Waterford Fine Gael Senator John Cummins has welcomed the announcement this week of a further extension to driving licenses, due to ongoing Covid-19 restrictions. The announcement was made on 24th February by Minister of State Hildegarde Naughton TD, as the EU and national Governments take steps in response to the disruption caused by Covid-19 to driver licensing services across the EU.
Senator Cummins said “this is a very welcome move by Minister of State Naughton. The extension to driving licences will address the concerns of many drivers in Waterford who have licences that have expired or are nearing expiration. In recent months it is a matter that has been frequently raised by constituents contacting my office.”
The extension will apply to different groups of licence holders including those who benefited from extensions in 2020. Drivers who are affected by the extension are encouraged to check the new expiry date of their driving licence by using the expiry date calculator on www.ndls.ie. Enter the expiry date printed on your driving licence into the calculator and it will tell you the new expiry date.
Explained how the process will operate Senator Cummins said "Anyone who receives the licence extension will not be sent out a new licence. The Road Safety Authority (RSA) which manages the NDLS will automatically update driver records to show the new expiry date. A letter will then be sent to every customer who is entitled to the extension, explaining that the expiry date of their licence is being extended. The RSA has also told Insurance Ireland and An Garda Síochána about the new expiry date of driving licences and therefore licence holders do not need to take action at this point.”
The change will apply as follows-
• Any licence holder, who has not already renewed, and whose licence expired between 1 March 2020 and 31 May 2020 will have a new expiry date of 1 July 2021.
• Any licence holder, who has not already renewed, and whose licence expired between 1 June 2020 and 31 August 2020 will have thirteen months (which includes the previous extension) added to their expiry date. By way of example a licence which expired on 31 August 2020 will have a new expiry date of 30 September 2021.
• Any licence holder, who has not already renewed and whose licence expiry date is between 1 September 2020 and 30 June 2021 will have an extra ten months added to their expiry date. By way of example a licence which expires on 30 June 2021 will have a new expiry date of 30 April 2022.
Drivers who have been granted an extension and who have already booked an appointment at an NDLS centre, to renew their licence, are being asked to cancel the appointment, to make it available for others who need it. National Driver Licence Service (NDLS) centres remain open to essential workers.
Anyone who posted an application form to renew their licence is being advised that the NDLS may not be able to process their application. This will happen if the driver record has been updated and is already showing the new expiry date of your driving licence. Any original supporting documents, submitted with an application form, will be returned. Refunds will be made where applicable (licence renewal for over 70s is free).
Any driver can renew a driving licence within three months of the new expiry date. When your driving licence is due for renewal, you can renew it online on www.ndls.ie. To renew it online, you must have a Public Services Card (PSC) and a verified MyGovID account. You will get more information about a PSC at www.mywelfare.ie and about a verified MyGovID account at www.mygovid.ie.
“Anyone who is unclear on the process or has any questions is invited to contact my office on 085-1090927 or email me on john.cummins@oireachtas.ie, “ Senator Cummins concluded.