Britain plugs loophole in Hong Kong drivers' licence agreement

More than 200 Hong Kong drivers have been barred from obtaining a British licence without taking a test, after Britain tightened requirements for a reciprocal arrangement that allows for direct exchange of licences.

Under an agreement between Hong Kong and Britain, a driver who holds a licence in one place can normally obtain a licence from the other without further examination. But British authorities tightened the rules after reports that the system had been exploited by people seeking British licences from countries not recognised under the reciprocal arrangement, who had taken advantage of loose screening by the Transport Department to obtain a Hong Kong licence first as a gateway to a British one.

In one case, an agent helped an Indian driving licence holder first get a Hong Kong licence, then a British one, as a direct exchange agreement exists between India and Hong Kong, but not between India and Britain.

Fraudulent documents, including an envelope with a false Hong Kong address provided as proof of address, were involved in the case. Applicants for a Hong Kong licence must live here.

In January, British authorities started to ask applicants from outside the European Union to prove they had passed a driving test in a place "where the testing standards are comparable with those in Britain".

Britain's Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency told the that the new policy had led to the rejection of 268 applications from Hong Kong by the start of May.