Govind Tekale
If you saw reports that India will introduce colour-coded driving licences for Indian citizens and foreign nationals, there is now a real document to point to. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has published a draft notification in the Gazette of India. It is a proposal, not yet a law.
MoRTH notified draft amendments to the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989, and published them in the Gazette of India on October 21, 2026. The draft is open for objections and suggestions for 30 days from the date copies of the notification are made available to the public. Under the draft, separate licence formats would be prescribed for Indian citizens and foreign nationals, with different background colour schemes; nationality would be included among the details printed on the licence card. Other proposals in the same draft include: licences to be issued as laminated or PVC cards in Form 7; the passing mark for the driving test to rise from 60% to 75%; the mandatory tutorial to run for at least 30 minutes; blood group, mobile number and emergency contact details to be added to the licence. Some reports also indicate proposals to allow certain online services—such as address or name changes—to be free when completed through Aadhaar authentication; other details in the draft vary across media coverage and should be verified against the official Gazette text. Because this is a draft, the final rules may differ from what is currently reported. No colour-coded licence is in force today; the draft must complete the public consultation period and be finalised before it takes effect.
The significance of the draft is that a genuine MoRTH proposal for separate Indian and foreign-national licence colours now exists in a verifiable official document. Anyone who has seen reports about this change and wondered whether they are reading an official rule or an unverified proposal now has an answer: it is a published draft proposal, currently in public consultation. No existing licence is being invalidated, and no action is required of current licence holders during the consultation period.
What the Existing Rules Say While the Draft Is Consulted
Driving licences in India are processed through the Sarathi portal managed by MoRTH, part of the broader Parivahan transport-services system. For foreign nationals driving in India: a valid foreign driving licence may generally be used for a limited period in India, but the applicable period and conditions depend on visa type, residency status and the rules of the specific state. Rules can vary by state and circumstance; foreign nationals should verify their specific situation through the Sarathi portal or the relevant Regional Transport Office rather than relying on a single general figure. NRIs and OCI cardholders should similarly verify current requirements directly with the RTO, as state-level variation applies—a pattern familiar from other licence-format changes abroad, such as Texas’s tamper-resistant driver’s licence redesign and the move toward UK digital driving licences for 50 million drivers, both international examples that do not establish Indian law.
Has the driving-licence colour change been confirmed as a final rule in India? No. As of October 24, 2026, the MoRTH draft published on October 21 is an open consultation. It becomes law only after the 30-day objection period closes and MoRTH issues a final notification. Check the Gazette of India and the Press Information Bureau for the final rules and any changes from the draft.
The draft notification is open for comment until approximately late November 2026. Check the official Gazette text for the full list of proposed changes, and watch MoRTH’s official website and PIB for the final notification. Nothing in this article should be read as confirmation that any proposed change has already taken effect.
