L17 – applying for a driving licence

General information

Before starting driving lessons, candidates must submit a driving licence application to a driving school under the ‘early permission to drive category B vehicles’ scheme (B licence at 17, ‘L17’). This can be done at any driving school, so long as it is in Austria.

Although the application is submitted to a driving school, the procedure for issuing a licence falls under the responsibility of the driving licence authority in whose district the driving school in question is located.

Once a driving licence application has been submitted, the candidate can start basic training at a driving school. Applicants may only submit an application to carry out on-road training once they have completed the basic training. The conditions to be met by persons wishing to supervise a learner driver can also be found at oesterreich.gv.at.

Requirements

• Minimum age: 15 years and 6 months
• Nomination of one or two supervisors who will be responsible for supervising the applicant during on-road training
• If the on-road training supervisor is not the applicant’s legal guardian, the latter’s written permission is required
• Medical certificate

Competent authority

For applications: a driving school (→WKO)^{German Text}

Procedure

At the driving school, the applicant’s personal information is entered directly in the driving licence register.

It is recommended to check the printout provided by the driving school to make sure your details are correct, so that no incorrect information appears on your driving licence. The printout must be signed.

Required documents

When applying at a driving school:

• Official photo ID of the applicant (e.g. passport, ID card)
• Where possible, confirmation of registration of the applicant in the civil register (facilitates processing at the driving school (→ WKO))

Upon request, the confirmation of registration can be obtained by the driving licence authority via a search in the Central Civil Register (ZMR).

For data protection reasons, the medical certificate should be submitted directly to the competent authority by post or in person before starting driving lessons, and at the latest before taking the driving test.

By the time of the theory test at the latest:

• One photo (portrait, 35 mm x 45 mm) in which the applicant is clearly recognisable (if possible in line with passport photo criteria)

By the time of enrolment on the waiting list for the practical test at the latest:

• Proof of completion of a 6-hour emergency life-saving training course (first aid course)

Costs and fees

The costs vary depending on the driving school (→ WKO)^{German Text}

Legal basis

• Führerscheingesetz (FSG)
• Führerscheingesetz-Durchführungsverordnung (FSG-DV)
• Fahrprüfungsverordnung (FSG-PV)
• Führerscheingesetz-Gesundheitsverordnung (FSG-GV)