrictions or adaptations (wearing glasses, adapted vehicle, etc.). Column 11 and column 12 work together to define the exact conditions of the right to drive for each category.
Validity of category B and light categories: a duration of fifteen years
For the so-called light categories (A, A1, A2, B, B1, BE), the validity period noted in column 11 is fifteen years from the issuance of the title. Upon reaching this deadline, no driving test needs to be retaken. The renewal is purely administrative: updating the identity photo and address.
This fifteen-year duration concerns the validity of the title, not the right to drive itself. A driver holding category B retains their right to drive permanently, unless revoked or canceled by judicial means. The date in column 11 simply indicates when the document must be renewed.
What happens concretely at the deadline
Driving with a license whose date in column 11 has passed for category B does not mean driving without a license. The right to drive still exists. However, the document is no longer compliant, which can pose problems during a roadside check or abroad.
Vehicle rental companies and foreign authorities rely on the document presented. A license with a category showing an expired date in column 11 may be refused, even if the driver still legally holds the right to drive in France.
Heavy categories and column 11: different validity rules
The heavy group categories (C, CE, C1, C1E, D, DE, D1, D1E) follow a distinct regime. Their validity period in column 11 is shorter and depends on the driver’s age. Renewal requires a mandatory medical examination by an approved physician.
A technical point deserves special attention: renewing a heavy category after a medical examination does not automatically extend the other categories. The administration can only extend the category for which the medical check was performed. Therefore, each line of the table must be checked separately.
- Renewing category C after a medical examination does not automatically renew category D if it is also on the license.
- Driving with a heavy category whose date in column 11 has passed means no longer being authorized to use that category, even if the physical license remains valid for other categories.
- A favorable medical examination allows for the extension, but the authorization to drive depends on the medical decision and the regulatory conditions specific to each category.
Old pink format license and equivalence with column 11
Holders of a three-part pink paper license issued before 2013 do not have a column 11 in the strict sense. This format does not include the standardized table of the European license. The obtained categories are presented differently.
These licenses remain valid but must be converted to the new format according to a schedule defined by the administration. During this conversion, the held categories are transferred to the new title, and a validity date then appears in column 11 for each of them.
Beware of confusion between support and right to drive
On the old pink license, the absence of a visible expiration date gave the impression of an unlimited right to drive over time. The right to drive remains indeed acquired (except for withdrawal), but the physical support must now be renewed periodically. Column 11 of the new format materializes this obligation that did not visually exist on the old document.
- The pink license remains usable until its conversion deadline.
- After conversion, column 11 displays the new validity deadline for each category.
- No category is lost during the transition to the new format, unless the driver no longer meets the medical conditions for heavy categories.
Column 11 of the driving license is not a mere administrative detail. For light categories, it sets a renewal appointment without examination. For heavy categories, it directly conditions the right to circulate. Regularly checking the dates inscribed on each line of the back of the license remains the most reliable way to avoid an unpleasant surprise during a check or a procedure abroad.
