Driving licence not valid after expiry unless renewed : Supreme Court

A bench of Justices pointed out that from the very next day after the date of expiry, without renewal, the person holding an expired licence is incompetent to drive .

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has said, a driving licence cannot now  automatically extend beyond the period of its expiry, as was provided for in the unamended last proviso to Section 14 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988.

A bench of Justices Ahsanuddin Amanullah and S V N Bhatti pointed out, after the Amendment Act, 2019, from the very next day after the date of expiry, without renewal, the person holding an expired licence is incompetent to drive the vehicles he had such licence for.

Meaning thereby, that there is a legal disability for driving, the court said.

"The first proviso to sub-section (1) of Section 15, gives a window to a person for renewal of his existing licence, which starts one year prior to the date of the expiry of the licence and continues for one year post-expiry. The theory that once a licence is renewed, even after a gap, the renewal would operate from a back date implying that the licence was continuing and valid even for and during the interregnum cannot be countenanced,'' the bench said.

The court explained the legal position in a judgment on December 18, 2025, allowing an appeal by the Telangana State Level Police Recruitment Board against the High Court's 2023 judgment.

The HC had allowed a plea by a group of aspirants to apply to the post of driver, though their driving licences had expired within a period which was two years prior to the date of notification in continuity but who had got the same renewed after some gap.

Setting aside the HC's order, the bench said, "Section 14 of the 1988 Act, as it stands today, does not provide for the licence to continue after its expiry even for a single day; however, before the Amendment Act, 2019, the then-existing proviso made the date extendable automatically by a further period of 30 days from the date of its expiry.''

The court held the requirement or the condition that for the last two years continuously preceding the dates of the notifications, the candidates should possess driving licences cannot be termed unreasonable. 

The bench also said, the requirement of possessing a licence continuously for a period of two years prior to the dates of the notifications cannot be negated only because in the driving test, a person may pass.  

"The driving test is by way of abundant caution to verify and ensure that the candidate is in regular practice of driving. It cannot be construed as waiving the requirement of having a valid driving licence continuously for a period of two years prior to the dates of the notifications," the bench said.