How long after the theory test can the practical be taken?

When does the month start counting?

From the issue of the foglio rosa, not from the day of the theory test. Article 121, paragraph 8, of the Codice della Strada says the practical test cannot be taken until one month has passed from the date the authorisation to practise was issued. The two dates are usually close, but the difference matters when issue is delayed. The month is a legal minimum meant for practice and cannot be waived.

What is the outer limit?

The expiry of the foglio rosa, twelve months after issue. All practical attempts have to fit inside that window, at most three under article 121, paragraph 11. The page of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport sums it up this way: three practical attempts in eleven months, starting from the month after the foglio rosa is issued.

Anyone arriving close to the deadline risks having no room for a second or third attempt, because at least a month must pass after each failed test and the date is set by the office, not by the candidate.

What is needed before booking the first test?

Three things, according to the ministry page on obtaining the category B licence. The certificate of the compulsory driving school lessons: at least six hours under the 2012 decree, eight under decree no. 294 of 2025 for the fogli rosa it covers. The receipt of the PagoPA payment of the N019 tariff, 16.00 euro in stamp duty. A category B vehicle able to exceed 100 km/h and fitted with dual controls. The booking has to be made no later than the fifth day before the test (article 121, paragraph 11). The compulsory lessons are required by article 122, paragraph 5 bis, and the vehicle by article 121, paragraph 9.

How long is the real wait for a slot?

It depends on the province and no official national figure exists. The Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport publishes exam outcomes, not waiting times, so any figure in days has to come from the driving school or the local Motorizzazione Civile counter. Differences between areas are wide and shift through the year, for example in the summer months.

What happens if the test comes too early or too late?

The two situations cause different problems. Two concrete cases.

If a candidate in Padua passes the theory on 3 May, receives the foglio rosa on 10 May and is offered a test on 5 June, that date is not allowed: the month counts from the issue of the foglio rosa, so the first valid date is 10 June (article 121, paragraph 8, of the Codice della Strada).

A candidate in Catania receives her foglio rosa in January and books the first test in October. She fails. The second comes in mid November and also goes badly. A third would need at least another month, but the foglio rosa expires in January: if the office has no date before expiry, the third attempt is lost and the remaining route is the riporto of the theory onto a new foglio rosa, which can be requested only once.

Is one month of practice enough?

One month is the legal minimum, but it is a time limit, not a measure of readiness. In 2025, 83.82 per cent of the 734,553 category B practical tests ended in a pass according to the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, with marked differences between offices: from 60.94 per cent in Sassari to 99.43 per cent in Enna. The figure counts tests sat, not people, and the values are on the statistics page.

Someone who arrives at the first test able to handle manoeuvres, junctions and city traffic keeps all three attempts intact. The manoeuvres asked are described on the page about test manoeuvres.

Legal source: Articoli 121 e 122 del Codice della Strada. The consolidated text of the Codice della Strada is on Normattiva.