Renewing my driving license online in Bengaluru: A hassle-free process

It’s worth noting here that there is apparently a 30-day grace period after the license expires.

BHPian on everyday roads He recently shared this with other enthusiasts:

I had a better experience recently at Bangalore South (Jayanagar) RTO. My friend, who applied completely online and DIY at Yashwanthapura (North Bengaluru) RTO in June 2024, got the physical DL within 2 months and I also benefited from his experience.

I’ll just mention things that happened to me differently (compared to the anecdote above or other threads on this topic):

I started the application process 2 days after my DL expired (surprisingly the mParivahan app showed my DL as: active even after it expires – more on this later).

I pre-downloaded the “blank” form 1a from Parivahan (medical fitness form – Parivahan will tell you if you need it) and filled it out manually and pasted the photo into the designated area.
(Specifically mentioning this as a different title (“Do It Yourself: Online Renewal of Maharashtra (MH) Driving License”) mentions that it is mandatory to print the pre-filled form 1a created by Parivahan and get it signed by a doctor. This may be case/RTO specific .)

After an unsuccessful attempt at a nearby health center (doctor not there, you can’t get this certificate here, go to the general hospital, blah blah blah), asked around and went to a different hospital. The procedure there was smooth:

• The place looked surprisingly neat and clean for a public hospital.

• The staff politely asked me to wait for my turn to see the doctor.

• The doctor actually asked a few questions about my health and vision and assigned a different (maybe junior) doctor to further check who was checking my blood pressure and made some recommendations based on that.

• He then signed the form with his registration number and stamp

• I politely reminded him to sign/stamp the photo.

That’s when I started the application process at Parivahan. everything required (read: form 1a). I wanted to finish it in one sitting and there were errors, timeouts, etc. These took a few hours to fix and were relatively easy to fix (no data/input lost at any stage).

I too had a change of address (important as the DL is sent via post to the registered address) and although my last address was under the jurisdiction of a different RTO (still in Bangalore), I chose to submit the application to: original RTO based on my friend’s experience. (This wasn’t a problem for me as both RTOs were in Bangalore, and I could switch to the other RTO without (relatively) much hassle if necessary; but I’m not sure how it works if the current address is in a different city or even if that’s the case). The address change was offered as an additional service during the renewal application and went smoothly.

I have uploaded scanned copies of certified form 1a, DL (expired) and Aadhaar (proof of address). The PDF files you upload have a size limit, so some tweaking was needed here. I also needed to upload a photo (there was an option to import from the Aadhaar database, which may have been because I did Aadhaar eKYC as part of the application process; but I chose to upload a photo) and a signature scan – the requirement for these was very stringent (file size small) and had to try several times it was annoying (I was worried that if the file size was made too small the details of the photo would be lost).

Payment of the fee was a challenge as it timed out a few times, but in the end it was okay.

Then I waited.

Meanwhile, I printed the fee receipt and application confirmation (downloadable from Parivahan) and kept it in my vehicle in case Murphy’s law kicks in and I get stopped by the cops to check the newly expired DL.

Here, apparently there is a 30 day grace period after DL expires and out of date DL: valid During this period (you may refer to sections 14 and 15 of the MV Act 1988).