Many Zambian motorists have experienced the moment at a roadblock or snap check when an officer requests their driver’s licence and then holds on to it. The question that follows is almost always the same: does the officer have the legal authority to confiscate the document?
The short answer is no. Under Zambian law, a police officer or road traffic inspector is entitled to demand production of a driver’s licence, but they are not generally empowered to seize and retain a valid licence. Confiscation is limited to narrowly defined circumstances and has been repeatedly discouraged by both the Road Transport and Safety Agency (RTSA) and traffic command within the Zambia Police Service.
The Legal Framework
The primary legislation is the Road Traffic Act, No. 11 of 2002 (as amended). Section 214 is the key provision governing roadside demands. It authorises a road traffic inspector in uniform, a police officer (who must produce an identity card if not in uniform), or a person authorised in writing by the Minister to demand:
- the registration document and current vehicle licence; and
- from any person driving a motor vehicle on a road, that person’s driving licence or provisional licence (and, where applicable, the licence of the supervising driver).
A person who fails to produce the required document on demand commits an offence unless they produce or otherwise furnish it at a specified police station within fourteen days, or within such longer period as the officer may allow. The fourteen-day window is deliberate. “On demand” does not mean the licence must be surrendered for permanent retention; it means the officer is entitled to inspect it or to require its production within the statutory period.
Courts, not roadside officers, hold the power to endorse, suspend or cancel a driving licence. Part VI of the Act (particularly sections 75 and 77) provides that a court may order the production of a licence for endorsement upon conviction for certain offences. Administrative revocation or suspension powers vested in the Director of RTSA under section 68 are also subject to defined procedures and are not exercised at the roadside.
The Zambia Police Act (Chapter 107) contains a complementary power in section 20. An officer may stop and question a person engaged in an activity for which a licence is required and demand production of that licence. Failure to produce can result in arrest without warrant unless the person supplies a name and address or otherwise satisfies the officer that they will answer any subsequent process. Once again, the power is one of inspection and, in limited cases, arrest, not confiscation of a valid document.
Official Guidance from RTSA and Traffic Command
Practical enforcement instructions have been clearer and more consistent than the statute alone might suggest. Traffic command has directed officers not to confiscate driver’s licences, noting that the practice creates opportunities for corruption. The preferred procedure is to issue a charge sheet (commonly ZP Form 126) and allow the motorist to deal with the matter through proper channels. The only recognised exception is where the licence is fake or reasonably suspected of having been obtained by fraud or misrepresentation; in such cases it may be retained as an exhibit.
RTSA has publicly reinforced this position on multiple occasions. The Agency has described a driver’s licence as an important personal document, comparable in significance to a National Registration Card, that should remain in the possession of its holder. Officers who require details are expected to record the necessary information rather than seize the card. Statements attributed to RTSA leadership, including Chief Executive Officer Engineer Amon Mweemba, have characterised arbitrary confiscation without a specific legal justification as unlawful.
These directives reflect an institutional recognition that unrestricted seizure of licences has historically undermined public confidence and facilitated informal “negotiations” at the roadside.
When Seizure Is Lawful?
Confiscation is permitted only in limited situations:
- The document is counterfeit or was obtained by fraud or misrepresentation and is required as an exhibit.
- A court has ordered production, endorsement, suspension or cancellation of the licence.
- The licence forms material evidence in a wider criminal investigation and is handled according to the ordinary rules governing exhibits.
- Specific statutory regimes outside the Road Traffic Act (for example, certain powers under the Passport Act) contain explicit confiscation language; the Road Traffic Act does not contain equivalent general authority for driving licences.
Outside these circumstances, an officer who takes and retains a motorist’s valid licence is acting beyond the powers conferred by law.
Distinguishing Related Powers
It is important to separate the treatment of the licence from the treatment of the vehicle. Certain offences, driving without a valid licence at all, operating without road tax, insurance or a required test certificate in specified cases, may justify impoundment of the vehicle itself. Forgetting a valid licence at home is not treated the same as never having held one. The former triggers the fourteen-day production rule under section 214; the latter can lead to impoundment.
Practical Advice for Motorists.
Motorists remain under a clear legal duty to carry a valid driver’s licence while driving. The safest course is always to have the document available for inspection. When an officer demands it:
- Present the licence for inspection.
- If the officer seeks to retain it, request the specific legal basis and a written record or receipt of the seizure.
- Note the officer’s name, rank, station and any identifying details.
- Report improper retention to the officer-in-charge of the relevant station, Zambia Police integrity structures, the RTSA Integrity Committee (in the case of Agency inspectors), or the Anti-Corruption Commission if a demand for payment is involved.
Knowing the distinction between the right to inspect and the power to confiscate equips motorists to assert their rights calmly and accurately while remaining compliant with the law.
Final Remarks
Zambian law draws a clear line. Officers may demand production of a driver’s licence and may require its presentation at a police station within fourteen days if it is not produced on the spot. They may not, as a general rule, confiscate a valid licence. That power belongs primarily to the courts and, in tightly defined cases, to administrative or investigative processes. The repeated guidance from RTSA and traffic command against routine confiscation underscores both the legal position and the practical risks of departing from it.
Motorists who understand these boundaries are better placed to protect their rights without obstructing legitimate enforcement. Officers who respect them uphold the integrity of the system they are sworn to enforce.
References
1. Road Traffic Act, No. 11 of 2002 (as amended). Available at ZambiaLII: https://zambialii.org/akn/zm/act/2002/11
2. Zambia Police Act, Chapter 107 of the Laws of Zambia, section 20 (Power to inspect licences). Available at ZambiaLII and consolidated statutes repositories.
3. Traffic Desk Zambia public guidance on section 214 and confiscation of driver’s licences (including directives against routine confiscation and preference for ZP Form 126).
4. Road Transport and Safety Agency (RTSA) public statements and educational posts clarifying production requirements under section 214 and the status of a driver’s licence as a personal document that should remain with the holder.
5. Lusaka Times (12 January 2016): “RTSA tells Police Officers to desist from confiscating driving licences from motorists.”
6. Public explanations by RTSA leadership, including statements attributed to Chief Executive Officer Engineer Amon Mweemba, affirming that arbitrary confiscation without lawful justification is not permitted.
Note: Motorists and practitioners should consult the official consolidated text of the Road Traffic Act and any subsequent amendments, as well as current RTSA and Zambia Police Service operational guidance, for the most authoritative position.
Author: Gift Chinyama
