Doha – The Spanish Government has taken a significant step towards strengthening ties with Morocco by modifying the bilateral agreement on the reciprocal recognition and exchange of national driving licenses.
According to a report by El Español, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, led by José Manuel Albares, published the new agreement in the Official State Gazette.
This move comes just one month after President Pedro Sánchez’s latest visit to Morocco, where, among other commitments, it was agreed to allow Moroccan truck drivers to work in Spain without the need to validate their licenses.
El Español reveals that the exchange of professional licenses will be carried out without requiring theoretical and practical exams. As an exception, Moroccan drivers applying for licenses for trucks without weight limits or with trailers, equivalent to the Spanish classes C, C+E, D, and D+E, will have to undergo a circulation test on roads open to general traffic, using a vehicle or set of vehicles authorized by these licenses.
Previously, as reported by El Español, Moroccan professional drivers seeking to homologate their driving licenses with the equivalent Spanish ones were required to take a specific theoretical test.
The agreement will be finalized once the Moroccan embassy publishes a confirmation note, which is expected to happen in the coming days. The agreement will come into effect thirty days from that date.
The Spanish Government’s objective, according to El Español, is to “eliminate existing challenges in terms of covering vacancies for qualified drivers to work in the sector.” This measure responds to the request of “representatives of Spanish companies dedicated to passenger and freight road transport.”
El Español notes that the DGT (Spanish Traffic Authority) had already proposed this change in the agreement back in 2019, following demands from the transport sector, which has been facing a shortage of labor.
Moroccan sources explain to El Español that the agreement “is necessary for Moroccan citizens to be hired as truck drivers by Spanish companies.” It is expected that up to 6,000 Moroccan professional drivers may come to work in Spain.
The decision has been in the works during the recent visits of members from the Spanish Government to Rabat. On February 6, the Council of Ministers authorized the exchange of notes modifying the pre-existing bilateral agreement, as reported by El Español.
Furthermore, El Español reveals that on March 4, the Minister of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Óscar Puente, met with his Moroccan counterpart, Mohamed Abdeljalil, in Rabat, just ten days after President Sánchez’s trip to the Moroccan capital.
The following day, the minister visited the headquarters of ALSA in Casablanca, a leader in public transport in Morocco, where he met with company workers and learned about their operations.
This decision by the Spanish government to modify the bilateral agreement with Morocco comes at a time when European farmers continue to block roads and attack Moroccan trucks transporting vegetables in protest against what they see as unfair competition from non-EU countries.
It also comes just days after a similar deal was signed with Italy.
The agreement with Italy, signed at the Italian Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, allows for the mutual recognition of driving licenses between the two countries, specifically for conversion purposes, eliminating a hurdle previously faced by Moroccan residents seeking to convert their licenses to Italian ones.
