How to apply for a driving license in the UK? How to get a driving license in the UK? How to change your license in the UK?

A British driving license , known in the UK as a British Driving License , is a document that offers many tangible benefits. Not only does it give you a sense of independence and allows you to get to your destination faster, saving you a lot of time, it is also highly desirable in the job market. People living in the UK who do not have a driver’s license naturally have questions – how to get a driver’s license in the UK and whether it is possible to do it in Ukrainian without knowing the language. In this guide, we explain what you need to do to start studying, what exams you need to pass and how much the whole process will cost.

How much does a driving license cost in the UK?

The cost of getting a driving license in the UK is significantly different from the typical Ukrainian driving school. Moreover, you must meet several conditions before you can receive a permit to study – not to mention the theoretical and practical driving test .

To start your training you will need a provisional driving licence, which in the UK is called a Provisional Driving Licence . To get one, in addition to the age and health requirements we describe later in this guide, you must apply. If you do this online there will be a fee of £34, payable by credit or debit card. You can also apply by post – the fee is slightly higher at £43.

Once you have your provisional driving licence, you can start learning to drive. As for driving licences in England , Wales and Scotland, unlike in Ukraine, for example, there is no minimum number of hours you must drive. So you can buy just a few or a few dozen – depending on how quickly you learn and how confident you feel behind the wheel. The cost of an hour starts at around £23, so you can pay from £100 to over £1,000 if you decide to sign up for more hours.

However, you can avoid the cost of lessons altogether if your instructor is a friend or family member who is at least 21 years old and has had a driver’s license for at least 3 years. In this case, they act as the instructor and ride with you as a passenger. The only costs here are related to the operation of the car – so it’s a great way to slowly and thoroughly learn the car and learn the rules of the road in practice.

The final stage is to register and take the theory and practical test. The first will cost you £23 and the second £62. You may have to add the cost of re-testing if you don’t pass the first time. How much does a driving licence cost in the UK ? Comparing all the costs with the system you know from Ukraine, if you want to spend as many hours there as you need (minimum 30), the entire driving course, including the tests, will cost you around £800 in the UK.

How to pass a driving test in the UK without knowing the language?

Starting to learn to drive and pass the driving test in the UK without knowing the language may seem like an overwhelming task. But nothing could be further from the truth! As we mentioned earlier, numerous educational materials and tests that can be completed on a computer come in handy. They are standardly in English, but are also accompanied by a Polish translation. Thanks to this, you will have no problems understanding the task and answering the questions correctly.

So, what does the UK driving test look like? To join it, you need to follow these steps:

Get a temporary driving licence, which in the UK is called a Provisional Driving License . The one-off cost is £34 if you apply online; if you apply by post, you will need to pay £43;
Once you have your provisional driving licence, you can start learning to drive. In England, Wales and Scotland there is no minimum number of hours you need to drive. So you can buy just a few of them if you learn quickly enough. You can also drive under the supervision of a friend or family member who is over 21 and has held a driving licence for at least 3 years – this way you will avoid additional costs;
Once you feel confident, you must take the theory and practical exams, which cost £23 and £62 respectively.

After successfully passing the theoretical and practical exams, you will be able to drive a car and get a driver’s license.

How to start getting a driving license in the UK?

Driving licenses in the UK are not reserved only for citizens of England, Wales or Scotland – of course, foreigners can also apply for them. However, there are a number of conditions that must be met. The main criteria are:

17 years and older. Although you can apply for a provisional driver’s license as young as 16, you must be 17 to actually start driving;
A fairly long period of stay in the UK. To start driving lessons, you must have been in the UK for at least 185 days;
Adequate health. A person applying for a driving license cannot have a visual defect exceeding 0.5 diopters – if he or she has a defect exceeding this value, he or she must wear contact lenses or glasses. He or she must also not suffer from certain neurological diseases that may interfere with driving, such as uncontrolled seizures or epilepsy.

Once you, as a prospective driver, meet the above requirements regarding age, UK residency and health, you can start applying for a UK driving licence. The first step is to obtain the aforementioned provisional driving licence. You can apply online or by post. The former is cheaper as it will cost you £34 and the latter £43.

Once you have your provisional driving licence, you can start learning to drive. Unlike courses in Ukraine, there is no minimum number of hours you must travel in the UK – you can buy as many hours as you like. What’s more, you don’t have to spend money on lessons at all, as you can simply ride with a friend or family member who meets certain requirements, such as:

Your friendly instructor must be 21 years of age or older;
a permit to drive the vehicle you are learning to drive. In addition, you must have held a driver’s license for at least 3 years.

Once you have completed the required number of hours, you will need to sit for the theory test, which will cost you £23. It is divided into parts:

In the first, you need to answer 50 multiple-choice questions. For each answer, you can get 1 point – a total of 50 points;
In the second part, you will have to test your threat perception. You will watch 14 videos during which you have to point out potential dangers on the road. Here you can earn 75 points.

To pass the theory test you need to score 43 and 44 points on both tests respectively. You can then book a date for the practical test, which costs £65. When you go to the test, don’t forget to bring your provisional driving licence and your theory test result – you won’t be able to pass it without these documents.

An interesting fact about driving lessons in the UK is that you can take your practical test in a car provided by the examiner or in your own car. In the latter case, of course, it must meet certain requirements, but this is a significant improvement compared to, for example, the test in Ukraine – driving in a familiar car will definitely be less stressful!

If you successfully pass the practical exam, you will be able to start driving a car on your own.

Is it difficult to pass the driving test in England?

As with all tests (not just driving tests), the difficulty of passing a driving test in the UK is a very individual matter. Furthermore, the lack of a minimum number of hours required to pass the test can certainly affect the level of difficulty. A driver who has spent 10 hours behind the wheel will prepare differently than someone who has been driving regularly with a family member for the past six months and knows the car like the back of their hand.

The level of difficulty is certainly increased by the left-hand traffic that exists in the UK and is not used in other European countries. This will be a particularly big problem for people who have had the opportunity to participate in right-hand traffic – for example, as a cyclist or moped rider. Here you will need to constantly monitor yourself so as not to change lanes to another – this will lead to the fact that you will immediately fail the practical test.

For many, the language barrier can also be a problem. As we mentioned earlier, in England, Wales and Scotland you can no longer take the exam in Polish – it is only available in English or Welsh. Fortunately, there is no shortage of study materials and tests on the market that are available in English, but with a Polish translation. Thanks to this, you will be able to familiarize yourself in detail with all the questions that may later appear on the exam and easily remember their correct solutions.

If we look at the statistics, the UK ranks around 15th-16th in terms of how difficult it is to pass a driving test. The big advantage here is that if you fail, all you have to do is wait the statutory number of days and pay a fee to retake the test.

Where is it easier to get a driver’s license ?

The undoubted advantage of preparing for the exam in the UK is that after obtaining a provisional driving license, the student can learn driving techniques practically for free (minus operating costs). All he needs is a family member or a good friend over 21 years old, who has had a driving license for at least 3 years and a good car. He can act as an instructor while driving, which will allow you to study without stress.

Another thing that certainly makes getting a driving license in the UK easier is the ability to take your practical test in the car of your choice. Of course, it has to meet fairly strict standards before it is approved for this purpose. These requirements are:

All fees paid;
Valid insurance for test driving;
Current vehicle inspection (MOT);
There should be no warning lights on the dashboard;
Properly selected, unworn tires on all wheels;
No traces of cigarette smoke – smoking is prohibited before and during the exam;
The maximum weight of the vehicle cannot exceed 3.5 tons;
The car must accelerate to 62 mph (100 km/h).

At first glance, the above requirements may seem very strict, but most of them will be met by almost any car that is approved for use on the road. However, the option of taking the test in your own vehicle is worth the effort. If, in addition, the same car is used for many hours of driving lessons, this will significantly increase the chances of a positive result on the practical test – and will certainly reduce the level of stress.