The new 2022 standards are effective from the 22 June 2022. From that date, all drivers must be assessed using the new standards. Driver Licensing Authorities will manage the transition to the new standards, including communication with drivers on conditional licences who may be affected by the changes. Note that some Driver Licensing Authorities may delay the application of some revisions and/or vary their application. For example, some Driver Licensing Authorities will consider the application of the revised criteria at the time of the driver’s next periodical review assessment unless the driver re-presents in the interim (e.g., deterioration of condition, pro-actively seeking consideration under new criteria).
The Driver Licensing Authority in your State or Territory is able to provide advice in this regard. See Contacts for Health Professionals for details.
The standards were produced through an extensive consultation process overseen by the National Transport Commission and Austroads, and involving an Advisory Group comprising of medical/health professionals, licensing authorities, regulators, and road industry representatives.
The NTC and Austroads gratefully acknowledge all contributors including the members of the Advisory Group, the Medicinal Cannabis Working Group, the project team and consultants. In particular, the contributions of various health professional organisations and individual health professionals are invaluable to the review process.
Advisory Group
- Derise Cubin Access Canberra
- Rebecca Wilson Access Canberra
- Bill McKinley Australian Trucking Association
- Dr Ramu Nachiappan Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine
- Adam Cameron Department for Infrastructure and Transport
- Scott Swain Department for Infrastructure and Transport
- Amie Buisman Department of Transport (WA)
- Karen Webb Department of State Growth
- A/Prof. Sjaan Koppel Monash University Accident Research Centre
- Andreas Blahous National Heavy Vehicle Regulator
- Emily Hicks Office of Road Safety
- Parik Lumb Road Safety Commission
- Prof. Nigel Stocks Royal Australian College of General Practitioners
- Lee Cheetham Transport for NSW
- Irene Siu Transport for NSW
- Yessenia Pineda-De Leon Transport and Main Roads
- Fiona Morris Department of Transport (Vic)
- Dr Marilyn DiStefano Department of Transport (Vic)
- Dr Sanjeev Gaya Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine
Medicinal Cannabis Working Group
- Dr Shruti Navathe Access Canberra
- David Sutton Department for Infrastructure and Transport
- Scott Swain Department for Infrastructure and Transport
- Sharon Wishart Department of Transport (Vic)
- Tim Umbers Department of Transport (Vic)
- Amie Buisman Department of Transport (WA)
- Sussan Osmond Department of Transport and Main Roads
- Prof. Iain McGregor Lambert Initiative for Cannabinoid Therapeutics, USYD
- Dr Tamara Nation National Institute of Integrative Medicine
- A/Prof. Vicki Kotsirilos NICM, University of Western Sydney
- Adelaide Jones Office of Road Safety
- Prof. Edward Ogden St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne
- Prof. Yvonne Bonomo St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne
- Sally Millward Transport for NSW
- Dr Sanjeev Gaya Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine
Health Professional Organisations
The following organisations contributed substantially to the review process:
- Australian and New Zealand Association of Neurologists
- Australian Diabetes Society
- Australasian Sleep Association
- Cardiac Society of Australia and New Zealand
- Cognitive Dementia and Memory Service
- Epilepsy Society of Australia
- Occupational Therapy Australia
- Optometry Australia
- Orthoptics Australia
- Stroke Society of Australasia
- The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists
- The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists
Assessing Fitness to Drive contains two sets of medical standards – private vehicle driver standards and commercial vehicle driver standards.
The choice of which standards to apply when examining a patient for fitness to drive is guided by both the type of vehicle and the purpose for which the driver is being authorised to drive.
The private standards should be applied to:
- Drivers applying for or holding a license class C (Car), R (Motorcycle) or LR (Light Rigid) UNLESS the driver is also applying for an authority or is already authorised to use the vehicle for carrying public passengers for hire or reward or for the carriage of bulk dangerous goods or in some jurisdictions for a driver instructor's license.
The commercial standards should be applied to:
- Drivers of 'heavy vehicles' i.e. those holding or applying for a licence of class MR (Medium Rigid), HR (Heavy Rigid), HC (Heavy Combination) or MC (Multi-combination).
- Drivers applying for an authority /already authorised to carry public passengers for hire or reward (bus drivers, taxi drivers, chauffeurs, drivers of hire cars and small buses etc).
- Drivers applying for an authority / already authorised to carry bulk dangerous goods.
A person who does not meet the commercial vehicle medical criteria may still be eligible to retain a private vehicle driver licence. In such cases, both sets of standards may need to be consulted.
The National Heavy Vehicle Accreditation Scheme was introduced in 2008 to support improved safety in the heavy vehicle industry. Under the scheme, standards are set for various aspects of heavy vehicle operators, including fatigue management.
Basic Fatigue Management and Advanced Fatigue Management modules of the scheme set out standards relating to drivers' health. These standards require that drivers are in a fit state to safely perform their duties. Specifically the standards require that drivers undergo regular health assessments to make sure they meet the medical criteria for commercial vehicle drivers contained in Assessing Fitness to Drive, with a particular focus on aspects such as sleep disorders, substance abuse etc. Assessments must be carried out every three years for drivers below the age of 50 and yearly for those 50 and over.
In addition to health assessments, the standard also sets out a range of measures to support drivers' health.
To comply with the standards, heavy vehicle operators must ensure drivers attend for assessments and are certified fit to drive.
Forms to facilitate these assessments are included on this site.
A health professional may request a practical driver assessment to provide information to supplement the clinical assessment in some borderline cases and to assist in making recommendations regarding a person’s fitness to drive. However, practical assessments have limitations in that a patient’s condition may fluctuate (good days and bad days) and it is not possible to create emergency situations on the road to assess quickness of response. Thus, practical assessments are intended to inform but not override the clinical opinion of the examining health professional. In addition, there are clinical situations that are clearly unsuitable for on-road assessments, such as visual impairment or significant cognitive impairment.
There is a wide range of practical assessments available, including off-road, on-road and driving simulator assessments, each with strengths and limitations. Assessments may be conducted by occupational therapists trained in driver assessment or by others approved by the particular driver licensing authority. Processes for initiating and conducting driver assessments vary between the states and territories and choice of assessment depends on resource availability, logistics, cost and individual requirements. The assessments may be initiated by the examining health professional, other referrers (e.g. police, self, family) or by the driver licensing authority.
Recommendations following assessment may relate to licence status, the need for vehicle modifications, rehabilitation or retraining, licence conditions and reassessment.
It is not the intent of Assessing Fitness to Drive to specify the assessment to be used in a particular situation. Health professionals should contact their local driver licensing authority for details of options or refer to Appendix 10 of Assessing Fitness to Drive: Specialist driver assessors.
If a person continues to drive despite your advice and they do not report their condition or any significant change to their condition to the Driver Licensing Authority, they are not fulfilling their legal responsibility. If they are involved in a crash under these circumstances and it is found that their health condition was a contributing factor, they may be prosecuted, and their insurance may not be valid.
If you are aware that they are continuing to drive and feels that their driving is a serious risk to them and other road users, you have an ethical responsibility to notify the Driver Licensing Authority directly. Legislation in South Australia and Northern Territory compels direct reporting in this situation.
Further information about how to notify Driver Licensing Authorities is available here.