Driving Licence
A driving licence is basically an official document issued by the Government of India, permitting individuals to operate or drive a motorised vehicle such as a car, motorbike, truck, bus, etc., on a public road, without any supervision. In India, a driving licence is issued by the Regional Transport Authority (RTA) or Regional Transport Office (RTO) of that particular state. The Motor Vehicles Act of 1988 states that no individual without the Driving licence is authorized to drive a motor vehicle in a public place.
Types of DL in India
Depending on the type of vehicle a person uses, he or she can get a license for it. However, the eligibility requirements for every vehicle type will vary. The list of categories for which the driving license can be applied for are as follows:
| Vehicle Type |
| Motorcycles with engine capacity of 50 cc or less than 50 cc |
| Motorcycles with gear, motorcycles with a capacity of 50 cc or more, Light Motor Vehicles (LMVs) including cars |
| All Motorcycles types including Motorcycle with gear |
| Motorcycles of any cc but with no gears – including scooters and mopeds |
| Light Motor Vehicle for non transport purposes |
| Light Motor Vehicle intended for commercial purposes |
| Heavy Passenger Motor Vehicle (also referred to as All India driving permit for trucks and cars or open licence) |
| Heavy Goods Motor Vehicle |
| Candidates holding a heavy vehicle driving licence can apply for heavy trailer licence |
Eligibility for Driving licence in India
The eligibility for driving licence in India depends on the class of vehicle and the type of driving licence. The eligibility criteria for different permanent Driving licence types in India are given below.
| Type of Permanent Driving licence | Eligibility Criteria |
| Motorcycles without gear (with a capacity of up to 50 cc) | The applicant must be at least 16 years old and must have the consent of parent or guardian if he is less than 18 years old. |
| Motorcycles with gear | The applicant should be at least 18 years old. |
| Commercial Heavy Vehicles and Transport Vehicles | The applicant should have completed 8th standard. The applicant must be at least 18 years old (in some states, the minimum age limit is 20 years). |
| General Requirement | The applicant must be conversant with traffic regulations and rules. The applicant must have valid age proof and address proof documents. |
Document Required for Driving licence
To ensure that there is no delay in the application process, the documents that are to be submitted have to be valid and correct. The list of documents required for driving licence are:
- Age Proof (any one of the below given documents)
- Birth Certificate
- PAN Card
- Passport
- 10th Class mark sheet
- Transfer certificate from any school for any class with date of birth printed on it.
- Proof of Address required for DL:
- Permanent Proof of address (any one from the following):
- Passport
- Aadhaar Card
- Self-owned house agreement
- Electricity bill (issued in applicants name)
- LIC bond
- Voters ID Card
- Ration card
- Current Proof of address (any one from the following):
- Rental agreement and electricity bill
- Rental agreement and LPG bill
- Permanent Proof of address (any one from the following):
- Other Requirements for Driving Licence:
- Duly filled application form (to get the application form for driving licence, visit the nearest RTO or download it from the online portal for your state)
- 6 passport sized photographs (when applying for Learners Licence)
- 1 passport sized photograph (when applying for driving licence)
- Application Fees
- If you are staying in other cities, as current address proof, you can present the rental agreement with one recent utility bill copy which can be gas bill or electric bill.
- Medical Certificate – Form 1 A and 1 which is to be issued by a certified Government doctor
- For all applicants over the age of 40 years, a Medical certificate is mandatory.
Process To Fill The Driving Licence Application Form Online
The process for filling out an online application for a Learner’s Licence or Driving Licence is as follows:
- Visit the Sarathi website and download the driving licence application form.
- Fill in the form as per the instructions provided on the screen and click on ‘Submit’.
- In the case of minor applicants, the form is to be printed out and Part D is to be filled out and signed by the parent/guardian at the nearest RTO.
- Upload the documents to be submitted along with the application form (proof of age, proof of address, learner’s licence number).
- A Web Application Number will be generated after submission, which can be used to track the status of the application.
- Once the application has been processed, a notification will be sent via SMS.
How to Apply for a Driving licence in RTO or Offline in India?
The procedure to apply for a Driving licence in India is very simple and straightforward. The steps given below will help you understand how to apply for a Driving licence offline.
- The applicant has to obtain a Form 4 which is the application form for motor vehicle driving licence in india. The Form can be downloaded from the state transport website. Alternatively, the customer can also visit the nearest RTO to procure Form 4.
- Completely fill the application form and submit it with other documents like age proof and address proof at the RTO in the jurisdiction in which you live. Also, schedule a slot for Driving licence test at the RTO and pay the fee for taking the test.
- Be present at your Driving licence test center on the specified time and date. Once you clear the test, your driving licence will be awarded on the spot or will be sent to your registered address.
- Also, if you are taking a driving lesson from a Driving school, the school will help you apply for a driving licence.
Format of Driving Licence in India:
The driving licence in India has a format. Let us understand this particular format by using an appropriate example:
Let us say that you stay in Bangalore and the vehicle you own has the licence plate number KA-01-2009-0004558 (reference use only).
- The first two characters KA indicate the state where the vehicle is registered. In this example, it is Karnataka.
- 01 is the city code.
- 2009 is the year when the licence was printed and given to the user.
- The following digits form the unique identification number for the user.
