The planned update to the EU driving licence directive includes an EU-wide digital driving licence, revised rules on health and fitness checks, and additional requirements for less experienced drivers.
For road haulage and passenger transport, the implications are significant. Truck drivers are among the professions with an ageing workforce, while operators in many countries continue to face persistent labour shortages. Any change to medical checks or licence validity can quickly translate into operational pressure across the market.
No change to licence validity for truck and bus drivers
From a road transport perspective, the main point is that the agreed text does not change the validity period for professional licences.
Under the compromise, category C, CE, D and DE licences will still be issued for five years. As professional drivers already undergo regular medical examinations and psychological testing, EU lawmakers did not propose additional restrictions in this area.
Reform focuses mainly on private motorists
The most contested part of the reform concerned category A and B drivers. One of the European Commission’s most debated proposals was mandatory medical checks every five years for drivers aged 70 and above.
In the end, the European Parliament did not support that approach. The compromise keeps the standard validity period for car and motorcycle licences at 15 years. However, member states will be allowed to shorten that period for older drivers and link it to more frequent health assessments.
Importantly, the age threshold set in the compromise is 65. This means countries may introduce additional requirements once drivers reach that age, but they will not be obliged to do so.
Medical exam or health self-declaration
The new rules also change how fitness to drive is verified for non-professional drivers.
Before receiving a first licence or renewing one, drivers will have to complete a health assessment covering, among other things, eyesight and cardiovascular health. At the same time, member states will be able to decide that, for car and motorcycle drivers, a traditional medical examination can be replaced by a health self-assessment form.
The choice of approach will be left to national authorities.
A new role for family doctors
The draft also includes a provision affecting primary care doctors. They would be granted the power — and in certain cases the obligation — to notify the relevant authorities about patients whose health condition could pose a risk to road safety.
This would apply where medical conditions may limit safe driving, regardless of the driver’s age.
Digital driving licences and the rollout timeline
A key element of the reform is the introduction of a single digital driving licence that will be recognised across the European Union.
Once the directive is formally adopted, member states will have four years to implement the new rules in national law. In practice, this means the changes are likely to start applying in 2028–2029.
For the transport and logistics sector, this largely means continuity for professional drivers. However, the wider European debate on driver age and fitness to drive suggests that, as societies age, health requirements will play a more prominent role — including in discussions about the future road transport labour market.
