Digital Driving License Only Valid In Malaysia, Says Transport Minister

In response to a viral incident involving Malaysian motorists in Thailand last week, Transport Minister Anthony Loke has reiterated that the digital driving licence is only valid in Malaysia.  A physical licence is still needed for driving overseas.

Referring to the viral incident, two Malaysian motorists were fined by the Thailand authorities as they were not able to provide the authorities with a physical driving licence when asked.

In a Twitter post shared by user @acapkay, he recounted how both he and his friend were fined by the Thailand authorities after they committed a traffic offence, which was made worse by the fact that they were not able to provide a physical licence when questioned.

You can still get a physical of copy of your driving license

In response to this, Transport Minister Anthony Loke has reiterated that the matter of a driving licence was subject to the laws of other countries, as reported by BERNAMA.

“We have not stopped the issuance of physical copies of driving licences, so if they want to drive in a country that requires a physical licence they can apply for it at the Road Transport Department (RTD) counters when renewing their licence,” said Anthony Loke.

This is indicative of what he first said during the announcement of the digitalisation of road taxes and licences in February, as it is mentioned then that physical driving licences are still needed for driving overseas.

However, it is still worth noting that the digitalisation of driving licences are not applicable across the board for all Malaysians. Drivers with a learner’s driver’s licence (LDL) and a vocational driver’s licence (PSV/GDL/KON) still need a physical copy of the licence.

This also applies to foreign nationals holding a Malaysian driver licence or a an international driving permit, as they too need to bring a physical copy of their relevant documents on them while driving.