KUALA LUMPUR (May 3): Malaysian Class D driving licences can now be renewed for up to 10 years from five years at present, but is only applicable for Malaysian citizens and not foreign nationals or any other pass holders.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook said Malaysian driving licence holders can renew their driving permits for the maximum duration for a “special renewal fee” of RM270.
“We give a discount of 10% for only 10-year renewal, in which licence holders can enjoy the privilege of free fee for the 10th year,” Loke said at a press conference on Wednesday (May 3).
At present, it costs RM30 per year to renew a Class D driving licence, with a minimum renewal duration of one year and a maximum of five years.
A 10-year renewal would under normal circumstances cost RM300.
Loke said the Road Transport Department (JPJ) system is ready for the projected high volume of renewal applications, and that the public can opt to renew their driving licences for a period of between one- to 10 years.
“At this point, we want to make it easy for the public with a maximum of 10 years. A lot of people even asked me to renew it for life,” Loke said.
According to 2021 data — the latest available — JPJ collected RM4.04 billion in revenue, derived largely from road tax and licence renewal charges.
A total of RM2.79 billion or 70% of the overall revenue was generated from road tax renewals, followed by RM521.2 million (13%) from driving licence renewals.
Expired licence renewal without having to resit driving tests
Loke also announced that the Ministry of Transport (MOT) will grant special permission to any licence holders whose validity period has expired, to renew their respective permits without having to retake the driving test.
He said this initiative is only applicable to Malaysians whose driving licence expired from Jan 1, 2018.
This initiative is expected to benefit some one million drivers with expired licenses, Loke said.
“Taking into account the movement control order (MCO) that was imposed throughout[the] Covid-19 pandemic and the constraints faced by Malaysians abroad who could not renew their respective licences as they were unable to return home, MOT will give special permission to any expired licence holder to renew without having to take the test again,” Loke said.
This special permission is only valid until Dec 31, 2023, the minister said, adding that the existing rules will be reinforced beginning Jan 1, 2024.
“Many reached out to me via social media to look into expired licence cases. Instead of dealing with this on a case-by-case basis, MOT decided to roll out this initiative. We understand that if they (expired licence holders) were to re-take driving tests again, it will at least cost them somewhere between RM1,000-RM1,500,” the minister added.
Both these initiatives and special permissions can only be enjoyed by holders who are free from any JPJ transaction restrictions, are not blacklisted by the Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM), as well as those whose licenses are not affected by any suspensions as a result of a sentence or court order.
Both initiative and special permission can be accessed from JPJ counters from May 8.
In September 2021, the MOT extended the moratorium period for the renewal of motor vehicle licences and Malaysian driving licences until Dec 31, due to MCO restrictions.