Australia is one of the countries which recognizes a Malaysian driving licence and allows Malaysian drivers to drive or ride vehicles there without requiring them to take any local tests and obtain a driving licence. This privilege is, however, only for short-term visitors like tourists and those who stay longer (eg students or who are working) would have to get a driving licence for the state they are in.
Alternatively, an International Driving Permit (IDP) can also be used, and this document issued by the JPJ is also recognized in most countries. Having an IDP can sometimes be easier as a Malaysian driving licence might not be readily recognized.
A 26-year old Malaysian woman who has been living in the Australian state of New South Wales must have thought that she could get away showing a fake driving licence when stopped by the police for exceeding the speed limit. She may have assumed that the police would not be able to check on the authenticity of the licence as it was from another country, and at most she would get fined for the speeding offence with her Honda Accord.
However, for some reason, the police decided to check the licence (which shows qualification for both Full B and D classes) more closely and in this age of internet connectivity, they could immediately visit the website of the Malaysian Road Transport Department (JPJ) which has information on such matters. According to the NSW Traffic & Highway Patrol Command, there were inconsistencies found in the licence she presented which led to her being interrogated further.
During the interview by the police, the woman revealed that she had asked someone to make the licence. And in an effort to try to minimize her offence, she then showed a Learner Driver’s License for New South Wales. This instead got her charged with another 3 offences for: a) not being accompanied by licensed driver/police officer or tester; b) not displaying ‘L’ plates as required; and c) exceeding the speed limit by more than 10 km/h. She had been travelling at 113 km/h zone with a speed limit of 100 km/h.
Following her admission of the licence being fake, the police contacted Interpol in Malaysia and received confirmation that the licence she had was a fake. This meant she committed the offence of ‘possessing a false document to influence exercise public duty’, for which she has been convicted at a local court recently.
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