Everything About the Removal of The Physical Driving Licence Card in S’pore


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Detest having to stock physical cards in your wallet, because you’re an intense scatterbrain with a knack for misplacing things?

Image: Tenor

Sick and tired of replacing physical identity cards, because you’ve lost them like 69,000 times and counting?

Image: Tenor

Well, if you can relate to the nodding maestro up above, congrats; while I have no idea about the other cards…

The driving license card is one you’ll never have to worry about replacing… ever again.

Image: Avis Singapore

Everything About the Removal of The Physical Driving Licence Card in S’pore

According to The Straits Times, the Traffic Police plan to cease the issue of physical driving licenses unless requested by motorists, as they push towards digitalisation. This was expressed by Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Home Affairs Sun Xueling in Parliament yesterday (8 July).

Image: TK Kurikawa / Shutterstock.com

Now I bet you’re wondering;

What if I’m requested to show my driving license? What am I supposed to show?

Well, here’s the thing; apparently, the Road Traffic Act’ll be amended so that motorists will no longer be asked to surrender their physical licenses if they do not have one.

Speaking during the second reading of the Road Traffic (Amendment) Bill, Ms Sun said the Traffic Police will no longer depend on physical licenses to determine an individual’s driving qualifications, as they can procure the information with the person’s NRIC and date of birth.

So if you have a chronic fear of removing your driving license card just before you get pulled over by the Traffic Police, worry no more my mate;

Everything will be just fine.

Incidentally, driving license applications went online last year, with over-the-counter applications no longer accepted for a qualified driving license.

However, if you ask for the physical card, you can still have it.

But of course that begets the question: what if we go overseas and need to prove to the car rental company that we can drive? Ask them to check with TP?

Other proposed changes

Apart from the digitalisation of your physical driving license card, there will also be other proposed changes, as previously announced by the Home Affairs Ministry.

One reported change will be the clear dictation in the law that a motorist’s license will be suspended or revoked four weeks from the date of the notice, even if the motorist’s appeal is still being processed. This is because currently, several errant motorists drag on the suspension or revocation of their licenses, by misusing the appeals mechanism.


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If possible, the police will process and reply within two weeks of receiving an appeal, said Ms Sun. The Traffic Police, however, will extend the four-week notice period for exceptional cases, though that’s only applicable so that motorists can attend the Driver Improvement Point System Retraining Course.

Another reported change will be the Bill’s proposal of a lengthened suspension period, in order to deal with serial offenders. Currently sitting at three years, the Bill suggests that the license suspension period be lengthened to five years instead. For example, motorists with six or more suspensions will have their license suspended for five years.

And so… can you smell that?

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, if you can smell that strangely seductive aroma in the air…

It’s the foretelling of a new age.

So here’s a piece of advice to all the motorists out there (ironic because I don’t even own a driving license):


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Stay safe on the road.

Because you never know when the rules might change behind your back.