Driving bans now cross-border
Driving disqualifications have become mutually recognised on both sides of the Irish border.
Law changes have come into effect today after a Road safety Agreement signed in 2015.
The Irish government says the move is an important road safety measure because it aims to target dangerous drivers on the roads.
Under the new laws the driving disqualification is transferred by the state that imposes it onto the offenders licences in their home state.
In other words a driver from Northern Ireland who gets banned in the Republic will automatically be banned here as well.
That means the consequences of a drivers' action in a different legal jurisdiction follows the offender home.
The mutual recognition covers disqualifications from a wide range of offences including drink driving, dangerous driving, speeding and hit and run collisions