How Big an Offence Is To Drive With Expired Driver’s License Card?

The Motor Vehicles Act 1988 mandates every vehicle owner in India to hold a valid permanent driving license to be eligible to drive the concerned vehicle on public roads. Although the procedure for obtaining a license seems simple, yet it involves a lot of difficulties. However, once we get the license, all the efforts are forgotten as the freedom to drive around our vehicles is being granted to us. However, obtaining a license is not enough. Once you get a license various rule and regulations become applicable on you to ensure your and others’ safety on road. One such rule is the renewal of driving license after expiry.

The Validity of Driving License and Timeline for its Renewal

A learner’s driving license is valid for 6 months whereas a permanent driving license is valid for 20 years or 50 years of the person’s age; whichever is less.

Before applying for a permanent license, one must hold a learner’s license for at least 30 days. And the application for a permanent license should be filed within 6 months. If the application is not filed within 6 Months then the person should apply for renewal of his learner’s license.

Similarly, after the expiry of 20 years or attaining 50 years of age, the person should apply for his/her driver’s license renewal. A grace period of 30 days is allowed for applying for renewal.

Consequences of Driving With An Expired License

As per the Motor Vehicles Act 1988, driving with an expired license is as good an offense as driving without a license. Section 177 of the Act lays down that driving without a license would liable the offender to pay a fine of Rs. 500/- or of imprisonment of a maximum of 3 months or both.

The same consequences are applicable to a person who drives his vehicle with an expired license.

Also, if the license is not renewed within the grace period of 30 days, an additional amount is charged as fine at the time of filing the renewal application. As a result, the renewal process becomes costlier for the person.

Further, if a license is not renewed within the expiry of 5 years from the date of expiry, then the license holder is disqualified from applying for a renewal. He/she has to apply for the license afresh and must go through the cumbersome procedure once again. Hence, the timely renewal of an expired driving license saves you from the painstaking process of license application.

Procedure for Applying for Driver’s License Renewal:

The procedure for the renewal of a driving license is quite simple. The steps are described below:

• For filling online application for renewal of a driving license, visit the official Parivahan website of Road Transport Authority of India at https://parivahan.gov.in/
• From the tab of online services click on driving license related services
• Fill in the driving license renewal form (Form 9) and proceed
• After filling the form, the nearest RTO office has to be visited by the applicant with his documents for physical verification of the same. The applicant can also download the form and physically submit it to the RTO along with documents.
• After the verification of the documents, the renewed DL is granted within a span of 15 days. For commercial vehicles, it might extend up to 30 days.
• A fee of Rs. 200 (Rs. 400 for smartcard) is charged for the renewal of a driver’s license. However, if the renewal application is filed after the expiry of 5 years from the date of expiry, then a late fine of Rs. 1000 will be levied.

List of documents required for renewal of driving license:

• Medical certificate (Form 1-A)
• Physical fitness certificate (Form 1)
• Copy of permanent driving license
• Age proof (Pan card)
• Address proof (Passport, Aadhaar or utility bill) agreement, etc.
• Passport size photographs of the applicant.
• In case the original license was obtained from another state, then a No Objection Certificate and a confirmation regarding the original license by the old issuing authority has to be furnished to the RTO.

The Validity Period of a Renewed Driving License

The renewed driver’s license also has a validity period. For transport vehicles, the validity is of 3 years whereas, for non-transport vehicles, the validity is of 5 years. Hence, after the expiry of the above period, the renewal application has to be filed again following the same procedure.

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