About the practical driving test

When you take your practical driving test, you must show that you are able to independently apply your knowledge in practice, and know how to be a safe driver.

The fee for a practical driving test is 800 kr. On weekends and after 18:00 on weekdays, the fee is 1,040 kr.

How the test works

Just as when taking the theory test, you must show a valid identity document with a photo.

The examiner will then begin by telling you about the test and what is going be assessed.

After the test introduction, you will be asked to perform part of the safety check. You will then drive for at least 25 minutes, both in city traffic and on the highways. You will be given clear instructions in good time where to drive.

Vehicle requirements

The practical driving test must be carried out with a suitable private car or light truck. If you are registered for the test through a traffic school, the school's car is usually used. If you are registered privately, you may use one of Transportstyrelsen's cars for a fee of 400 kr.

The vehicle must meet these requirements:

• It must be able to reach speeds of 100 km/h.
• Its total weight must not exceed 3,500 kg.
• Its kerb weight must exceed 1,000 kg.
• It must be equipped with:
  • dual controls for braking
  • an extra rear view mirror for the front seat passenger
  • front seat headrests
  • approved three-point seatbelt for the front seat
  • clutch pedal and manual transmission, unless the practical test is for a driving licence limited to automatic transmission

What the test assesses

To pass the practical test, you must be able to demonstrate the ability to drive safely and think ahead. You must follow the relevant traffic regulations, adapt your speed and drive with confidence, pay attention to road and weather conditions, and other traffic and road users – especially those who are most vulnerable.

You must also be able to demonstrate routine manoeuvres that are required for driving in a safe and eco-friendly manner. In addition, you must be able to deal with risk situations when driving and predict and anticipate the actions of other road users.

On the practical driving test you are assessed on a number of different test points within five different areas

Your skills are tested in the following areas:

• Vehicle knowledge
• Manoeuvring
• Environment and economical driving
• Traffic rules
• Traffic safety and behaviour

Vehicle knowledge

• You must be able to do a safety check of the car, for example checking the lights, tyres and engine oil, and must understand what risks might arise if the car is not functioning properly.

Manoeuvring

• You must be able to manoeuvre the car, for example by using the pedals correctly.
• You must be able to steer the car, both when driving straight ahead and when turning.
• You must be able to reverse and park the car in a natural way.
• You must be able to change the controls while driving, for example raising or lowering the heat and using the windscreen wipers.

Environment and economical driving

• You must be able to plan your driving so that you do not have to apply the brakes unnecessarily.
• You must be able to select the most appropriate gear for the environment and for road safety.

Traffic rules

• You must know the traffic rules and follow them in a natural way so that interactions with other road users go smoothly.

Traffic safety and behaviour

• You must be attentive when driving and adapt your driving according to what you see.
• You must know where, when and how to look in different situations.
• You must be able to identify and understand what risks there are in traffic and plan your driving so that you are prepared for any situations that might arise.
• You must adjust your speed to account for visibility, road conditions and other factors.
• You must position the car clearly on the road, for example when you are about to turn or change lanes.
• You must drive safely, for example by adjusting your distance to other road users and stationary vehicles.
• You must clearly and in good time show where you are going by using your indicator.

The examiner will perform an overall assessment of your driving. This means that if you make a minor mistake that has little impact on traffic safety, this may not necessarily affect the result. During the practical driving test you must demonstrate that you can negotiate traffic and solve problems on your own.

Pass/Fail

The examiner will inform you directly after the test if you have passed and will send the results to Transportstyrelsen. What happens next depends on whether you have passed or failed the test.

Pass

If you pass the practical driving test you will be informed that your driver's licence has been issued. Your licence will be sent to your nearest postal agent within five working days. You must collect the licence yourself within two weeks and you must present valid identification when you collect it.

Until you have collected your licence, you must always carry valid identification when you drive. The right to drive with regular identification only applies during the two weeks you have at your disposal to collect the licence.

Fail

If you fail the practical driving test, the examiner tells you why the test was not approved and what you did wrong. You also get the test protocol sent to your email address.

If there is any time left before the theory test's four-month period of validity expires you may book a new practical driving test and try again. It is important that you study more before taking the next test.

Tips for passing the test

When it is time to take the practical driving test, the most important thing is that you have learned the driver's licence theory and practiced enough driving.

There is, however, a lot you can do before and during your practical driving test to maximize your chances of passing it. Here you can read the best tips.

Get a good night's sleep
You perform much better after a good night's sleep. In other words, do not stay up the night before to study – if you have studied properly and feel confident in your knowledge of the driver's licence theory, getting a good night's sleep is much more important than studying road signs and traffic rules for a few more hours.

Eat properly
Even if you are nervous and have no appetite, be sure to eat properly before your test. Your brain and body require nourishment and energy in order to perform at full capacity.

Drink water
Drink water before the test, but make sure not to drink too much. Avoid caffeinated drinks as they are diuretic and increase water loss.

Refrain from alcohol
Do not drink any alcohol the day before your test! Even if you no longer have alcohol in your body, it does not necessarily mean you are okay to drive. Your driving ability can be reduced by up to 20% the day after drinking, even after you have metabolised all the alcohol you have consumed.

Accept the stress
It is quite normal to get stressed before and during the test. But instead of getting more stressed by the fact that you are stressed, try to just accept it. Stress really is a fact of life, and sometimes it is unavoidable. Besides, a moderate level of stress can actually enhance your performance.

Dress comfortably
Remember to choose comfortable clothes and shoes the day of the test. Avoid clothes and shoes that are too tight, too warm or just impractical.

Warm up
If you have the opportunity, you should warm up by driving to the test with your instructor. If you have time you can also drive around in the area where you are taking the test, to get to know the roads.

Remove your jacket
If you are wearing a jacket, take it off and put it in the back seat. Firstly, you will only get warm and uncomfortable driving with a jacket on. Secondly, it is not possible to fasten the seat belt properly while wearing a jacket.

Turn off your mobile phone
Turn off your mobile and put it in a bag or jacket in the back seat.

Adjust driver's seat and mirrors
Even if the examiner does not ask you to do so, you must always adjust the driver's seat and all mirrors so you can reach the controls comfortably and can see clearly.

Focus on your driving
Try not to think too much about the fact that you are being assessed. Instead, just focus on driving calmly and defensively.

Check your speed
Do not drive too fast. A few minor speed violations may be enough to result in a failed test. If appropriate, try to maintain a speed that is slightly below the speed limit. You will not be failed just because you drive at 46 km/h on a road where the speed limit is 50 km/h. But do not drive too slowly either, if there is no obvious reason to do so, as that could surprise or hinder other drivers.

Move your eyes
One of the most common reasons why people fail the test is because they "look too close to the car" and do not scan traffic properly. It is therefore important that you are active and consciously thinking about moving your eyes and looking far ahead of the car. Doing this also makes it easier to plan your driving.

Check the mirrors
Do not forget to check the rear-view mirror and side mirrors, as well as your vehicle's blind spot, before moving the car sideways.

Forget mistakes
Do not give up just because you make a mistake or two. The fact that you have taken a wrong turn or took too long to parallel park does not necessarily mean that you will fail the test. Do what you can to correct the mistake in the best possible way and continue driving calmly and defensively.

Do not give up!
Do not give up if you fail either – learn from your mistakes and book a new test as soon as possible. The feeling once you get your driver's licence is incredible and something you will remember for the rest of your life. So, do not give up – you will succeed!

The moment you pass the test and get your licence is amazing!

Tips from driving test examiner

In order to give you the greatest possible chance of passing your driving test, we have asked former driving test examiner Rune Wåhlin from Uppkörningsbloggen to share his best tips, based on his experiences from assessing more than 5,500 driving tests.

20 quick tips for the driving test

1. Choose when to look at the speedometer with care. It is quite common, but not at all appropriate, for candidates to look at the speedometer in critical traffic situations – for example, before pedestrian crossings, obscured junctions etc.


2. Do not slow down too early before turning, whether on a country road or in city traffic, as this only obstructs the traffic behind you.


3. Do not complicate things, keep it simple. The driving test examiner wants simple solutions to the tasks you are given during the driving test.


4. Do not "nag" about how nervous you are. If it makes you feel good to mention it, say it just once. The examiner is not positively affected by you saying it over and over again.


5. Move your head and eyes, but do not overdo it! The head and eye movements themselves do not impress the examiner. What impresses him or her is that you know when to move your head and eyes.


6. Do not fix your eyes to the right at junctions where the priority to the right rule applies, it is equally important to look left. This is of course true at all junctions.


7. Skip gears when appropriate, but choose the right opportunities. For example, skipping to a high gear while entering a motorway via an acceleration lane is not recommended.


8. Do not slow down excessively before passing a level crossing. Only slow down to give yourself enough time to check both ways and then pass the level crossing without delay.


9. Do not speed through yellow lights in order to pass the traffic lights before the signal changes to red. That is like asking to fail the driving test.


10. Do not stop and force people to cross the street. Learn to read what pedestrians want and where they are going. If they do not want to cross, proceed with caution.


11. If the driving test examiner asks you to check the power steering during the safety check, it is not enough to just turn the steering wheel a little while starting the engine. You must turn the steering wheel all the way in both directions.


12. When checking the foot brake during the safety check, it is not enough to just push the brake pedal repeatedly and then feel the brake pedal move downward slightly when you start the engine. You must also test the brakes to ensure that they are working. The parking brake is not checked by simply pulling the lever and releasing it again.


13. If you fail to give way when you have a duty to do so or drive faster than the maximum permitted speed, the error will not be erased just because you tell the driving test examiner about your mistake.


14. Whatever it is, learn the reason why you should do it. The driving test examiner can tell if you do something without really understanding why.


15. If you neglect to follow the speed limit while practice driving, it will show during your driving test. It is difficult to hide bad habits you have acquired.


16. Do not roll towards junctions with the clutch pressed down. This causes you to miss an important part of what is called economical driving.


17. Do not drive as if you are alone on the road. Remember that everything you do in traffic has consequences for other road users.


18. If the test examiner asks you to turn at a certain place, you should do so. It's not a trap!


19. Do not drive above the permitted speed limit when overtaking. You are not allowed to drive too fast even if you are overtaking another vehicle.


20. If you catch up with a vehicle ahead that is driving slower than you, you should plan to overtake it if the situation permits.

The most common errors on driving tests

1. Inadequate scanning routines
2. Lack of interaction
3. Inadequate understanding of the context
4. Lack of planning

Inadequate scanning routines

By inadequate scanning routines, I do not only when you should scan traffic, but also how and why. It is common that candidates turn their heads at various traffic situations without really understanding why they do it and how they should act after doint it. A not too rare occurrence is when the candidate is about to change lanes and therefore looks in the side mirror and over the shoulder, notes that there are road users there, but nevertheless starts changing lanes anyway. When I thought about why they did that, it struck me that they did not understand the reason for scanning. They have learned a routine, which in itself is good, but which becomes useless if they do not know what to do next. Always learn the reason and the purpose for learning these routines.

Tips from the test examiner! Something that gives you an advantage in traffic is if you learn what a so called double look is. A double look is when you have scanned traffic before, for example, entering a roundabout, and then take a quick extra look just before proceeding into the roundabout. This technique can be applied in many different traffic situations.

Lack of interaction

Lack of interaction is when the candidate is unable to work together with other road users. The candidate cannot reconcile his own behavior in traffic with that of others. They do not speak the same language. For the interaction in traffic to work, the signals that others give and those you give yourself must work together.

The primary ways of communicating in traffic are with speed and positioning. The vehicle's speed signals whether the driver intends to stop or not at junctions etc. The positioning of the vehicle is what tells other road users where the driver is going. That is why it is so important that both your speed and your positioning are as clear as possible.

Inadequate understanding of the context

Inadequate understanding of the context might sound a bit fuzzy, but I will explain what I mean. When someone takes advantage of a gap in traffic and drives onto another road, but does not accelerate to a speed that is adapted to the other traffic, it tells you that that driver has not understood the context. The driver has only himself or herself in mind and completely forgets the other road users. This is usually called that they do not understand the consequences of their actions. Do not forget your fellow road users and that you as a driver are part of a whole. Traffic is a team sport, where fellow road users are on the same team as you. Sometimes I get the impression that candidates feel that other road users are opponents to be defeated, which, of course, is a totally wrong way of thinking.

Lack of planning

Lack of planning is what test examiners call "anticipate and judge" (förutse och bedöma). To plan is to think ahead. This takes practice to work well. It also requires that you have good control of the car so that you can focus on other things. If you lack good planning, you will become an obstacle and a danger to your fellow road users: when they expect you to keep driving forward, you suddenly and unexpectedly stop. This is the explanation for a large number of rear-end collision accidents.

It is usually obvious when a candidate do not know how to plan properly when they arrive at, for example, a junction or a roundabout. Instead of scanning traffic early and planning how to proceed, they end up stopping directly before the junction or roundabout - even if there is no traffic there.