Commission Directive (EU) 2015/653
of 24 April 2015
amending Directive 2006/126/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on driving licences
(Text with EEA relevance)

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,
Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,
Having regard to Directive 2006/126/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 December 2006 on driving licences, and in particular Article 8 thereof,
OJ L 403, 30.12.2006, p. 18.
Whereas:
(1) The codes and sub-codes set out in Annex I to Directive 2006/126/EC should be updated in the light of technical and scientific progress, especially in the field of vehicle adaptations and technical support for drivers with disabilities.
(2) To take into account new technological developments, the codes and sub-codes should be function-oriented. For reasons of administrative simplification some codes should also be deleted, merged with other codes or shortened.
(3) To reduce the burden on drivers with disabilities, it should be made possible where appropriate for those drivers to drive a vehicle without technical adaptation. Since modern vehicle technology allows drivers to operate certain regular vehicles with limited force, e.g. for steering or braking, and in order to enhance flexibility for drivers whilst ensuring safe operation of the vehicle, codes should be introduced that could allow driving of vehicles which are compatible with the maximum force the driver is able to produce.
(4) Certain codes which are currently restricted to medical conditions may also be relevant for other road safety purposes by limiting high risk situations, e.g. in the case of novice or elderly drivers. Thus a section should also be created for these codes on limited use.
(5) To enhance road safety, several Member States have or are planning programmes restricting drivers to drive only vehicles equipped with an alcohol interlock. To facilitate the deployment and acceptance of alcohol interlock devices and taking into account the recommendation of the Study on the prevention of drink-driving by the use of alcohol interlock devices, a harmonised code should be introduced for this purpose.
Study on the prevention of drink-driving by the use of alcohol interlock devices, see: http://ec.europa.eu/transport/road_safety/pdf/behavior/study_alcohol_interlock.pdf
(6) In accordance with the Joint Political Declaration of Member States and the Commission of 28 September 2011 on explanatory documents, Member States have undertaken to accompany, in justified cases, the notification of their transposition measures with one or more documents explaining the relationship between the components of a directive and the corresponding parts of national transposition instruments.
OJ C 369, 17.12.2011, p. 14.
(7) Directive 2006/126/EC should therefore be amended accordingly.
(8) The measures provided for in this Directive are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee on driving licences,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:

Article 1 Annex I to Directive 2006/126/EC is amended in accordance with the Annex to this Directive.
Article 2 1. Member States shall bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive by 1 January 2017 at the latest. They shall forthwith communicate to the Commission the text of those provisions.
When Member States adopt those provisions, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or be accompanied by such a reference on the occasion of their official publication. Member States shall determine how such reference is to be made.
2. Member States shall communicate to the Commission the text of the main provisions of national law which they adopt in the field covered by this Directive.
Article 3 This Directive shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
Article 4 This Directive is addressed to the Member States.
Done at Brussels, 24 April 2015.
For the Commission
The President
Jean-Claude Juncker
ANNEX In Annex I, Section 3 of Directive 2006/126/EC concerning page 2 of the driving licence, point (a), point (12) is replaced by the following:

‘12. additional information/restriction(s), in code form, facing the category affected.
The codes shall be as follows:

— codes 01 to 99
harmonised European Union codes

DRIVER (medical reasons)

01.
Sight correction and/or protection

01.01.
Glasses

01.02.
Contact lens(es)

01.05.
Eye cover

01.06.
Glasses or contact lenses

01.07.
Specific optical aid

02.
Hearing aid/communication aid

03.
Prosthesis/orthosis for the limbs

03.01.
Upper limb prosthesis/orthosis

03.02.
Lower limb prosthesis/orthosis

VEHICLE ADAPTATIONS

10.
Modified transmission

10.02.
Automatic selection of gear ratio

10.04.
Adapted transmission control device

15.
Modified clutch

15.01.
Adapted clutch pedal

15.02.
Hand operated clutch

15.03.
Automatic clutch

15.04.
Measure to prevent obstruction or actuation of clutch pedal

20.
Modified braking systems

20.01.
Adapted brake pedal

20.03.
Brake pedal suitable for use by left foot

20.04.
Sliding brake pedal

20.05.
Tilted brake pedal

20.06.
Hand operated brake

20.07.
Brake operation with maximum force of … N (for example: “20.07(300N)”)
This force indicates the driver's capability for operating the system.

20.09.
Adapted parking brake

20.12.
Measure to prevent obstruction or actuation of brake pedal

20.13.
Knee operated brake

20.14.
Brake system operation supported by external force

25.
Modified accelerator system

25.01.
Adapted accelerator pedal

25.03.
Tilted accelerator pedal

25.04.
Hand operated accelerator

25.05.
Knee operated accelerator

25.06.
Accelerator operation supported by external force

25.08.
Accelerator pedal on the left

25.09.
Measure to prevent obstruction or actuation of accelerator pedal

31.
Pedal adaptations and pedal safeguards

31.01.
Extra set of parallel pedals

31.02.
Pedals at (or almost at) the same level

31.03.
Measure to prevent obstruction or actuation of accelerator and brake pedals when pedals not operated by foot

31.04.
Raised floor

32.
Combined service brake and accelerator systems

32.01.
Accelerator and service brake as combined system operated by one hand

32.02.
Accelerator and service brake as combined system operated by external force

33.
Combined service brake, accelerator and steering systems

33.01.
Accelerator, service brake and steering as combined system operation by external force with one hand

33.02.
Accelerator, service brake and steering as combined system operation by external force with two hands

35.
Modified control layouts (lights switches, windscreen wiper/washer, horn, direction indicators, etc.)

35.02.
Control devices operable without releasing the steering device

35.03.
Control devices operable without releasing the steering device with the left hand

35.04.
Control devices operable without releasing the steering device with the right hand

35.05.
Control devices operable without releasing the steering device and the accelerator and braking mechanisms

40.
Modified steering

40.01.
Steering with maximum operation force of … N (for example “40.01(140N)”)

40.05.
Adapted steering wheel (larger/thicker steering wheel section, reduced diameter, etc.)

40.06.
Adapted position of steering wheel

40.09.
Foot operated steering

40.11.
Assistive device at steering wheel

40.14.
One hand/arm operated alternative adapted steering system

40.15.
Two hand/arm operated alternative adapted steering system

42.
Modified rear/side view devices

42.01.
Adapted device for rear view

42.03.
Additional inside device permitting side view

42.05.
Blind spot viewing device

43.
Driver seating position

43.01.
Driver seat height for normal view and in normal distance from the steering wheel and the pedals

43.02.
Driver seat adapted to body shape

43.03.
Driver seat with lateral support for good stability

43.04.
Driver seat with armrest

43.06.
Seat belt adaptation

43.07.
Seat belt type with support for good stability

44.
Modifications to motorcycles (sub-code use obligatory)

44.01.
Single operated brake

44.02.
Adapted front wheel brake

44.03.
Adapted rear wheel brake

44.04.
Adapted accelerator

44.08.
Seat height allowing the driver, in sitting position, to have two feet on the surface at the same time and balance the motorcycle during stopping and standing.

44.09.
Maximum operation force of front wheel brake … N (for example “44.09(140N)”)

44.10.
Maximum operation force of rear wheel brake … N (for example “44.10(240N)”)

44.11.
Adapted foot-rest

44.12.
Adapted hand grip

45.
Motorcycle with side-car only

46.
Tricycles only

47.
Restricted to vehicles of more than two wheels not requiring balance by the driver for starting, stopping and standing

50.
Restricted to a specific vehicle/chassis number (vehicle identification number, VIN)
Letters used in combination with codes 01 to 44 for further specification:

a
left

b
right

c
hand

d
foot

e
middle

f
arm

g
thumb

LIMITED USE CODES

61.
Limited to day time journeys (for example: one hour after sunrise and one hour before sunset)

62.
Limited to journeys within a radius of … km from holder's place of residence or only inside city/region

63.
Driving without passengers

64.
Limited to journeys with a speed not greater than … km/h

65.
Driving authorised solely when accompanied by a holder of a driving licence of at least the equivalent category

66.
Without trailer

67.
No driving on motorways

68.
No alcohol

69.
Restricted to driving vehicles equipped with an alcohol interlock in accordance with EN 50436. Indication of an expiry date is optional (for example “69” or “69(01.01.2016)”)

ADMINISTRATIVE MATTERS

70.
Exchange of licence No … issued by … (EU/UN distinguishing sign in the case of a third country; for example “70.0123456789.NL”)

71.
Duplicate of licence No … (EU/UN distinguishing sign in the case of a third country; for example “71.987654321.HR”)

73.
Restricted to category B vehicles of the motor quadricycle type (B1)

78.
Restricted to vehicles with automatic transmission

79.
(…) Restricted to vehicles which comply with the specifications indicated in brackets, for the application of Article 13 of this Directive

79.01.
Restricted to two-wheel vehicles with or without side-car

79.02.
Restricted to category AM vehicles of the three-wheel or light quadricycle type

79.03.
Restricted to tricycles

79.04.
Restricted to tricycles combined with a trailer having a maximum authorised mass not exceeding 750 kg

79.05.
Category A1 motorcycle with a power/weight ratio above 0,1 kW/kg

79.06.
Category BE vehicle where the maximum authorised mass of the trailer exceeds 3 500 kg

80.
Restricted to holders of a driving licence for a category A vehicle of the motor tricycle type not having reached the age of 24 years

81.
Restricted to holders of a driving licence for a category A vehicle of the two-wheel motorcycle type not having reached the age of 21 years

95.
Driver holding CPC meeting the obligation of professional aptitude provided for by Directive 2003/59/EC until … (for example “95(01.01.12)”)

96.
Category B vehicles combined with a trailer with a maximum authorised mass exceeding 750 kg where the maximum authorised mass of such combination exceeds 3 500 kg but does not exceed 4 250 kg

97.
Not authorised to drive a category C1 vehicle which falls within the scope of Council Regulation (EEC) No 3821/85
Council Regulation (EEC) No 3821/85 of 20 December 1985 on recording equipment in road transport (OJ L 370, 31.12.1985, p. 8).’

— codes 100 and above
national codes valid only for driving in the territory of the Member State which issued the licence.
Where a code applies to all categories for which the licence is issued, it may be printed under headings 9, 10 and 11;’