In the United Kingdom, a driving licence is the official document which authorises its holder to operate motor vehicles on highways and other public roads. It is administered in England, Scotland and Wales by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) and in Northern Ireland by the Driver & Vehicle Agency (DVA). A driving licence is required in England, Scotland, and Wales for any person (except the sovereign[citation needed]) driving a vehicle on any highway or other "road", as defined in s.192 Road Traffic Act 1988,[1] irrespective of the ownership of the land over which the road passes. Similar requirements apply in Northern Ireland under the Road Traffic (Northern Ireland) Order 1981.
Prior to the UK leaving the European Union on 31 January 2020 and during the transition period which ended on 31 December 2020, a UK driving licence was a European driving licence,[2] adhering to Directive 2006/126/EC and valid throughout the European Economic Area. A new updated design has been issued from January 2021, now simply reading “UK” in larger blue letters, where the EU flag with the circle of stars surrounding the "UK" code used to be.[3][4]
Since July 2015, all UK driving licence photocards issued by the DVLA have displayed the Union Flag, and since December 2021[5] also the Royal Coat of Arms on the front of the driving licence. This does not apply to driving licences issued by the DVA in Northern Ireland.[6]
As UK nationals do not normally have identity cards, a photographic driving licence can serve many of the purposes of an identity card in non-driving contexts, such as proof of identity (e.g. when opening a bank account) or of age (e.g. when buying age-restricted goods such as alcohol or tobacco).
^"s.192 Road Traffic Act 1988 – General Interpretation of Act". Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 24 October 2013.
^Asa Bennett (27 January 2020). "How will the Brexit transition period work?". Telegraph.
^"New-style driving licences and number plates mark one-year anniversary of Brexit as EU flag is removed". GOV.UK. Retrieved 9 March 2021.
^"INS57P - Information on driving licences" (PDF). Driver & Vehicle Licensing Agency.
^Cite error: The named reference :1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^"The photocard driving licence explained | nidirect". www.nidirect.gov.uk. 24 November 2015. Retrieved 20 July 2022.
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