Step 1. The big picture
In one sentence…
Core topic for licence B: general rules of circulation, priority, speed, road position, manoeuvres, essential documentation and the punishable conduct most often asked about in the exam. Study it as practical decisions: who goes first, where you position yourself, when you must give way and how you reduce risk.
Step 2. The syllabus
2.1Authorisations and documentation
With licence B you can drive passenger cars up to 3,500 kg and up to 8 passengers in addition to the driver. You must carry a valid authorisation and respect its conditions.
- The vehicle must be fit to circulate under the regulatory conditions. Knowing how to drive isn't enough: documentation, technical condition and the vehicle's limitations also count.
- The DGT requires you to understand risk and apply it in real traffic. That's why the exam mixes rules with traffic scenes, signs and vulnerable road users.
- If an authorisation, restriction or sign limits your driving, it takes precedence over what you would normally do. The correct answer is usually the most cautious and lawful one.
2.2Speed in built-up areas
In built-up areas, general limits of 20, 30 or 50 km/h apply depending on the road layout, unless a sign sets a different condition.
- Don't memorise these limits as an isolated list. The exam usually asks you to link speed to the type of street, the presence of pedestrians and visible signage.
- Driving below the limit can still be wrong if you obstruct traffic without cause. Driving within the limit can also be dangerous if the situation demands more caution.
- Near schools, crossings, stops or reduced visibility, the appropriate speed is the one that lets you stop without a sudden manoeuvre, not simply the maximum allowed.
2.3Speed, position and distance
On any road you must moderate your speed if visibility, grip, usable width or the predictability of the surroundings decreases.
- As a current study rule, cars generally have a 90 km/h maximum on conventional roads; a road may post up to 100 km/h only where the required physical separation exists. Read the sign and road type in the scene, and do not treat this as permission to overtake.
- The vehicle's normal position is on the right, using the lane suited to the intended manoeuvre and keeping enough distance to stop without a rear-end collision.
- Safe distance is not a single figure for every scene. Mentally increase the margin if there is rain, heavy traffic, load, a gradient or distractions around you.
- In questions about rear-end collisions, braking or merging, look for who needed more space. The DGT penalises the answer that normalises hugging the vehicle in front.
2.4Right of way
The general priority of the right gives way to signs, traffic lights, officers, roundabouts, regulated crossings and special cases set out in the rules.
- At an uncontrolled junction, apply right priority only after checking the exceptions: a vehicle on a paved road has priority over one arriving from an unpaved road, and a vehicle entering a roundabout gives way to traffic already circulating.
- At a railway crossing or when joining a motorway or other specially regulated road, the specific rule controls instead of an automatic right-priority answer.
- At roundabouts, priority belongs to whoever is already on it, but exiting requires positioning yourself in good time and not crossing lanes abruptly.
- Before answering a priority question, first locate the signage. Then look at each vehicle's trajectory and position, and whether any vulnerable road user needs special care.
- Giving way doesn't always mean stopping, but it does mean not forcing the other party to brake sharply or change their course to avoid you.
2.5Safe manoeuvres
Before changing lane, overtaking, turning, merging or stopping, you must observe, signal in good time and carry out the manoeuvre without creating danger.
- The indicator informs, but it does not grant priority. If signalling forces others to brake or swerve, the manoeuvre has not been done correctly.
- Merging and exiting require you to anticipate speed and gap. The common trap is believing that whoever is already driving must always make way for you to enter.
- When overtaking, turning or moving sideways, check mirrors and blind spots. The exam often includes motorcycles, bikes or vehicles that are partly hidden.
- Overtaking needs two separate decisions: it must be permitted by the marking and context, and it must be safe to complete without forcing another road user to brake or change course.
2.6High-impact offences
Driving while holding a phone, without a seatbelt, or under the influence of alcohol or drugs undermines safety and can mean losing points.
- The points-based licence normally starts with 12 points, while novice drivers or those getting their licence back start with 8.
- Novice drivers face specific conditions during their first years. In questions about alcohol, points or the L-plate, check whether the question mentions a novice.
- Punishable conduct doesn't stop being an offence because the journey is short or the road seems empty. The DGT asks a lot about these everyday false exceptions.
2.7Vulnerable road users
Cautious driving requires you to anticipate especially for pedestrians, cyclists, children, older people and people with reduced mobility in any shared environment.
- Even if you have formal priority, you must adapt speed and trajectory if a vulnerable road user could make a mistake or be hidden by other vehicles.
- In town, risks appear from pavements, crossings, stops, vehicle doors and shared lanes. The exam answer usually requires extra vigilance.
- Practise by identifying the most fragile road user in each scene. That reading helps you choose between moving on, giving way, stopping or slowing down.
Step 3. Decision steps
The exact order to decide in when the real situation is not obvious.
Overtaking decision map
Permission and completion safety are separate checks.
- Read the marking, sign and road context.
- Check ahead, behind and blind spots.
- Leave enough margin to finish gradually without forcing others to react.
- Abort if any check fails; a speed limit never creates permission to overtake.
Priority: one scene at a time
Find the controlling signal, then decide the path and margin.
- Check an officer, light, sign or marking first.
- If none controls the junction, apply right priority and identify each path.
- At a roundabout, traffic already circulating has priority; plan the exit without an abrupt lane crossing.
- Formal priority does not remove caution for vulnerable or obscured road users.
Step 4. Key points
If you only have a minute before the exam, revise this.
- 1.Apply the built-up area limits of 20, 30 and 50 km/h depending on the type of street.
- 2.Check signs, traffic lights and officers before applying the priority-to-the-right rule.
- 3.Carry out manoeuvres only after observing, signalling and giving way when required.
- 4.Remember that the indicator does not grant priority.
- 5.Link safe distance to visibility, grip and traffic.
- 6.Identify conduct that can lead to losing points.
- 7.Treat pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists as high-risk road users.
- 8.Check whether the question mentions a novice driver or a recovered licence.
Step 5. Exam traps
Mistakes the DGT uses again and again on this topic.
- Confusing the general priority of the right with priority at roundabouts.
- Forgetting that the correct speed also depends on rain, visibility or traffic intensity.
- Thinking it's enough to signal even though the manoeuvre forces others to react.
- Applying a built-up area limit without checking the street layout or a different sign.
- Answering as if having priority removed the duty of caution towards vulnerable road users.
- Overlooking that novices and recovered licences start with fewer points.
Step 6. Quick check
Four real exam questions on what you have just read.
If a fire in a tunnel requires stopping your vehicle and you can safely position it on the right, why should passage be kept clear?
Step 7. Frequently asked questions about traffic rules
- Which of these effects can anxiolytics cause, impairing driving?
- The onset of periods of drowsiness. They can cause drowsiness and reduce attention or reaction ability. Effects depend on the medicine, dose and individual; not every treatment necessarily causes the same effect. Read the leaflet and consult a doctor or pharmacist about driving, especially when starting treatment or changing dose. Do not drive when drowsy or impaired, and do not stop or alter treatment on your own.See full question
- Before reversing a passenger car or other vehicle covered by a B licence, you must:
- Check the area behind and the immediate surroundings. Before reversing, check the space behind the vehicle and its immediate surroundings, including pedestrians and obstacles. If safety cannot be checked from the driving position, get out or follow another person’s directions. Reverse only in circumstances where the manoeuvre is permitted.See full question
- If you are going to ride a motorcycle, what clothing is most appropriate?
- Clothing that is resistant to impact and abrasion. Use motorcycle clothing resistant to abrasion and equipped with impact protection, together with a helmet, gloves and suitable footwear. Dark colour alone does not provide protection; visible elements help others see you. Shorts and sandals leave the body exposed.See full question
- How can drowsiness due to lack of sleep, which may occur with insomnia, affect driving?
- It may reduce attention and increase automatic movements. Drowsiness reduces attention, may increase reaction time and promote automatic movements without properly perceiving traffic. Drivers with insomnia do not all have the same symptoms at all times. Do not drive when sleepy; if drowsiness occurs during a journey, stop somewhere safe to rest.See full question
- What is the usual nominal voltage of a conventional six-cell lead-acid auxiliary battery used in a passenger car?
- 12 volts. This battery has a nominal voltage of 12 V: six cells of approximately 2 V connected in series. Measured voltage can vary with charge state and system operation. Not every vehicle battery is 12 V; traction batteries and some commercial-vehicle systems use other voltages. A battery stores chemical energy rather than electric current.See full question
Official sources
Test what you've studied on traffic rules
Exam-style questions on this topic, with an explanation after every answer.
Now, practise it
Test what you have read with exam-style questions and an explanation after each answer.
Related lessons
- BRisk factors
Risk factors are studied as a real cause of error: alcohol, drugs, speed, distraction, fatigue, adverse weather and overconfidence. In passenger cars on roads open to general traffic their effects tend to multiply, which is why the exam insists on anticipating and correcting before you lose control.
- BDriving and the environment
Efficient, environmentally sound driving reduces fuel consumption, emissions, wear and risk. The DGT studies it as a way of driving better, not just as a financial saving, and it must always be compatible with safety and the rules in force.
- BRoad safety
Road safety combines prevention, occupant protection and the correct reaction to an emergency. The theory exam usually mixes active safety, passive safety and the PAS response within the same question, so always study cause, consequence and safe conduct together.
- BSigns
Master the hierarchy between officers, temporary signage, traffic lights, vertical signs and road markings. In the exam you must recognise which order prevails, what conduct each sign requires, and when a temporary indication changes what you would normally expect to see on the road.
- BVulnerable road users
Licence B requires you to drive with preventive priority towards pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists and road users with less physical protection. A small driver error can have serious consequences, so the exam values anticipation, distance, moderate speed and reading the surroundings.