How to book your driving test, and what it costs

Quick answer

• Book on GOV.UK yourself. Since 12 May 2026 only the learner can book, change, swap or cancel a car driving test, and it is against the law to book one for someone else.
• A car driving test costs £62 on weekdays and £75 on evenings, weekends and bank holidays. Tests from 4:30pm count as evening tests.
• New dates are released 24 weeks ahead, at 6am every Monday. There is no waiting list.
• You get 2 changes per booking, a change can only move your test to one of the 3 nearest test centres or back to the one you first booked at, and you need 10 full working days' notice to change or cancel without losing the fee.

The booking itself is quick. The rules around it changed three times between March and June 2026, and they matter more than the booking does: book in the wrong place or on the wrong date and you have fewer ways out than learners used to.

Who can book your driving test

Only you. Since 12 May 2026 your driving instructor is not allowed to book, change, swap or cancel your car driving test for you, and GOV.UK says it is against the law to book a car driving test for someone else. When you book, you confirm that you are the learner who will be taking the test.

Someone can still help you - a parent, or anyone who supports you - as long as you are with them while they do it, you do as many of the steps as you can yourself, and the email address and phone number on the booking are yours or ones you can easily get to.

What you need before you start

• Your UK driving licence number.
• A credit or debit card.
• A theory test pass. GOV.UK says you must usually have passed it before you book a car test.
• Your instructor's reference number, if you want the booking to check they are free. It is optional, but GOV.UK suggests using it.
• To have lived in England, Wales or Scotland for at least 185 days in the last 12 months before the day of your test.

GOV.UK also says to speak to your instructor before you book, to agree that you are ready. That conversation matters more than it used to, because you can no longer move a date as freely as learners could before 2026.

What the driving test costs

• Weekdays: £62.
• Evenings, weekends and bank holidays: £75. A test from 4:30pm onwards counts as an evening test.
• If you fail and want another test, you pay the full amount again.

Those are GOV.UK's prices. GOV.UK says unofficial websites usually charge more - and since 12 May 2026 nobody else is allowed to book or manage your test for you anyway.

When new test dates appear

GOV.UK adds new driving test appointments 24 weeks in advance and releases them at 6am every Monday. Earlier dates - sometimes called cancellation appointments - appear whenever another learner changes or cancels, at any time of the week. There is no waiting list or cancellation list to join.

Changing your test: two changes, nearby centres

Since 31 March 2026 you can make 2 changes to a car test booking. A change is a new date or time, a new test centre, or a swap with another learner; changing the date and the centre together still counts as one. Updating your contact details, adding or removing your instructor's number, or DVSA moving your test (for bad weather, say) does not count - and if DVSA moves it, you go back to having 2 changes.

Since 9 June 2026 a change can only move your test to one of the 3 test centres nearest to where it is booked, or back to the centre you first booked at on that booking. If your booking was made before 9 June 2026, GOV.UK counts from the centre it was booked at on 9 June, not where you first booked. So book at a centre you actually intend to use, and on a date you realistically expect to be ready for.

Once both changes are used, the only way to move your test is to cancel it and book a new one.

Swapping with another learner

You can swap your test with another learner, and it counts as one of your 2 changes. You both need a change left, the swap has to be asked for at least 10 full working days before the earlier of the two tests, both centres have to meet the nearest-centre rule, and both tests have to be the same type - a weekday test swaps with a weekday test, an evening or weekend test with the same.

Swaps are done by phone only. GOV.UK's swap guidance, updated on 1 October 2026, sets out a two-call process: both learners call DVSA separately, on the same day, and the request lapses if the second learner has not called by the end of that day. DVSA recommends the second call is made by 4pm, and it does not tell the first learner if the second one never called - so agree between you when each of you will ring. GOV.UK also says never to give another learner your licence number, theory certificate number, contact details or card details.

Changing or cancelling without losing your fee

For a car driving test you need to give 10 full working days' notice to change it for free, or to cancel and get an automatic refund. Monday to Saturday count as working days; Sundays and public holidays do not. This is different from the theory test, where the notice is 3 full working days.

If you have to change or cancel at short notice, GOV.UK says you can apply for a refund for an illness or injury that stops you taking the test, a bereavement, a school or college exam, or a stolen licence - with proof, emailed to DVSA. And even if you cannot get a refund, cancelling rather than not turning up frees the slot for another learner.