Hundreds of fake Singaporean licences used to obtain permission to drive in WA, DoT investigation finds

Hundreds of people used fake Singaporean licences to obtain permission to drive in WA in a national scam uncovered by a Department of Transport investigation. Transport Minister Rita Saffioti said the probe was an “incredible uncovering of fraud” that had detected 173 licences issued “on the basis of false premises”. Of those, 122 have already been cancelled and the remaining 51 licence holders were found to no longer reside in WA. A tip-off to the Department of Transport’s alert line from a member of the public in January sparked the investigation. The WA Government also alerted other jurisdictions to the scam, with Ms Saffioti revealing in budget estimates this morning that authorities in Victoria and NSW had since also detected licences fraudulently obtained in the same manner. The Department of Transport’s probe examined licences used between 2015 and 2020 and relied on the assistance of Singaporean Police and the Singaporean High Commission. The names of each of the licence holders have been provided to WA Police and the Federal Department of Home Affairs for further investigation. “This is a concerning scam because people have deliberately acted to avoid demonstrating the required standards necessary to obtain a WA driver’s licence,” Ms Saffioti said. “Importantly, our (Department of Transport) has also been talking to other States and it appears a similar situation has unfolded in Victoria and New South Wales with fake Singaporean licences being used. “All drivers deserve to feel safe on our roads and can be assured fraudulent or suspicious driver and vehicle licensing matters are being identified and dealt with by DoT.”