KUWAIT: Security sources revealed there are plans to confiscate tens of thousands of expired driving licenses from residents who continue to use them in violation of the law. The sources said many of these residents "cheat" the law to avoid deportation by continuing to use expired licenses. They only pay a fine of KD 5 when caught because they are treated as individuals who have licenses which have not been renewed, although the purpose for which they were given the license no longer exists.

Sources said they should be treated as residents who do not have licenses and should be deported if caught driving. Sources said around 20,000 driving licenses were issued to university students, but most of them completed their studies and did not hand over their licenses. This prompted the traffic department to put a block on them so they cannot be renewed.

There are also 40,000 residents who got driving licenses as per existing conditions, but as they changed their professions, they lost one of the conditions for obtaining a license. But many of them still drive using those licenses, and if caught, they only pay a KD 5 fine.

This made the traffic department to link up with the manpower authority, so any resident who has a license cannot renew their residency permit until after making sure there is no block on them at the traffic department. If there is a block, the resident must hand over the expired driving license to be able to renew their residency permit.

The sources said a circular will be issued soon to ban driving using old licenses even if they are still valid, and holders must exchange it with the new one, in order to restrict those who received the licenses in an illegal manner or lost one of the conditions that allows them to get a license.