Public policy think tank CUTS International has challenged the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) to disclose the legal basis for its escalating charges imposed on motorists who renew or replace driver’s licences after expiry.

CUTS said it was demanding the suspension of the charges until the DVLA publicly identifies the statutory authority, approval process and calculation used to determine the fees.

Under the DVLA’s 2026 Summary of Licensing and Other Activity Rates, renewing a driver’s licence before expiry costs GH¢127, while the charge rises to GH¢204.25 where the licence has expired for up to six months.

The amount increases to GH¢279.25 for expiry periods of seven to 12 months, GH¢315.25 for up to two years, GH¢352.25 for up to four years and GH¢404.25 for more than four years.

The schedule similarly provides escalating charges for replacement of an expired licence.

CUTS West Africa Regional Centre Director Appiah Kusi Adomako said the DVLA should establish whether the amounts were approved renewal fees, administrative penalties or another form of charge.

“The DVLA must show Ghanaians the law, the approved fee schedule and the formula behind every cedi it collects as a delinquency charge,” Adomako said in a statement dated August 9, 2026.

He argued that the Road Traffic Regulations, 2012 (L.I. 2180) recognise renewal after expiry but do not, in CUTS’ view, provide a clear legal basis for the automatic and escalating charges.

Regulation 33(2) of L.I. 2180 expressly addresses renewal after the expiry of a driver’s licence, while Regulation 33(9) makes failure to renew as prescribed an offence punishable on summary conviction by a fine of between 10 and 25 penalty units, imprisonment of up to 30 days, or both.

CUTS said this raises questions about whether the DVLA can impose an additional automatic charge at the point of renewal without establishing that the licence holder drove while the licence was expired.

“Expiry of the document alone does not prove that the holder drove on a public road while the licence was invalid,” Adomako said.

He said a licence holder could be abroad, ill, studying or otherwise unable to drive during the period in which the licence remained expired.

CUTS therefore argued that the DVLA should distinguish between an expired licence and the separate offence of driving without a valid licence.

The think tank said it was not advocating that motorists should drive with expired licences, stressing that driving without a valid licence should attract lawful enforcement.

Its concern, it said, was the presumption that every person with an expired licence had continued to drive and should therefore automatically pay an escalating charge.

CUTS also raised concerns about what it described as the risk of double punishment, saying a motorist who had already been prosecuted and fined by a court for driving with an expired licence could still face an additional charge when renewing because the DVLA system generates the charge automatically.

The organisation called on the DVLA and Ghana Police Service to clarify their respective enforcement responsibilities, including which institution investigates and prosecutes offences involving driving without a valid licence.

It also criticised the GH¢181 charge for amending electronic records of licence holders, arguing that fees for updating basic information such as residential addresses and telephone numbers could discourage people from keeping their records current.

CUTS said accurate contact information was important for road safety, identity verification, criminal investigations and emergency communication.

It called on the DVLA to make basic updates free or impose only a small cost-based fee where a new physical licence card was required.

The think tank also urged Parliament to conduct an inquiry into the legality, approval and administration of the DVLA’s escalating late-renewal charges.

“The DVLA should design fees to support compliance, not discourage it,” Adomako said.