Category B reform 2026: minimum training duration and new practical checks

The Category B reform launched by the 2025 and 2026 decrees deeply changes candidate training. The Interior Ministry has issued new rules to standardise novice drivers level, reduce young driver accidents and adapt the licence to ecological transition challenges. For candidates enrolled in 2026, several novelties apply: minimum training duration, mandatory road safety modules, digital tracking of hours done. Here is what to remember.

Minimum training duration: new threshold

Previously, Category B practical training required 20 driving hours minimum, 13 on manual gearbox. The 2026 decree keeps this threshold but adds quality conditions: these hours must cover at least 4 different traffic conditions (city, road, motorway, night) and 3 weather environments (dry, rain, degraded). An hour done without varied conditions cannot count toward the legal 20. The school must certify this diversity via the digital booklet.

New digital training booklet

Since 2026, the paper training booklet is replaced by a digital booklet accessible on each school student space. This booklet logs every hour: date, duration, conditions, skills worked, instructor electronic signature. The candidate can check progress in real time and the school shares it with the examiner on test day. This traceability aims to prevent abuses (fake hours, rushed training) and protect the candidate.

Mandatory road safety modules

The reform introduces 4 short theory modules to follow alongside traditional theory: alcohol/drug risk awareness (45 minutes), fatigue and drowsy driving prevention (30 minutes), sharing the road with vulnerable users (45 minutes), eco-driving and environmental impact (30 minutes). These can be done in-person or e-learning, validated by a quiz. Without validating the 4 modules, the candidate cannot take the practical exam.

Reform rationale

Per ONISR 2025, young drivers 18-24 represent a disproportionate share of fatal accidents (3 260 deaths total in 2025). Main identified factors are speed, alcohol or drug consumption, distraction (phone) and fatigue. The reform targets these causes directly via the new modules. The goal is to cut fatal accidents among 18-24 by 20 percent by 2030. First evaluations will publish late 2027.

Supervised driving and free candidate

Supervised driving remains accessible and keeps its framework: 1 year minimum, 1 000 km recommended. But it now integrates the digital booklet and imposes a mid-course review meeting with the instructor. The free candidate, preparing without a school, is not removed but obligations are strengthened: they must declare an official supervisor to the prefecture, provide a logbook with detailed hours, and pass a prior level assessment before exam registration. Free candidates pass rate remains lower than school candidates.

New practical checks on test day

The practical exam keeps its 32 minute duration but now includes an eco-driving question (for example: at what speed should you shift to optimise consumption), and a risk simulation (for example: what do you do if you see smoke from the bonnet). These additions rate the ability to react beyond classic situations. They are not eliminating but count in the overall grid. The 20/31 threshold remains unchanged.

Cost and candidate impact

The reform brings a slight rise in total training cost: between 50 and 100 extra euros for theory modules, and a possible 10 to 15 euro per hour surcharge for specific conditions (night, organised rain). The average package goes from about 1 200 euros to 1 300 in 2026. In return, figures show pass rate improvement (around 62 percent versus 60 before reform), possibly cutting the need for extra hours. The financial balance is mixed.

Application calendar

New rules apply since January 2026 for candidates enrolled from that date. Candidates already in training as of December 31 2025 continue under the old regime until their exam, unless the school switches them to the new track. The system will be evaluated every 18 months by a Road Safety committee. If accident indicators are satisfactory, the minimum duration could rise to 25 hours in 2028, but this remains to confirm.