The Island Traffic Authority (ITA) is advising the public of changes to the processes of obtaining a driver’s licence and provisional (learner’s) licence under the Road Traffic Act and its regulations, as of February 1, 2023. 

To obtain a provisional licence an applicant must be at least 17 years of age and must have no traffic convictions against them in the last 12 months. Applicants should set an appointment to sit the multiple-choice Road Code Test at [email protected] or [email protected] or visit any of the ITA Examination Depots nationwide. Upon completion of the test, the individual must obtain at least 75 per cent to be eligible to be granted a learner’s permit. 

The following documents must be tendered to the ITA:  

• Birth certificate  
• Proof of identity  
• Proof of place of residence     
• Medical certificate  
• Three identical certified passport-sized photographs, which were taken within the last six months
• Completed learner’s permit application form  

The applicant will then be provided with a sealed envelope, endorsed by the ITA, which should then be taken to the Tax Office, where they will be required to pay $1,800 to be granted the learner’s permit.  

Under the 2018 Road Traffic Act, drivers’ licences are issued in classes A, B or C. Where Class A entitles the holder to drive a motorcycle; Class B entitles the holder to drive, not for reward, trucks, motor cars (not being public passenger motor vehicles or commercial motor vehicles) and vehicles specially modified for persons with a prescribed physical disability; and Class C entitles the holder to drive, whether for reward or otherwise, the category of motor vehicles as may be prescribed and specified in the licence.  

Additionally, persons wishing to operate public passenger vehicles (PPVs) must obtain a Class C driver’s licence and will be required to sit a written transporting passengers test. These applicants must be at least 21 years old to be eligible to apply for a commercial/PPV licence and must not have received more than seven demerit points on his /her licence in the previous 12 months 

All Class C and Class C PPV applicants must undergo a full medical examination, inclusive of sight tests, to certify that they are medically fit to operate a commercial/public passenger vehicle. A form completed by the medical practitioner must be submitted with the licence application.

The ITA reminds the public that all fees are to be paid to the Tax Administration of Jamaica (TAJ) and none of its Examination Depots directly accepts payment for any of its services.