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Members of the European Parliament adopt a driving license reform

by AI | 21.Oct 2025 | Europe in brief AI

The European Parliament has approved a reform of driving licenses aimed at reducing the number of deaths on the roads in the Union, which stood at nearly 20,000 in 2024.

The first French chip driving license was presented alongside its former equivalent on September 11, 2013, in Paris. This new license was intended to improve the fight against fraud. (Photo: KENZO TRIBOUILLARD / AFP)

European Parliament (Strasbourg, France) – MEPs definitively adopted on Tuesday a reform of driving licenses that aims to prevent drivers from escaping a license withdrawal abroad and will promote the holding of digital licenses.

It establishes stricter rules for the renewal of licenses, increased requirements for obtaining them, and encourages the sharing of information between states, to prevent those guilty of serious traffic offenses abroad from escaping sanctions.

Currently, nearly 40% of drivers who have their license withdrawn or suspended in a country other than the one where it was issued remain unpunished, lamented the rapporteur of the text, Italian socialist Matteo Ricci.

The new regulation also establishes a maximum validity period of 15 years for car and motorcycle licenses, which can be reduced to 10 years in states where the driving license serves as an identity document.

The validity period may also be reduced for drivers over 65 years old. (October 21, 2025)