Medical conditions and fitness to drive

If you have a medical condition, injury or disability that affects your ability to drive safely, you must tell Access Canberra.

Depending on your circumstances, you may need to complete an eye test, medical assessment or driving assessment, or a combination of these.

Report your medical or health condition

If you have a permanent or long-term medical or health condition that may affect your ability to drive safely, you must tell Access Canberra.

ACT driver licence holders must report the condition within 7 days of becoming aware of it.

Conditions that may need to be reported include, but are not limited to:

• cardiovascular conditions
• dementia
• diabetes
• epilepsy
• blackouts
• other neurological conditions, for example, a cognitive impairment
• musculoskeletal disabilities, for example, the loss of a limb
• psychiatric conditions
• sleep disorders, for example, sleep apnoea
• any medical condition or medication that your doctor advises may affect your ability to drive safely.

Your responsibilities

You must:

• report any permanent or long-term illness, injury or incapacity that may affect your ability to drive safely within 7 days of becoming aware of it
• provide accurate and honest information to your health professional about your health condition and how this may affect your driving
• follow any prescribed medical treatment
• comply with any conditions placed on your driver licence
• undergo periodic medical reviews as required by your age, licence class or medical condition.

How to report a medical or health condition

Contact Access Canberra by:

• email: rusmedicals@act.gov.au
• phone: 13 22 81.

If you’re unsure whether you need to report a medical condition, call 13 22 81.

Eye tests

You must complete an eye test when you turn 50, 60, 65 and 70 years of age.

An eye test (visual acuity assessment) can be completed by:

• your general practitioner (GP)
• an optometrist
• an ophthalmologist
• an Access Canberra Service Centre.

How to complete an eye test

1. Make an appointment with a health professional listed above or attend an Access Canberra Service Centre.
2. If your assessment is completed by a health professional, they must complete the Visual Acuity Assessment form [PDF 183 KB].
3. Submit the completed form:
   • online when your licence is due for renewal
   • at other times:
     • by email rusmedicals@act.gov.au
     • by post to PO Box 582 Dickson ACT 2602
     • in person at an Access Canberra Service Centre.

You eye test result is valid for 6 months from the date of assessment.

Medical assessments

You may need to complete a medical assessment or ongoing medical review to keep your licence. These requirements are based on national Assessing Fitness to Drive standards.

Driver licence medical

You must complete a driver licence medical if you:

• are aged 75 or older (annual reviews apply)
• hold, or are applying for, a light rigid (LR) class licence
• hold, or are applying for, a car (C) or rider (R) class licence that does not have a public vehicle condition.

How to complete a driver licence medical

1. Make an appointment with a medical practitioner.
2. The medical practitioner will assess your fitness to drive and complete the Driver Licence Medical form [PDF 185 KB].
3. Submit the completed form to rusmedicals@act.gov.au.

Your medical assessment is valid for 6 months from the date of the assessment.

Commercial Driver Health Assessment (CDHA)

You must complete the Commercial Driver Health Assessment (CDHA) if you:

• hold, or are applying for, a public vehicle licence
• hold, or are applying for, a medium rigid (MR), heavy rigid (HR), heavy combination (HC) or multi-combination (MC) heavy vehicle licence.

Assessment and review requirements depend on the type of licence you hold:

How to complete a Commercial Driver Health Assessment

1. Make an appointment with a medical practitioner.
2. They will assess your fitness to drive and complete the Commercial Driver Health Assessment form [PDF 331 KB].
3. Submit the completed form to rusmedicals@act.gov.au.

Your medical assessment is valid for 6 months from the date of the assessment.

Driving assessments

You may be required to complete a driving assessment to demonstrate that you are fit to drive and can safely operate a vehicle.

Occupational therapy driving assessment

If an occupational therapy driving assessment is required, Access Canberra will contact you directly.

Occupational therapy driving assessments are conducted by driver-trained occupational therapists who assess all areas of driving such as:

• cognition, memory, judgement
• reflexes, motor function
• driving behaviour
• knowledge and application of road rules
• response times.

If you have a medical condition or injury that affects your driving, Access Canberra may add a condition to your licence. In some circumstances, your driver licence will be suspended or cancelled. For more information, see Licence decisions and review.

Public vehicle licence driver assessment

Public vehicle licence holders over the age of 70 may continue to hold a public vehicle licence, provided they pass an annual driver assessment at their own cost, in addition to the standard public vehicle licence requirements each year.

Responsibilities of health professionals

Certain health professionals are now required to report the medical fitness of heavy vehicle drivers (licence classes LR, MR, HR, HC, MC) to Access Canberra, including:

• medical practitioners, including GPs and specialists
• occupational therapists
• optometrists
• physiotherapists
• psychologists.

These health professionals must make a report within 7 days if they:

• have examined or assessed a person
• reasonably believe the person holds, or is applying for, a heavy vehicle licence
• form the opinion that the person has a permanent or long-term illness, injury or incapacity likely to affect their ability to drive a heavy vehicle safely.

A formal diagnosis is not required.

The report must contain the person's:

• name
• address
• date of birth
• condition affecting their driving ability.

Health professionals must take reasonable steps to inform the person that a report has been made.

How to report

Health professionals can complete the Driver licence medical conditions reporting form.

For more information, see Reporting fitness to drive.

Licences conditions and decisions

If your medical or health condition affects your ability to drive safely, Access Canberra may:

• issue or renew your licence with conditions
• require ongoing assessments or medical reviews
• suspend or cancel your licence.

Licence conditions

Licence conditions are legal requirements attached to your licence. You must follow these when driving or riding.

Conditions might include:

• medical advice such as 'wear glasses or contact lenses when driving'
• vehicle modifications
• driving restrictions such as 'drive only during daylight hours'
• a requirement that you see a health professional
• assessments or medical reviews to assess fitness to drive.

Access Canberra will tell you about any proposed action before adding a condition to your licence.

For more information, see Licence classes and conditions.

Decisions about licences

Access Canberra is responsible for issuing, renewing, suspending and cancelling driver licences, including conditional, public vehicle and heavy vehicle licences.

You can ask for an internal review of a licence decision. If you disagree with the outcome, you can apply to the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal (ACAT) for an independent review.

Information about your review rights will be included in any reviewable decision notice.

For more information, visit the ACAT website.

Transport options and travel support

Losing your driver licence can affect your independence and ability to travel.

COTA ACT can provide information about transport options and travel concessions that may be available to you.

For more information, visit the COTA ACT website