Category B practical test: manoeuvring area and traffic tasks

The category B practical test has three tasks on the manoeuvring area (preparing to drive with a technical check, driving a lane forwards and in reverse, moving off on a hill) and at least 40 minutes in traffic. You take it after passing theory. You fail after two errors in the same task or if the test is stopped.

Who can take the category B practical test

You can take the practical part only after passing the theory test (Act on Vehicle Drivers (ustawa o kierujących pojazdami), art. 52(1)). A passed theory test does not expire. You book at WORD (Wojewódzki Ośrodek Ruchu Drogowego, the regional driving test centre), via info-car.pl or the info-kierowca.pl portal, giving your PKK number (Profil Kandydata na Kierowcę, the driver candidate profile).

The fee for the category B practical part in the Mazovia region is 229.99 zł (PLN) (as of September 2026). Details and ways to book are in our text on test fees and booking in 2026.

On the day of the test you must show a valid identity document: an ID card, a passport, a residence card or a document in the mObywatel app. Anyone under 18 also needs written consent from a parent or guardian. If you have not taken the theory test yet, start with our description of what the theory test looks like.

How the test begins: identity, rules, introductions

Before you get into the car, the examiner carries out several steps described in the regulation on driving tests (§ 26):

1. Confirms your identity from your document and checks that your details match the list of people admitted to the test.
2. If an instructor or an interpreter is with you, checks their documents as well.
3. Makes sure you understand the rules for conducting the test.
4. Introduces themselves and, when the test is recorded, gives their first name and surname so that they are captured on the recording.
5. Checks that you meet the conditions set by the restriction codes in your medical certificate (for example glasses or contact lenses).

The practical part is recorded.

Three tasks on the manoeuvring area

For category B, table 1 of the annex to the regulation provides for three tasks. You do them in this order.

We describe the technical check only briefly here: the system draws one item from the list of fluids (oil, coolant, brake fluid, washer fluid) or the horn, plus one of the lights. It is enough to point out where and how the level is checked. The full description, with a table of where everything is in the car, is in our article on vehicle checks in the driving test.

Driving the lane starts with starting the engine and switching on the lights, if they do not come on by themselves. You assess the situation around the car, release the parking brake and let the clutch out gently. You drive forwards, stop in the marked box, then reverse, looking through the rear window and in the mirrors. The inner lines of the stopping box do not count as an error for category B; the outer lines of the bay do.

On the hill you stop the car, apply or activate the parking brake and move off forwards while releasing it. The car must not roll back more than 0.2 m, and the engine must not stall.

What ends the test immediately on the manoeuvring area

The regulation (§ 12(2)) lists the situations after which you do not go on to the traffic part:

• driving a wheel over the line marking the outer edge of the bay,
• driving onto a cone or pole, or knocking one over,
• performing the same task from table 1 incorrectly twice.

When task 1 is repeated, the examiner assesses only the parts you previously did wrong or skipped.

Tasks in traffic: the full list

Table 6 of the annex lists the tasks the examiner sets depending on the route and the situation on the road. For category B they are:

• joining traffic,
• driving on two-way single-carriageway and dual-carriageway roads with different numbers of lanes, with bends, hills and changes of speed limit,
• driving on one-way roads,
• passing through uncontrolled junctions, junctions with priority signs (A-7, B-20, D-1 and the T-6a, T-6c plates), junctions with traffic lights and junctions with traffic circulating around an island,
• passing through an interchange, tram and railway tracks and a tunnel, if available near the test centre,
• passing pedestrian crossings and driving past tram and bus stops,
• one parking manoeuvre and turning around on a two-way single-carriageway road,
• overtaking and passing an obstacle (where possible), passing oncoming traffic, changing lanes,
• turning right, turning left, making a U-turn at a junction,
• braking to a stop at an indicated point (may be on the manoeuvring area), emergency braking (optional for category B),
• changing gear for economical driving and engine braking.

The examiner gives instructions on the direction of travel or a specific task. They must not contradict the rules or create danger (§ 27(3)).

Parking and turning around: variants and rules

In traffic you perform one of three parking manoeuvres. The examiner points out the spot, and in each variant you are allowed one correction of your line.

A failed parking attempt does not end the test: the examiner can point out another spot, and when there is nowhere to repeat it, allows a different variant instead. Only the second error in the same task gives a negative result.

You turn around on a two-way single-carriageway road using reverse gear and the available infrastructure: a gateway, a driveway, an access road or a lay-by. The examiner chooses the spot.

Economical driving, engine braking and stopping

The regulation specifies how to change gear for category B: you shift up when the engine reaches 1800 to 2600 revolutions per minute, and the first four gears should be engaged before the car reaches 50 km/h. Engine braking, meaning using engine torque to slow down, is a separate task.

The examiner may set braking to a stop at an indicated point on the centre's manoeuvring area. Emergency braking remains optional for category B.

How long the category B practical test lasts

The minimum driving time in traffic for category B is 40 minutes (table 7). Add to that the part on the manoeuvring area, for which the regulation gives only the 5-minute limit for the technical check.

There is one exception: the examiner may end the test after 25 minutes if you have completed all the required tasks and the result is positive (§ 23(1)(3)).

When the result is negative and when the examiner stops the test

You get a negative result (§ 28) in three situations:

1. You performed the same task in traffic incorrectly twice.
2. The test was stopped: because of danger, at your request or for the reasons described in the Act.
3. One of the circumstances from § 12(2) occurred on the manoeuvring area (outer line, cone, two errors).

Behaviour that may lead to the test being stopped is listed in table 9. Examples: causing a collision or a situation threatening a collision, failing to give way to a pedestrian on a crossing, ignoring traffic lights or a stop sign, exceeding the speed limit by more than 20 km/h.

Since 3 March 2026 a new wording of art. 52(2) of the Act on Vehicle Drivers has been in force. The test may be ended before all the tasks are completed when the candidate's behaviour could endanger the life or health of the examiner or another road user, or directly affects traffic safety.

You learn about every error straight away. The examiner names the task in which the error occurred (§ 27(6)). After the first remark you carry on driving; our text on driving test nerves suggests how to handle that during the test.

What the examiner pays particular attention to

The regulation (§ 27(9)) lists six areas of assessment:

• how you perform manoeuvres on the road,
• your behaviour towards other road users,
• your ability to assess potential or actual dangers,
• how effectively you react when a danger arises,
• how you use the vehicle's controls,
• ensuring the safety of all road users, especially the most vulnerable, by showing them due respect.

What happens after the test: debrief and result sheet

Immediately after the test ends, the examiner goes through the result with you in detail and, if it is negative, gives the reasons. An instructor or interpreter who is present takes part in the debrief. You receive the completed record sheet for the practical part (§ 28(2)).

After a pass, WORD sends the result to the office. The day you gain your entitlement is the day you pass the test, and a temporary electronic driving licence valid for up to 30 days appears in mObywatel. How to pay the 100 zł for the document and when to collect it is covered in our article on collecting your driving licence and the temporary e-licence.

After a fail you book another date and pay again.

The test vehicle and the people in the car

As standard you drive a WORD vehicle. For categories AM, A1, A2, A, B and B+E you may, at your own request and expense, take the test in a car belonging to the driving school that trained you (the Act, art. 53(4a)). The OSK (ośrodek szkolenia kierowców, driving school) car must have a recording device.

During the drive in traffic (§ 18(3)), apart from you and the examiner, the following people may be in the car:

• an instructor taking part in the test,
• a sworn interpreter, whom you arrange yourself if your Polish is not good enough for the test,
• a sign language interpreter (WORD provides one free of charge under art. 56(7) of the Act),
• a supervising examiner, trainee examiners with their lecturer, supervisory staff from the marshal's office, the director of the centre.

Practical test pass rates: figures with a caveat

At WORD Warszawa Odlewnicza in 2025, 34.12% of attempts at the category B practical part were successful (12 248 attempts), according to RankingOSK. That is data from one large centre, not a nationwide statistic.

The best thing you can do before the test is simple: drive the routes around WORD with your instructor and perform every task from the list above at least once, naming each step out loud as you go.