Italian driving practical test
No fault count is set by law: the examiner judges the drive as a whole. This page states what the decree actually fixes, and what it does not.
The test
Three phases, no error count
The rules below cover category B, the one behind "practical driving test". This page does not model other categories.
The decree splits the test into three phases: a check of the readiness for safe driving, at least two manoeuvres — one of them in reverse — and an assessment of driving in traffic. A candidate moves to the next phase only after clearing the one before it.
- verifica della capacità del conducente di prepararsi ad una guida sicura, effettuando le operazioni di cui all'allegato II, lettera B, punti da 7.1.1 a 7.1.4, del decreto legislativo n. 59 del 2011
- esecuzione di almeno due delle manovre, di cui una a marcia indietro, previste dall'allegato II, lettera B, punti da 7.2.1 a 7.2.4, del decreto legislativo n. 59 del 2011
What is not written down
No minimum or maximum duration
The decree describes the three phases but fixes no minute count for any of them: how long the drive actually takes depends on the examiner and the route.
D.M. 19 dicembre 2012, art. 4
D.M. 19 dicembre 2012, art. 4.
How it is assessed
The examiner's overall judgement, not a score.
A driving error or a dangerous act that puts the vehicle's, the passengers' or another road user's safety at risk fails the test. It is for the examiner to decide whether, after such an error, the test still runs to its end.
What is not written down
No fault count, no score
Anyone looking for "how many mistakes are allowed" is looking for a number the decree does not contain: the judgement is holistic, not a tally.
D.Lgs. 18 aprile 2011, n. 59, Annex II(B)
Training before the test
The Highway Code governs the authorisation to practise driving and the instructor who supervises it, but in the articles this page reads it fixes no minimum number of hours or lessons.
What is not written down
No hour floor in these articles
A dedicated decree on driving-school programmes may set one elsewhere: this page states only what the articles cited above actually say.
Highway Code art. 122, art. 123
Retaking the test
The practical test may be repeated at most twice within the twelve-month validity of the learner permit. As with the theory test, no minimum waiting period between attempts, nor an absolute cap beyond that window, was found in those same articles.
Highway Code art. 121(8) and (11), art. 122(6).
After the licence
The first 3 years: a speed and power limit
A different restriction from the points-doubling or the zero-alcohol threshold — those already live in this site's points and suspension pages.
Per i primi tre anni dal conseguimento della patente di categoria A2, A, B1 e B non è consentito il superamento della velocità di 100 km/h per le autostrade e di 90 km/h per le strade extraurbane principali.
Ai titolari di patente di guida di categoria B, per i primi tre anni dal rilascio, non è consentita la guida di autoveicoli aventi una potenza specifica, riferita alla tara, superiore a 75 kW/t. Nel caso di veicoli di categoria M1, anche elettrici o ibridi plug-in, si applica l'ulteriore limite di potenza massima pari a 105 kW.
Consequence
Fine and suspension
Il titolare di patente di guida italiana che viola le disposizioni di cui ai commi 2 e 2-bis è soggetto alla sanzione amministrativa del pagamento di una somma da € 165 a € 660. La violazione importa la sanzione amministrativa accessoria della sospensione della validità della patente da due ad otto mesi.
Highway Code art. 117(5)
Highway Code art. 117(2) and (2-bis).
Costs
What the test costs
This page states no euro figure. The fee once set for the licence by D.P.R. 641/1972 was abolished from 1 January 1998; the two provisions often cited for today's cost — table 3 of law 870/1986 and the stamp duty of D.P.R. 642/1972 — do not state, in the text consulted, a specific amount currently in force.
For the amount actually due, the authority to check is the Motorizzazione Civile (the vehicle licensing office) or the driving school handling the application.
D.P.R. 26 ottobre 1972, n. 641, attached tariff, art. 15, note (1); L. 27 dicembre 1997, n. 449, art. 17(21).
The Highway Code does not fix, in the articles read, a validity for the medical fitness certificate separate from the duration of the licence itself.
The three phases, the training and the first-years limit apply to category B. For ages, categories and how long the licence runs, see the theory-test page.
Draft in progress: the long-form text of this page is still being written.
Next step
Start from the number on your notice
The calculator shows the art. 345 reduction step by step, then the band, then the payable figure and the deadlines.