Proposal for a Directive on driving licences, amending Directive (EU) 2022/2561, Regulation (EU) 2018/1724 and repealing Directive 2006/126/EC and Commission Regulation (EU) No 383/2012

Summary:

Legislative initiative - tabled by the European Commission on 1 March 2023 - seeking to revise the existing legislative framework on driving licences. This is a text with EEA relevance.

Further information:

As part of its 2018 Mobility Package, the European Commission issued a Strategic Action Plan on Road Safety where it called for a new approach to counter the stagnating trend in road safety figures in the European Union (EU) and move closer to the long-term goal of zero road fatalities across the EU by 2050. In 2019, the Commission published its EU Road Safety Policy Framework 2021-2030 - Next step towards Vision Zero, in which interim targets were proposed. The target of zero fatalities in all modes of transport by 2050 was reiterated by the 2020 Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy.

That Strategy first announced the revision of the cornerstone of the existing legislative framework on driving licences, Directive 2006/126/EC, also known as the Driving Licence Directive. This Act establishes common legal measures for the recognition and issuance of driving licences in the European Union. The proposal aims to revise the existing framework to improve road safety and facilitate the freedom of movement by:

• introduction of a EU single driving licence model mandatory for all drivers;
• categorisation of driving licences according to types of vehicle and minimum ages to drive them;
• compulsory administrative renewal of all new driving licences every ten years;
• simplification of the administrative burden on drivers changing their residence to another Member State;
• application of common minimum standards on skills, knowledge, physical and mental fitness of drivers;
• progressive access to powerful motorcycles;
• creation of network for information exchange related to driving licences between national authorities.

The draft law builds on the objectives of the existing framework but also responds to the need for an increased sustainability and digital transformation of road transport. The proposal was announced by the Commission's 2022 Work Programme. It was eventually adopted on 1 March 2023 as part of Road Safety legislative package. The package sought to ensure a consistent approach in the field of road safety as regards cross-border enforcement of road traffic rules.

Official

EUR-LEX: SWD(2023)128: Staff Working Document accompanying the Proposal - Impact Assessment Report https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=SWD:2023:128:FIN

EUR-LEX: SWD(2023)129: Staff Working Document accompanying the Proposal - Executive Summary of the Impact Assessment Report https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=SWD:2023:129:FIN

European Commission: Press Release, 01/03/2023: Road safety: Commission proposes updated requirements for driving licences and better cross-border enforcement of road traffic rules https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_23_1145

European Commission: Questions and Answers: proposals on driving licences and cross-border enforcement of traffic offences (1 March 2023) https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/qanda_23_1146

European Commission: Press conference by Commissioner Adina Vălean on the Road Safety package (1 March 2023) https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/speech_23_1322

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