Mutual Recognition of Driving Licences in the EU – Current State of Integration and Perspectives

Abstract

A driving licence is a document and an administrative act, which is, according to the principle of territoriality, only valid in the territory of the issuing State. This is incompatible with practical needs of international traffic, and mutual recognition helps to overcome the problem. This article presents the development of mutual recognition of driving licences in the EU, from pre-existing public international law to current harmonising legislation and the relevant ECJ jurisprudence. It finds that once there was sufficient harmonisation, the ECJ promoted mutual recognition, while the EU legislator had to close the loopholes for 'driving licence tourism' by amending the directives. Unlike in other areas of the internal market, primary law never played an important role for the mutual recognition of driving licences. Determining the current state of integration, the article identifies a lack of information exchange between Member States and a lack of harmonisation of sanctions as main obstacles for full, unconditional recognition, and proposes ways leading towards an 'internal market of driving licences'.