Recover your right to drive
License Cancellation
Following a judicial cancellation (decision by the Tribunal administratif or correctional court) or administrative cancellation (prefecture, after total point loss on Mes Points Permis) of your driving license, you must retake all tests: highway code (ETG) at an approved operator then practical exam. Before resitting, you must have served the prohibition period and passed a mandatory medical check by an approved doctor (R226 of the Code de la route), often combined with a psychotechnical test. The minimum waiting period before resitting is 6 months (1 year for repeat offence, alcohol or drugs), or sometimes up to 3 years for the most serious cases. According to ONISR, around 80,000 licenses are cancelled each year in France, mainly for blood alcohol or drug-driving.
The essentials
Driving licence cancellation in France occurs after a 48SI (total loss of points) or by court order following a serious offence (alcohol, drugs, hit-and-run). The 48SI letter triggers a 6-month ban (1 year for repeat). To recover the licence: medical exam by an approved doctor (EUR 50), psychotechnical tests (EUR 90-120), then retake of the code and practical (if licence over 3 years old).
How it works
01
Initial assessment
Driving assessment to evaluate your level and tailor the course.
02
Highway code
Refresher training and ETG exam.
03
Driving lessons
Practical training adapted to your past experience.
04
Practical exam
Sit the practical driving test.
What's included
- Initial driving assessment
- Highway code training (ETG)
- Driving hours adapted to your profile
- Theory and practical exams
Prerequisites
- Have served the prohibition period set by the court or administrative decision
- Have completed psychotechnical tests if required by the judge
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to retake the highway code after a cancellation?
Yes. With a cancellation (not a mere suspension), you must retake both the theory and practical exams in full, as a first-time candidate.
What is the difference between a suspension and a cancellation?
A suspension is temporary: your right to drive is withdrawn for a set period, after which you recover your license without retaking any exam. A cancellation is permanent: you lose your license and must retake it in full to recover your right to drive.
Are psychotechnical tests required after a cancellation?
Yes, in most cases of judicial cancellation, the judge requires a medico-psychological assessment before you can resit the exams. These assessments are carried out at centres approved by the prefecture and generally cost between €80 and €120.
How long is the wait before resitting the license?
The minimum delay is set by the cancellation decision. Simple cancellation: 6 months. Cancellation for blood alcohol >0.8 g/L or drugs: 1 year minimum. Repeat offence: 3 years. The delay runs from the date of cancellation notice. During this period, driving is punishable as the offence of driving without a license (€15,000 fine, 1 year imprisonment).
Is the medical check after cancellation mandatory?
Yes, without exception. You must visit an approved doctor on the prefecture list (available on Service Public or from your prefecture). The check confirms your medical fitness and issues a certificate (Cerfa 14880*02), valid for 2 years, to present when re-registering for the exam.
Which training route after cancellation?
If your initial license is less than 3 years old: retake both code and practical fully like a first-time candidate. If your license is more than 3 years old (long experience): only the code (ETG) is required, you keep your practical experience. The new license will be probationary for 3 years, restarting at 6 points. See the official Service Public sheet on license cancellation.
Which financial aids after cancellation?
The CPF via Mon Compte Formation remains available for training. France Travail may fund if you are a jobseeker who lost work due to cancellation. Regional aid may open in case of professional reintegration. The Permis 1€/jour scheme remains available if you are under 25. Check with your DevisPermis partner driving school.
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What is license cancellation?
License cancellation is a permanent measure that wipes out your driving title. A permis annulé status follows either a judicial decision (court ruling after alcohol, narcotics, hit-and-run or serious offence) or an administrative decision (48 SI letter from the ANTAI after a total loss of points). Unlike a simple suspension, license cancellation forces you to retake the whole driving exam to recover your right to drive. The official notification starts the prohibition period during which no application is accepted.
Difference: cancellation, invalidation, suspension
Three measures are often confused. Suspension is temporary (a few weeks to several months): the title is kept and returned at the end of the period without retaking any exam. Invalidation refers strictly to the 48 SI loss-of-points case and is an administrative form of license cancellation. Judicial cancellation is the broadest case: a court orders the loss of the title with a prohibition to apply again. In every cancellation scenario (administrative or judicial), the candidate is treated as a new applicant and must retake the code and, if applicable, the driving exam.
Waiting period before retaking the exam
No new application can be filed before the prohibition period has fully elapsed. After a license cancellation, the standard minimum delay is 6 months, extended to 1 year for repeat offenders, and up to 3 years in the harshest court rulings (alcohol with hit-and-run, narcotics with aggravating circumstances). The clock starts on the notification date (48 SI letter or court judgment). Filing your medical visit and psychotechnical tests before the delay expires lets you re-apply on day one, instead of waiting for the appointments to be scheduled.
Mandatory medical exam
After a license cancellation, a medical visit with an approved doctor (Article R226 of the Highway Code) is mandatory before any new application. The doctor checks medical fitness to drive and issues a Cerfa 14880*02 certificate valid for 2 years. For a permis annulé following alcohol or narcotics, the judge usually adds a medico-psychological assessment in a centre approved by the prefecture. Both documents must be presented to retake the permit: without them, the prefecture rejects the file and no driving school can register the candidate.
Retaking code and driving
Once the medical visit is validated and the prohibition delay elapsed, you register with an accredited driving school which opens a new NEPH file. To recover your driving rights after a license cancellation, the Highway Code theory exam (ETG) is required in every case. The practical driving exam is added if the original licence was less than 3 years old; beyond that, only the code is needed. The new title issued is a probationary licence with a 6-point capital for 3 years, whatever the date of the previous permit.
Training price after cancellation
A post-cancellation training package generally bundles an initial driving assessment, code preparation, a block of practical hours and the two exam presentations. The total budget depends on three factors: number of driving hours required by the initial assessment, ETG attempt fees, and the price of the medical and psychotechnical files (paid directly to the approved doctor and the centre). DevisPermis compares partner driving schools across 490+ cities so a candidate with a permis annulé can find a tailored formula to retake the permit without paying for unnecessary hours.
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