The proposal is to temporarily extend some overseas licences holders’ eligibility to drive in New Zealand. This will:
The extension will enable eligible drivers to drive for up to 24 months in total (rather than 12) from their date of arrival into New Zealand on their overseas licence.
The extended eligibility period will be in place until 31 December 2021. After this time, the proposed Rule would expire, and the eligibility period would revert back to 12 months.
This will mean for overseas licence holders who entered New Zealand after 1 January 2019 and before 16 December 2020, whose 12-month eligibility period has ended or is due to end, will gain a further 12 months from the point of the original eligibility period expiring. If an overseas licence holder enters New Zealand after the proposed Rule comes into force, once the Rule expires, the overseas licence holder will revert to the original 12-month period of eligibility.
|
16 Dec 2020 |
Rule comes into force |
| 1 Nov 2019 | Driver A enters |
| 1 Feb 2020 | Driver B enters |
| 3 Jan 2021 | Driver C enters |
| 31 Dec 2021 | Rule expires |
| 1 Nov 2021 | Driver A's eligibility to drive ends |
| 31 Dec 2021 | Driver B's eligibility to drive ends |
| 31 Dec 2021 |
Extended period of eligibility in amendment Rule expires |
| 3 Jan 2022 | Driver C's eligibility to drive ends |
Driver A
Entered New Zealand on 1 November 2019. Without the rule amendment, their eligibility period would expire on 1 November 2020. If the rule amendment comes into force on 16 December 2020, they will not be able to drive on their overseas licence from 1 November 2020 to 16 December 2020. However, from 16 December 2020, they would be able to drive on their overseas licence until 1 November 2021 (ie. 24 months from their arrival into New Zealand). Once the extended eligibility period in the amendment Rule expires, they would no longer be able to drive on their overseas licence.
Driver B:
Entered New Zealand on 1 February 2020. Without the rule amendment, their eligibility period would expire on 1 February 2021. If the rule amendment comes into force on 16 December 2020, they would be able to drive on their overseas licence until 31 December 2021. 24 months from 1 February 2020 is 1 Feb 2022, which is beyond the date that the rule expires, so the period of eligibility to drive ends on 31 December 2021.
Driver C
Enters New Zealand on 3 January 2021. Because they will enter New Zealand outside of the time period specified in the rule amendment (arrive in New Zealand after 1 January 2019 and before 16 December 2020), the rule does not apply to them. They will only be eligible to drive on their overseas licence until 3 January 2022 (ie 12 months from their arrival into New Zealand).
The following temporary visa holders will be eligible for the proposed Rule’s temporary extension:
New Zealand residents or Australian citizens (treated as New Zealand residents) will not be eligible. For the most part, these visa holders have normally re-located to New Zealand permanently and are encouraged to convert to a New Zealand driver licence to formally enter the Driver Licensing Register.
If a temporary visa holder’s status changes eg an application for New Zealand residency is successful, they will cease to be eligible for the extension and must convert to a New Zealand driver licence.
Once the extended eligibility period in the amendment Rule expires, overseas licence holders who are expecting/intending to remain in New Zealand will be required to convert their overseas licence to a New Zealand driver licence. If an overseas licence holder does not convert their licence and continues to drive, they could face a penalty for the first offence of driving with an expired driver licence of $400 infringement fee under section 31(1)(a) of the Act. A second or subsequent offence has a maximum fine on conviction of up to $1,000.
The proposed Rule will not present a significant risk to road safety. Based on road safety data, held by Waka Kotahi in the Crash Analysis System, overseas licence holders represent a small proportion of overall crash statistics, being at fault in around 4% of all crashes. This figure has remained consistent over the past decade, despite the 45% increase in international visitors.
There are also a number of specialist vehicles that overseas licence holders cannot drive without a current New Zealand licence (and additional training where required), which also helps mitigate any potential road safety risks. This includes any vehicles that require endorsements, such as taxis, forklifts, buses, or when transporting dangerous goods (for example petrochemicals). Endorsements are only available to drivers that carry a valid New Zealand driver licence and have met the relevant requirements. For example, a dangerous good endorsement holder will need to pass a course prior to applying to Waka Kotahi.
Waka Kotahi maintains the Driver Licence Register (the Register), which holds information on all New Zealand driver licences, including traffic offence history. New Zealand Police (Police) have access to the Register for enforcement purposes under schedule 4 of the Privacy Act 2020. (And, until 1 December 2020, under Schedule 5 of the Privacy Act 1993.)
Until an overseas licence is converted, information on an overseas driver is not available in the Register. Instead, a separate licence record for the driver is created by Police. This enables Police to track, record and act against any traffic offences (including demerits) that overseas drivers may incur and can revoke or suspend a temporary visa holder’s eligibility to drive if needed. Traffic offence history will be carried over once the driver converts to a New Zealand driver licence.
