ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad chief commissioner’s office made a massive increase in the fee for driving licences issued by the Islamabad Traffic Police, officials of administration and police told Dawn on Tuesday.

The officials said that a notification issued from the office of the chief commissioner said that in the exercise of the powers of the provincial government conferred upon him under section 22 (1) of West Pakistan Motor Vehicle Ordinance 1965, read with Justice Division’s Notification No F.17(2)/80-Pub, December 1980 and in supersession of this office notification no. 5(12) Law/2006 April 2018, the commissioner, ICT is pleased to make the following amendments/additions with immediate effect and until furthers in Rules 26 of the West Pakistan Motor Vehicle Rules, 1969 for the Islamabad Capital Territory.

As per the new charges, the fee for a learner permit valid for six months for each category has been increased to Rs1,000, from Rs300, the officials said, adding that the charges for car and motorcycle driving licences for non-professional use have been increased to Rs3,000 from Rs1,800.

The driving licence for LTV or HTV or LTV public service vehicle or HTV public service vehicle or motor cab or motorcycle under professional category has been increased to Rs10,000. Earlier, the professional licence for a single category had cost Rs1,800, whereas the professional licence for motorcycle+LTV/HTV had cost Rs2,100. Similarly, the fee for a digital driving licence card (smart card) has been increased from Rs200 to Rs2,000.

The fee for renewal of a driving licence within 30 days has been increased to Rs2,000 from Rs7,000, while renewal of a licence after 30 days but within one year from the date of expiry has been increased to Rs2,500 from Rs1,100.

The officials said the renewal of a driving licence after one year but within three years from the date of expiry has been increased to Rs3,000 from Rs1,900, while the renewal fee after three years from the date of expiry has been increased to Rs8,000 from Rs4,600, with the condition of appearance of the applicant for theory and driving test as per Section 12(4) of the MVO 1965.

The fee for a duplicate driving licence has been increased to Rs3,000 from Rs1,600 and the conversion and addition (endorsement) fee has been increased to Rs3,000 from Rs1,600.

The fee for the renewal of the learner permit has been increased to Rs500 whereas the charges for a duplicate learner permit have been increased to Rs500 from Rs150. The fee for the restoration of the driving licence in case of its suspension under sections 16 and 18 of the MOV 1965 has been increased to Rs20,000 from Rs10,000. According to officials, the last increase in the fee for the driving licences had been made in 2018 when the traffic police increased the licence charges by up to 100 per cent.

Last week, the IGP Islamabad office made an upward revision in their charges for driving licences and introduced services charges which would be collected by the police in cash. The service charges include Rs200 for medical fees, Rs200 for road test fees for motor cars, Rs300 for LTV and Rs500 for HTV. Rs200 under the head of road safety education session has also been introduced. Similarly, the urgent fee for a licence had been increased to Rs2,000 from Rs400.

Published in Dawn, May 15th, 2024