The expiry dates of learner permits for drivers in Ireland have been further extended in the wake of Covid-19 restrictions.
A new 10-month extension to the validity period of permits has been introduced in response to Level 5 restrictions seen earlier this year.
During the restrictions, many permit holders were unable to take driving lessons, sit a driving test or renew their permit.
Confirming the move this afternoon, Minister of State at the Department of Transport Hildegarde Naughton said the extension would provide “peace of mind” to drivers.
“Those who will benefit from this extension don’t need to do anything, our systems will update their records automatically,” she said.
“A new learner permit will not be issued to drivers with the new expiry date, rather the electronic driver record will be updated to reflect the new expiry date.”
Previous extensions
The extension means a driver whose learner permit expired between March 1st 2020 and July 31st 2021 will see it extended by 10 months — in addition to previous extensions granted.
“This means that a person whose learner permit expired on March 10th 2020 will have the life of this permit extended to September 10th 2021, while a person whose permit expires on August 15th 2020 will have a new expiry date of October 15th 2021,” the Minister said.
“If you have already renewed your permit, and it had an expiry date between March 1st 2020 and July 31st 2021 the extension will not apply, and the expiry date of your permit will be as shown on your new permit.
“The RSA has also told Insurance Ireland and An Garda Síochána about the new expiry date of learner permits.”
Expiry date calculator
Drivers affected by the extension are encouraged to check the new expiry date of their learner permit by using the expiry date calculator on www.ndls.ie.
Under the new extension, the following will apply:
- Permits that expired between March 1st and June 30th 2020 that were previously extended by eight months will now be extended by a further 10 months — so 18 months in total.
- Permits that expired between July 1st to October 31st 2020 that were previously extended by four months will now be extended by a further 10 months — so 14 months in total.
- Permits that expired or will expire between November 1st 2020 and July 31st 2021 will be extended for 10 months.
Any driver can renew a learner permit within three months of the new expiry date.
