Driving License: The New European Rules that all Motorists Must Know

This Tuesday 21st October 2025, MEPs definitively adopted a reform of driving licenses in the European Union which will change a lot of things.

MEPs definitively adopted Tuesday October 21, 2025 a reform of driving licenses in the European Union (EU) which must prevent motorists to escape a license withdrawal abroad. It will encourage the holding of dematerialized permits.

Stricter rules for license renewal

This reform aims to reduce the number of road deaths in the EU, which stood at almost 20,000 in 2024.

It establishes stricter rules for renewal permits, increased requirements for obtaining them and promotes the sharing of information between States, to prevent perpetrators of serious traffic offenses abroad from escaping sanctions.

Currently, nearly 40% of motorists subject to a withdrawal or suspension of their license in a country other than the one where it was issued remain unpunished, deplored the rapporteur of the text, the Italian socialist Matteo Ricci.

With the new rules, a motorist who loses his license in a European country for a serious offense will no longer be able to drive in any other Member State.
The rapporteur of the text – Italian socialist Matteo Ricci

There new regulations also establishes a maximum validity period of 15 years for car and motorcycle licenses, which can be reduced to 10 years in states where the driver’s license serves as identification.

The validity period may also be reduced for drivers over 65 years old.

A two-year probationary period for young drivers

The EU also intends to accelerate the dematerialization of driving licenses and make digital license, accessible on mobile phones, the main format.

Citizens who request it will, however, still be able to obtain a physical document.

The driving license exam must further integrate points relating to the safety of vulnerable users (pedestrians, cyclists, etc.), such as blind spots or opening doors. The risks associated with using the telephone while driving must also be addressed.

The reform also establishes a two-year probationary period for young drivers, during which they will be subject to stricter rules and sanctions.

All young people aged 17 will be able to drive accompanied by a car or motorbike, the age for driving alone remaining set at 18 in the European Union.

Note that in France, the age for obtaining the driving license exam has been lowered to 17 years instead of 18 years in 2024. And accompanied driving is accessible from the age of 15.