Brussels, 25 March 2025
EU Council backgrond on driving disqualifications in the EU
A provisional political agreement reached today by the Council and European Parliament will ensure that serious road traffic offenders will soon be held responsible throughout the EU for their offences, independently from the member state where these offences were committed.
Under the current rules, member states that did not issue a driving licence may restrict the right to drive of a serious road traffic offender only within their own territory. Only the member state that issued the licence can restrict the right to drive throughout the whole EU. Therefore, currently, when a driver commits a serious road traffic offence in a member state (‘member state of the offence’) other than the member state that issued the license (‘member state of issuance’), the offender may not be able to drive in the member state of the offence but can continue to drive everywhere else in the EU.
However, with new rules agreed today, the member state of the offence will have to inform the member state of issuance of the driving disqualification enforced. The member state of issuance will then be obliged, under specific conditions, to impose a similar driving disqualification on the offender, making it effective throughout the EU.
Specific rules for the implementation of driving disqualifications in the EU
The agreed directive will help ensuring a high level of protection for all road users in the EU, assuring the implementation of driving disqualifications imposed because of serious driving offences such as:
- drink-driving or driving under the influence of drugs,
- speeding offences;
- or a conduct infringing road traffic regulations and causing death or serious injuries to others.
When the member state of the offence imposes a driving disqualification of at least three months on the driver, and all course of action by the driver against that decision has been exhausted, the member state of the offence has to notify the member state of issuance using a standard certificate via the EU driving licence network (RESPER).
The member state of issuance will then notify the driver – when possible – within 20 working days of receival of the notification and will decide whether to implement the disqualification.
In certain cases, for example if the member state of issuance has reasons to believe that the right to be heard of the driver was not respected, the member state of issuance may decide to exempt the driver and not implement a similar driving disqualification..
Next steps
This provisional agreement will now need to be endorsed by the member states’ representatives within the Council (Coreper) and by the European Parliament. It will then be formally adopted by both institutions following legal-linguistic revision.
Background
An important element of the policy on road safety is the consistent enforcement of sanctions for road traffic offences committed in the EU. As the result of the free movement of persons and a subsequent rise in international traffic, driving disqualifications are increasingly imposed by member states other than the driver’s member state that issued their driving license. However, these disqualifications are currently only enforced within the member state where the traffic offence occurred. In 2019, about 40% of cross-border offences were therefore committed with relative impunity.
At the informal meeting of transport ministers in Valletta in March 2017, EU member states called for action on the issue of mutual recognition of driving disqualifications concerning non-resident drivers.
As part of the European Commission’s Road Safety Package, the Commission proposed the directive on driving disqualifications in March 2023, addressing the gap in the implementation of these driving qualifications in the EU.
The Road Safety Package not only entails a directive on driving disqualifications, but also an update of the directive on driving licences and a directive amending the directive on facilitating cross-border exchange of information on road-safety-related traffic offences.
Further information
EU Parliament on EU-wide rules to reduce reckless driving while abroad
- EU countries to exchange information on the withdrawal, suspension or restriction of driving licences for serious offences
- New rules would apply to excessive speeding, fatal accidents, and driving while under the influence
MEPs and the Polish Presidency of the Council agreed on new rules to curb impunity and trigger EU-wide driving disqualifications for reckless drivers.
A provisional agreement was reached on Tuesday evening between Parliament and Council negotiators on new rules ensuring that the withdrawal of a non-resident’s driving licence is applied across all EU countries.
Currently, if a driver loses their licence following a traffic offence in a different EU country to the one where the licence was issued, the sanction will only be applicable, in most cases, in the country where the offence was committed and not where it was issued or any other EU member state. According to the agreement agreed by MEPs and the Council, a driving withdrawal, suspension or restriction will be passed on to the EU country which issued the driving licence to enforce the penalty and make sure it is followed across the whole of the EU.
Triggers for EU-wide penalties
With the new rules in place, concerned EU countries will have to inform each other, without undue delay, about decisions on driving disqualifications related to the most severe traffic offences – including drink or drug driving, involvement in a fatal traffic accident, or excessive speeding (e.g. driving 50 km/h faster than the speed limit).
During the negotiations, MEPs managed to convince EU countries to introduce a deadline of 20 working days to inform the driver concerned about a decision on their sanction and on the procedure they can use to challenge it.
MEPs also secured an obligation for the Commission to assess, five years after the entry into force of the new provisions, whether to expand the set of driving offences triggering the EU-wide application of a sanction and introduce stricter deadlines for information exchange between EU countries to enhance the implementation of new rules.
Quote
EP rapporteur Matteo Ricci (S&D, IT) said: “This Directive is a crucial step in ensuring better road safety. By introducing clearer and more timely criteria for suspending driving privileges because of serious violations, this measure protects not only responsible drivers but the entire community. A more effective system of control and sanction will prevent accidents and save lives.”
Next steps
The informal agreement on driving disqualification rules still needs to be approved by both the Council and the Parliament.
Further information
- Procedure file
- EP Research Service briefing on new EU rules on driving disqualification (October 2024)
- Committee on Transport and Tourism
Source – EU Parliament