Driver & Vehicle Agency

The Driver and Vehicle Agency (DVA or DVANI, Irish: An Ghníomhaireacht Tiománaithe agus Feithiclí ) is a government agency of the Northern Ireland Department for Infrastructure. The agency is responsible for setting and enforcing standards for drivers and vehicles, registering drivers, and the issuing of licences.

It was created in early 2007 through the merger of the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Northern Ireland (DVLNI) and the Driver and Vehicle Testing Agency (DVTA), and was responsible for vehicle tax and registration in Northern Ireland until 2014, when this role was transferred to the UK-wide Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency. Standards for drivers and vehicles in the rest of the UK are set by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency.

Previously the responsibility of the DVTA, the DVA is responsible for the testing of both drivers, in the form of theory and practical driving tests, and vehicles, primarily through the MOT test.

The standards and form of these tests is the same as in the rest of the United Kingdom, where they are performed by the DSA for driving tests and the VOSA for vehicles.

Unlike in Great Britain, where MOT tests can be performed by authorised garages, in Northern Ireland all MOT tests must be undertaken at one of the fifteen DVA test centres.

Previously the responsibility of the DVLNI, the DVA maintains the database of drivers and vehicles in Northern Ireland; its counterpart in Great Britain is the DVLA. The agency issues driving licences, sells "cherished marks" (private number plates) and, under an agreement from the UK Department for Transport, organises collection of vehicle excise duty (also known as car tax).

It is based in Coleraine, County Londonderry, and also has offices in Armagh, Ballymena, Belfast, Derry, Downpatrick, Enniskillen and Omagh.

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