Summary is it licence or license? Licence and license are two variants of the same word, which can be a noun or a verb. In the case of a license issued by a government, the license is obtained by applying for it.
If you're american, use "license." if you're british, use "licence" for the noun (i.e., papers, a permit) but "license" for the verb (i.e., to allow, to give permission). Applying for or renewing a driving licence applying for a certificate of authenticity of a driving licence viewing driving licence data in the driving licence register Us spelling of licence 2.
A person who takes license with something (or someone) engages in "abusive disregard for rules of personal conduct." hence, the semantic range of license in english mirrors that of its latin. Jan 20, 2026in british english, canadian english, australian english, irish english, south african english and new zealand english the noun is spelt licence and the verb is license.