Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)
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216. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the breakdown by centre of the wait times for appointments to exchange a UK driver licence at an NDLS centre; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42586/20]

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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Appointments in National Driver Licence Service (NDLS) centres are available to all who wish to apply for, renew or exchange driving licences.  No distinction is made on the type of application an appointment is booked for, therefore no breakdown is available. 

I would like to point out that my Department and the Road Safety Authority have been highlighting the need for UK licence holders to exchange their licences for Irish driving licences since early 2019, and urging licence holders to do so in plenty of time before the end of the Brexit transition period of 31 December 2020.  Following this, Irish residents who hold a UK driving licence will not be permitted to drive in Ireland.  It is not possible under EU law to grant an extension to this deadline.

However, the potential exists for arrangements to be made to enter into a formal licence exchange agreement with the UK, and Ireland will be pursuing this option. This may take a little time to complete as it involves a formal agreement and legislation here in Ireland, as well as corresponding steps by the UK.

The NDLS Customer Service are putting arrangements in place to manage the large number of queries in relation to exchanging UK licences for Irish licences. Those who have not yet exchanged their licences are urged to do so. Enquiries can be made by phoning the NDLS at 0761 087880 but as the NDLS currently deal with up to 1,000 calls daily, applicants can expect delays in accessing this telephone service.  Those living in Ireland now holding UK licences should not delay but make the necessary arrangements online for an appointment for exchanging their licence.  All the details they need can be found on the NDLS and RSA websites.