Drivers who obtained Class 2 driving licences before the introduction of Statutory Instrument 119 of 2023 will not be required to sit for fresh tests, the Vehicle Inspectorate Department (VID) has said.
Speaking in a radio interview this week, VID Belvedere Depot Manager Caroline Tshuma said the new regulations do not take away the rights of drivers who qualified before SI 119 came into effect.
Tshuma was responding to concerns from motorists who had questioned whether the changes introduced under the new regulations affect licences issued under the previous system, with some fearing they would have to undergo another assessment or apply for new licences to continue driving vehicles they have been legally authorised to operate for years.
She said motorists holding Class 2 licences issued under the old framework remain legally entitled to drive Class 4 and Class 5 vehicles without being retested, provided their licences remain valid.
The privileges attached to those licences remain intact because they were issued under the legal provisions that existed before the new statutory instrument was enacted.
“In Zimbabwe, before SI 119, licensing was being done according to Government Notice 240 of 1977. This allowed for awarding of classes. If you go for your Class 2, you were awarded Class 4 and 5… So if you did your driving test before SI 119, that is before 2023, you are allowed to drive your Class 4 and 5 vehicles.”
VID National Training Manager Bridgette Chimawo said SI 119 of 2023, which was published on 23 June 2023, replaced the outdated 1970 regulations to align Zimbabwe’s driver licensing system with Southern African Development Community (SADC) standards.
SI 119 of 2023 introduces modernised driver’s licence categories and codes to make cross-border recognition easier and permits testing in both manual and automatic vehicles.
Drivers who pass their test in an automatic vehicle are restricted to automatic vehicles only, with the licence endorsed “AT”.
The regulations also make it compulsory for drivers in specific categories, such as public service vehicles, to produce optical and medical certificates from certified health professionals.
They further set minimum age requirements — for example, 18 for trucks and up to 25 and 30 for public transport — as well as prerequisites for progression to heavy vehicles or public service vehicles, among other changes.
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