From March 1, 2027, Russia’s traffic police will begin receiving notifications from citizens’ medical records if a person is diagnosed with a condition considered incompatible with driving. The driver will then be sent for a repeat medical examination, and if they fail to appear within three months, their license will be revoked.
As Novaya Europe reports, the diagnosis itself will not be disclosed to the traffic police: the agency will only see that there are medical grounds for a review. During the three-month period allowed for the examination, the driver’s license will remain valid.
At the same time, the authorities have expanded the list of illnesses that can limit a person’s right to drive. The updated register now includes disorders that, according to experts, do not always interfere with safe driving.
The F84 category covers very different conditions, from mild emotional or developmental traits to severe autism, mutism, and intellectual disability, psychiatrist Viktoria Gorina said. In her view, some forms, including F84.8, may be found in outwardly ordinary people and do not by themselves mean a person is unable to drive.
The specialist stressed that each case will be assessed individually. During the re-examination, a psychiatrist will evaluate the person’s condition, and additional tests may be ordered, including neuropsychological assessment, the Wechsler intelligence test, and electroencephalography. If the doctor concludes that there are no contraindications, the license will remain in force.
Even when a diagnosis exists, the final outcome depends on the medical opinion, which can be challenged in court. After a diagnosis is removed and a new examination is completed, a driver may also regain their license. Officials say the new system is intended to identify contraindications in real time rather than only when licenses are renewed once every ten years. At the same time, the publication notes that the main causes of fatal road crashes remain speeding, alcohol use, driving into oncoming traffic, and failure to wear seat belts, not developmental psychological disorders.