Your (provisional) Category B driving licence

Your full driving licence is the size of a bank card and is valid for 10 years. After that, you need to renew it, but you do not have to take another driving test.

If your driving licence is stolen or you lose it, report it to the police. You will receive a certificate that allows you to apply for a new driving licence. You may not drive with this certificate. Wait until you have actually received your new driving licence.

With a category B driving licence (provisional or full), you may drive vehicles with an MAW of no more than 3500 kg. You will learn exactly what this means later in the course.

In summary, this includes:

• passenger cars
• light goods vehicles
• minibuses carrying no more than 8 passengers, excluding the driver
• dual-purpose vehicles

For most of us, this simply means a passenger car.

With a provisional category B driving licence, you must not drive:

• from Friday 22:00 until Saturday 06:00
• from Saturday 22:00 until Sunday 06:00
• from Sunday 22:00 until Monday 06:00
• from 22:00 on the evening before a public holiday until 06:00 the following morning
• from 22:00 on the evening of a public holiday until 06:00 the following morning

For example, this means that you may not drive from 22:00 on 31 December until 06:00 on 1 January, or from 22:00 on 1 January until 06:00 on 2 January. You may drive on 1 January between 06:00 and 22:00.

When you are practising, a clearly visible L sign must always be displayed at the rear of your car.

If a doctor considers you no longer mentally and/or physically fit to drive, you must notify your municipality within four days. Weekends and public holidays do not count towards these four days.

If you later undergo the necessary medical examinations and pass them, your doctor can declare you fit to drive again and you can get your driving licence back.