MARVAD did not approve your fitness to drive in 2026? 5 reasons to understand and what you can do
Legal review: Tsuri Saban, Attorney
Have you received a notice of unfitness to drive, a refusal to issue a licence or a decision restricting your licence category? The first question to clarify is what lies behind the decision. The wording in the letter may be brief and general, but reviewing your options requires understanding the findings on which it rests.
This article discusses five types of reasons that may underlie an adverse recommendation. It is not an official list of the five most common grounds in 2026, nor a ranking by the number of disqualifications.
Who decides whether you are fit to drive?
Israel’s Medical Institute for Road Safety, MARVAD, assesses medical fitness to drive and submits recommendations to the Licensing Authority. The Licensing Authority makes the decision and notifies the person examined. Examinations are tailored to the reason for referral and the individual’s condition. They may include medical, psychological, psychiatric or addiction assessments.
This distinction matters when you want to clarify the reasons, obtain records or consider an appeal.
1. Personality-related unfitness for safe driving
This wording raises many questions. Someone may feel that they function well in everyday life and still receive a notice containing this finding.
Personality-related unfitness is not necessarily a diagnosis of mental illness. It may refer to findings about judgment, responsibility, behaviour and attitudes towards rules. A court judgment concerning an application for a heavy goods vehicle licence described findings including the minimisation of offences and an insufficient sense of responsibility for professional driving. The case concerned suitability for a particular licence category, rather than a blanket exclusion from all driving.
What should you check? Identify the findings recorded in the opinion, how the conclusion was explained and whether the decision concerns your existing licence or an application for an additional category. As a practical step, prepare an orderly account of your driving history and actual functioning to help review the full picture.
2. Cognitive impairment affecting driving
Driving requires divided attention, information processing, memory, orientation and rapid decisions. Impairment in these functions may be relevant to a fitness assessment even when the person does not report a significant physical difficulty.
MARVAD standards address cognitive and behavioural functions and their effect on driving. It is therefore important to understand which function was found to be impaired and what that finding means for road safety.
What should you check? Review what was assessed, what the results say and whether up-to-date records can help explain your functioning. Depending on the findings, discuss with an appropriate professional whether a further assessment is needed.
3. A mental health condition affecting functions needed for driving
A mental health diagnosis or psychiatric treatment does not, by itself, establish that someone is unfit to drive. The question is how the condition affects functioning and the ability to drive safely.
MARVAD’s clinical procedures address conditions including post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and other disorders. Depending on the circumstances, the assessment may involve medical records and a review of the person’s condition and functioning. Stability, judgment and treatment side effects may also be relevant.
What should you check? Make sure the submitted records describe your current condition. For a review of the decision, a relevant professional opinion should address functioning and the issue in dispute, rather than merely name a diagnosis.
4. Alcohol or drug use, or an addiction problem
Distinguish between the reason for referral to MARVAD and the findings of the examination. A conviction for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs may lead to referral. Understanding a medical decision, however, requires examining its reasons and supporting material.
The examination may include an addiction assessment. The procedures also address substance use and the records required to investigate it.
What should you check? Identify the concern recorded, the information considered and any relevant treatment or follow-up records. Do not assume that the conclusion rests solely on a past conviction.
5. A physical medical condition that does not meet the requirements for the requested licence
Vision problems, seizures, loss of consciousness, heart disease and other medical conditions may raise fitness questions. Their significance depends on the details of the condition, how well it is controlled and the licence category.
Licence type also matters. Requirements for private and professional driving may differ. A decision about a public service or heavy goods vehicle licence is therefore not necessarily the same as a decision about a private car licence.
What should you check? Establish which category the decision concerns, the medical finding behind it and whether current records from the treating specialist were considered.
Received an adverse decision? First steps
- Keep the notice and record when it was delivered to you. The date matters when considering an appeal.
- Request the reasons and medical material. According to the Ministry of Health, the reasons and records can be obtained by a written request to MARVAD accompanied by a waiver of medical confidentiality.
- Clarify exactly what was refused or restricted: an existing licence, a particular category or an application for a new licence.
- Check the appeal deadline while collecting the material. An appeal to the Appeals Committee must be submitted within 30 days of delivery of the Licensing Authority’s notice. The committee may uphold, amend or cancel the recommendation.
How can the decision in your case be reviewed?
A structured review begins with the reasons and their comparison with the records and personal circumstances. This helps identify what needs clarification, which documents are missing and whether an appeal should be considered.
Received a finding of personality-related unfitness or another driving-fitness decision? You can contact Tsuri Saban & Co. to review the decision, the records and possible courses of action.
Sources and scope
Published in 2026, this article also refers to September 2023 procedures, April 2013 standards and a historical court judgment. Publication in 2026 does not mean these documents were updated in 2026 or contain disqualification statistics for that year. Check the rules and notice applicable to your individual case. Source documents are in Hebrew.
Further reading about the Medical Institute for Road Safety
This article provides general information and does not replace an individual legal and medical assessment. The centre is an independent website and does not represent MARVAD or the Licensing Authority.