Article 2 F1

Subject to the provisions of this Article, it shall be lawful for a person resident outside the United Kingdom who is temporarily in Great Britain and holds—

during a period of twelve months from the date of his last entry into the United Kingdom to drive, or F3... for any person to cause or permit such a person to drive, in Great Britain a motor vehicle of any class F4other than F5a medium-sized goods vehicle, a large goods vehicle, a privately-operated passenger vehicle or a passenger-carrying vehicle which he is authorised by that permit or that licence to drive, notwithstanding that he is not the holder of a driving licence under Part III of the Road Traffic Act 1988.

Subject to the provisions of this Article, it shall be lawful for a person resident outside the United Kingdom who is temporarily in Great Britain and holds—

during a period of twelve months from the date of his last entry into the United Kingdom to drive, or for any person to cause or permit such a person to drive, in Great Britain—

which he is authorised by that permit to drive, notwithstanding that he is not the holder of a medium-sized goods vehicle driver’s licence, a large goods vehicle driver’s licence, a privately-operated passenger vehicle driver’s licence or a passenger-carrying vehicle driver’s licence.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Nothing in the preceding provisions of this Article shall authorise any person to drive, or any person to cause or permit any person to drive, a vehicle of any class at a time when he is disqualified by virtue of section 101 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 (persons under age), for holding or obtaining a driving licence authorising him to drive vehicles of that class, but in the case of any such person as is mentioned in F8paragraphs (1) or (2) of this Article, who is driving a vehicle which—

the second column of that paragraph, in its application for the purposes of this paragraph, shall have effect as if for “21” there were substituted “18”.

In this paragraph the following expressions have the meanings respectively assigned to them:—

• “the international requirements” means—

  1. (i)

     in relation to a person who is driving a goods vehicle on a journey to which Council Regulation (EEC) No.3820/85 of 20th December 1985, on the harmonisation of certain social legislation relating to road transport applies, the requirements of Article 5(1)(b) (minimum ages for goods vehicle drivers) of that Regulation;

  2. (ii)

     in relation to a person who is driving a goods vehicle on a journey to which the European Agreement concerning the work of crews engaged in International Road Transport (AETR) signed at Geneva on 25th March 1971 applies, the requirements of Article 5(1)(b) (conditions to be fulfilled by drivers) of that Agreement;

• “Convention country” means a country which is not an EEA State nor a party to the aforementioned European Agreement but is a party to F13the 1968 Convention, the Convention on Road Traffic concluded at Geneva in the year 1949, or the International Convention relative to Motor Traffic concluded at Paris in the year 1926.

This Article shall not authorise a person to drive a motor vehicle of any class if, in consequence of a conviction or of the order of a court, he is disqualified for holding or obtaining a driving licence under Part III of the Road Traffic Act 1988.

The Secretary of State for Transport may by order made by statutory instrument withdraw one or both of the rights conferred by paragraphs (1)(b) and (2)(b) of this Article in respect of—

In this Article—

• F15“1926 Convention” means the International Convention relative to Motor Traffic done at Paris on 24th April 1926;

• “1949 Convention” means the Convention on Road Traffic done at Geneva on 19th September 1949;

• “1968 Convention” means the Convention on Road Traffic done at Vienna on 8th November 1968;

• F16“Convention driving permit” means either—

  1. (a)

     a driving permit in Form A in Schedule 1 issued under the authority of a country outside the United Kingdom which is a party to the 1949 Convention but not to the 1968 Convention;

  2. (b)

     a driving permit in Form B in Schedule 1 issued under the authority of a country outside the United Kingdom which is a party to the 1926 Convention but not to the 1949 Convention nor to the 1968 Convention; or

  3. (c)

     a driving permit in Form C in Schedule 1 issued under the authority of a country outside the United Kingdom which is a party to the 1968 Convention;

• “domestic driving permit” in relation to a country outside the United Kingdom means a document issued under the law of that country F17to a person who has given proof of his competence to drive and authorising the holder to drive motor vehicles, or a specified class of motor vehicles, in that country, and includes a driving permit issued F18to such a person by the armed forces of any country Outside the United Kingdom for use in some other country outside the United Kingdom F19but does not include a Community licence (within the meaning of Part III of the Road Traffic Act 1988);

• F20...

• “dependants” in relation to such a member of the British Forces or the civilian component thereof, means any of the following persons, namely—

  1. (a)

     the wife or husband of that member; and

  2. (b)

     any other person wholly or mainly maintained by him or in his custody, charge or care; and

• F21“EEA Agreement” and “EEA State” have the meanings given in Schedule 1 to the Interpretation Act 1978.

• F22“medium-sized goods vehicle” has the same meaning as in Part III of the Road Traffic Act 1988;

• “medium-sized goods vehicle driver’s licence” means a licence under Part III of the Road Traffic Act 1988 in so far as it authorises a person to drive medium-sized goods vehicles of any class;

• “privately-operated passenger vehicle” means a vehicle, not used for carrying passengers for hire or reward, which is constructed or adapted to carry more than eight but not more than 16 passengers;

• “privately-operated passenger vehicle driver’s licence” means a licence under Part III of the Road Traffic Act 1988 in so far as it authorises a person to drive privately-operated passenger vehicles of any class;

• “public service vehicle” has the same meaning as in the Public Passenger Vehicles Act 1981; F23and

• “large goods vehicle”, “passenger-carrying vehicle”, “large goods vehicle driver’s licence” and “passenger-carrying vehicle driver’s licence” have the same meaning as in Part IV of the Road Traffic Act 1988.

The provisions of this Article which authorise the holder of a permit or a licence to drive a vehicle during a specified period shall not be construed as authorising the driving of a vehicle at a time when the permit or the licence has ceased to be valid F24and, without prejudice to the provisions of paragraph (4), a Convention driving permit in Form C in Schedule 1 is not valid at a time when any restrictive condition of use endorsed on it is not satisfied.