Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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251. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will address a matter concerning the renewal of a driver licence (details supplied); when a refund will issue; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13177/21]

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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All inquiries relating to driver licensing are handled by the National Driver Licence Service (NDLS), operated by the Road Safety Authority (RSA). My Department does not have access to individual applications. Having said that, the matter the Deputy has raised has been noted by my Department.

More generally, I can advise the Deputy that a further extension to the expiry dates of driving licences has been introduced in response to the continued disruption caused by Covid-19 to driver licensing services in Ireland and across the EU. The extension will apply to different groups of licence holders including those who benefited from extensions in 2020.

A new driving licence will not be issued for the extension period. The RSA will automatically update driver records to show the new expiry date. The NDLS may not be able to process a submitted application to renew a driving licence if the driver record has been updated and is already showing the new expiry date for the driving licence. Any original supporting documents, submitted with an application form, will be returned and refunds will be made where applicable.