S.I. No. 464 of 2008

EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES (RECOGNITION OF DRIVING LICENCES OF OTHER MEMBER STATES) REGULATIONS 2008

Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

“Iris Oifigiúil” of 11th November, 2008.

I, NOEL DEMPSEY, Minister for Transport, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 3 of the European Communities Act 1972 (No. 27 of 1972) for the purpose of giving effect to Article 1(2) of Council Directive No. 91/439/EEC of 29 July 1991 ¹ , hereby make the following regulations:

1. These Regulations may be cited as the European Communities (Recognition of Driving Licences of Other Member States) Regulations 2008.

2. In these Regulations-

“category” means a category of vehicle set out in the Table to Regulation 6 of the Regulations of 2006 and includes a sub-category of a category;

“Directive” means Council Directive No. 91/439/EEC of 29 July 1991¹;

“European Economic Area” has the meaning assigned to it in the European Economic Area Agreement between the European Community and the European Free Trade Area signed in Oporto, on 2 May 1992;

“foreign driving licence” has the meaning assigned to it by Regulation 42 of the Regulations of 2006;

“Regulations of 2006” means Road Traffic (Licensing of Drivers) Regulations 2006 ( S.I. No. 537 of 2006 );

“public place” has the meaning assigned to it by the Road Traffic Act 1961 (No. 24 of 1961).

2. (1) A person who holds a foreign driving licence issued by the competent authority of a Member State of the European Communities or the European Economic Area, in respect of any one or more of the categories of vehicles referred to in the Table to Regulation 6 of the Regulations of 2006 may, subject to paragraph (2) and Commission Decision No. 2000/275 of 21 March 2000 ² , drive in a public place a vehicle in any such category in respect of which the licence has been granted, for the period for which the licence has effect.

(2) Paragraph (1) does not apply where the person is aged less than the age mentioned in column (2) of the Table to Regulation 9 of the Regulations of 2006 in respect of the licence.

GIVEN under my Official Seal,

4 November 2008

NOEL DEMPSEY.

Minister for Transport.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This Note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation)

These Regulations provide for the recognition of drivers with driving licences issued in other EU Member States driving in Ireland.

1 OJ No. L237, 24.8.91, p.1.

2 OJ L91, 12.04.2000, p.1