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How to get your Driving Licence in Spain – Theory Exam (1/2)

Getting your driving licence in any country is a pretty scary thought but how on earth do you go about getting it in a foreign country, especially one where you may not even speak the language! 🤔 Well I can tell you that in Spain it’s possible and you can even study in English!

At some point you will have to find yourself a driving school and really, one which speaks English! For the practical lessons it’s not necessary to be fluent in Spanish as the directions are often simple, however for the theory exam, it could be a bit problematic if you don’t speak Spanish.🇪🇸

How to get started with your driving theory

First you need to decide whether you prefer to pass your theory test with a driving school as part of a full package including practical classes OR whether you’d rather simply study on your own and then when you’re ready, book the theory test with the DGT (official traffic company in Spain) yourself. My advice: if you’re not 100% sure what you’re doing or don’t have all the available material to study, get a package offer with a driving school as it makes your life 100% easier and you can still study at home using online tests or a book which they will provide.

I personally passed my theory driving test in Mallorca in 2017 with a driving school that had the option for English classes, English books and an English exam: Autoescuela express. They have 5 schools around Palma and one of the only schools with everything available in English. Although they have many offices, the one where they speak English is based in Santa Catalina Carrer d’Anníbal, 36.

Theory test in Spain

Well, you’ll be pleased to know that DGT offers theory exams in English, therefore to practice, you can choose one of the following:

  1. Find a school which provides you with theory lessons/books/practice exams & everything else
  2. Buy a book and study yourself
  3. Register to an online theory test practice website which has English exam practice tests.

In the end I bought a full package with the school which included a book, access to online tests to do at home and classes in the school ( I didn’t actually go to any of those😳) and I passed my theory first time, wooo! âš¡

My Tip: There are a few websites which offer theory practise tests for free and you’ll be pleased to know it’s in English too.

What you need to pass your theory driving test

  • NIE/Passport
  • Spanish residency (which is proved with your NIE)
  • 2 passport photos
  • Medical test (around 30€ or included in a package)
  • Theory test (can cost around 50€ or included in package)

In total I paid around 175€ for passing my theory test including everything I needed to study. Although I passed my exam about 3 months after registering, I spent about 1/2 weeks studying until I was ready for my exam. And by that I mean in the evenings after work and some weekends as I had a full time job. I’d say in general its cheaper than in the UK. Unless you fail the first time then it can get a bit more expensive 😉

Next time I will write about how to pass your practical driving test in Spain, once I’ve managed to get it myself. I’ll keep you posted! 🙂 If you have any questions about passing your theory driving test in Spain do leave a comment and I’ll try to help you out as best I can! Buena Suerte a todos!

P.S. If you’re looking for a way to renew your foreign driving licence in Spain check this article. And if you’ve also passed your theory/driving test in Spain, how was it? 🙂

 

Psst! New – take a look at how to pass your practical driving test in Spain!

51 thoughts on “How to get your Driving Licence in Spain – Theory Exam (1/2)”

  1. Hi I hope you are fine and firstly I really thnakful to you for posting such informative material about driving license. I have a question can you tell me about the websirltes name or link that provide free theory notes or matelias. I am thankful to you.
    Regards
    Ali

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  2. Hi
    Thanks for your information. Do you know how can I have a driving license book? I live in Sweden but plan to have a exam in Spain. English school can not send me to Sweden. I do not know how does the book look like to search in other store. Could you give me more information about the book?

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  3. hi.there..i have already studied from practica test and gave theory exam and its my 5th time now..i failed 4 times..the questions whick comes in exam are a way different from.those present in the practicatest..plz can u guide me with a more reliabe book and website.
    thanks

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  4. Hello thanks a lot for all u said I really wana have this license but how can I get this book and also how many Queations do they have in this book that I have to learn all

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    1. Hi,

      I got the book from a driving school called autoescuela express however this is only in Mallorca.

      I’d recommend registering with a driving school as they can help with a book, practise tests, organising the exam itself and preparing the medical test which you will also need.

      Thanks

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      Reply

  5. Hi
    I want to give theory test in English . please tell me which is best site for study at home without any school.i live in Spain.

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    1. Hi Ana,

      I took a few extra lessons that normally needed as the examers were on strike last summer so I had to wait a while for the exam… I’d say I spent around 900 but you could do it for 700 euros if you dont need extra classes.

      Hope that answers your question

      Alice

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  7. I have been looking for a while and canf seem to fund anythinf about my wuestion but, how mant questions are you allowed to get wrong in the theory test?

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    1. Hi Phoenix, you-re allowed to get 3 wrong in the theory test. There are 30 in total

      Hope that helps

      Alice

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  9. hi, i have registered in a driving school, however they provided me only 15 tests in English, they told me just study them and go to pass the test since there is not a lot of things in an english test! however i studied them in two days what do you think about what they are saying?

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    1. Hi,

      15 seems like not too many. I think you would definitely have to study with a book or go to classes as well as only do 15 practice tests. Can you ask them for another form of studying as well as those 15?

      Alice

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    1. Hello, Yes it’s possible to do it in English, I did my theory test in English and my practical lessons too and it was fine. I’m not sure what you mean by CAP?

      Thanks

      Alice

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      1. Hi
        Thanks got your response. I already have B type license . And now i want to do C type license which is for bus license. And for that it also include CAP ( certificado aptitud profesional ) which is a thueratical and in Spanish. Is it possible to this in English both C practical and CAP.
        Thanks

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      2. Hi,

        I am a bit confused.On the second article regarding this issue you stated that your written test was in english while the driving test was in spanish. Now instead I understand that both tests were in english ( theory & driving ). I do not speak spanish and for me it would be impossible to pass the driving test if the instructor speaks only spanish.

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      3. Hi, The driving test was in Spanish but it was very simple directions such as
        Go left
        Go right
        Follow signs for XX

        And things like that. My driving teacher gave me a sheet of these translations before the exam and it was very easy to understand.

        Thanks

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  12. Hello 🙂

    I was going through the comments and saw that another person said that he went for the test 5 times and already failed 4 times after studying on Practicatest because according to him, the questions are really different.. (website VS actual exam)

    Now I’m a bit worried as practicatest is my only source of learning (got their book too…) Do you have any other info about this ?

    Thanks a lot in advance.

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    1. Hello!

      I didn’t personally use practicatest myself but I did a few different things such as trying various websites, buying the official book from a driving school and also going to some classes. I think if you try to do as much different tests as you can with different companies I think that’s best

      Alice

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    2. Hi, did you pass your theory exam? were the questions the same like at PracticaTest? I hope for your reply so much

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      1. Hey Julia,
        The questions will always vary for every test, they are never exactly the same but PracticaTest is good to get an idea. The best thing to do is practice as many variations as you can and study a bit.

        Thanks

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    1. Hi,

      It depends if you’re going with a driving school or on your own. I paid 27€ for the exam and it would have been the same if I had to retake it.

      Thanks

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  14. Hi, thank you for all you information, very helpful.

    How many questions are in the theory test and is it just multiple choice or is there the vision test too?

    Many thanks
    Kaia

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    1. Hi! The theory test has 30 questions and you can fail 3 maximum.

      It is all multiple choice, which makes it slightly easier

      Alice

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  15. Hi! Thanks for the info. I’m American living in Spain and have been driving automatic cars for 15 years. I want to get my Spanish license. I found schools offering automatic cars and exam prep in English. However, the practical driving portion is not offered in Spanish according to these schools. When it comes time to take the driving part of exam with the DGT, is it possible to request that in English? Or does this all go through the school, and I do that part in Spanish? I understand a lot, but I am not fluent. Thanks!

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    1. Hi! I went to have my lessons with a driving school in English (I guess it depends on the school if they offer English or not) I had to have the final exam in Spanish, but you honestly don’t need to know much.

      The examiner asks very simple questions like, go left when you can, turn right, park here, head towards…. etc. So I honeslty wouldn’t worry 🙂

      Alice

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  16. The autoescuela that I have registered in, is so so bad, they provided me only 10 exams to study, and I went to pass my theory exam in one week, well it was a disaster, even the English in the exam was so bad I couldn’t even understand what they are saying. However, I’m passing my exam in Barcelona, please help me to find a great question bank that I can study and go pass my exam, this theory is making me crazy, I was driving for more than 15 years, and I drove in Barcelona for 3 years with an international carnet, now they are asking me to get the Spanish one and they told me we can’t exchange your current one since it is from Dubai.

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    2. hey! I am in similar situation! Moved from Dubai two months ago and joined a Driving school. The theory tests are driving me totally nuts! The English is so bad that i cant even understand what theyre trying to ask!

      How/where did you do your theory? I have just 10 days to sit for theory test! What is the best bang to crack this theory?

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  17. I am a Brit, living in USA for a while now. Wanting to move to Barcelona. Can I bring my USA car over? Can I use my british license or usa license for a while?

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    1. Hi Nita, You can bring your car over here and drive with a foreign license temporarily but eventually (usually after 5 years) you will have to get a Spanish license if you want to continue driving here

      Thanks

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  18. Thank you for sharing! Can I ask one question? Which English theory book do you recommend to buy? I am considering buying the package at Practicatest including paper book and online access but I don’t know if it is worthy ..

    I will be grateful if you can give some your advice. Thank you!

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    1. Hi,

      I’ve never used this website but I think having practise tests and a book together is a good option. I would go with that just check some reviews

      Thanks

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  20. Hi, thanks for sharing such usefull information it really helped a lot to clear some points. As you said there is a possibilty to do the test in english also. Could please state some theory book names in english which i can buy without having to register with a school, as i want to do study on my own.
    Thanks again

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  21. Hi, thank you so much for the information
    Can you please Kindly inform how to apply for the theory test in English in Barcelona? where to go? how long does it take? thanks

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  23. Hi everyone,

    I had been surfing the web and had found an english speaking driving school, well this is what hey say on the web:

    Driving School Barcelona is an english speaking driving school located in Barcelona and dedicated to offering classroom based theory classes and private driving lessons for the english speaking community of Barcelona.

    Here is a link to there web in case you want to check it out.
    https://www.driving-school-barcelona.com

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