Driving practice with a bus (D1, D1E, D and DE)
You need to be holding a Category B driving licence before you can practise driving a bus.
In Categories D1 and D1E you must be at least 19 years old; in Categories C and CE you must be at least 22.
You cannot practise driving with passengers in the bus.
Requirements applying to your accompanying driver
The person accompanying you
- must follow the rules on driver’s hours and rest periods, as this person is considered the driver of the bus
- must be at least 25 years old
- must have held a licence for the same category you are training in, continuously for the last five years
Special requirements applying to minibuses (Categories D1 and D1E)
- The bus can have seats for a maximum of 16 passengers in addition to the driver.
- The bus can be no more than 8 metres long.
If you are in the professional driver programme in upper secondary high school
If you are undergoing training for a heavy vehicle driving licence at an upper secondary school, you do not need to be holding a Category B driving licence. You can practise driving in connection with the training programme there and take extra driving lessons at an approved external driving school, as long as you have completed the Basic Traffic Course.
You need a Category B driving licence in order to practise driving in private.
See also: Getting started as a learner driver