Detail
Licence classes, ages and what the tests cost
Which licence you need is federal and the same in every emirate; what it costs is not. This page lists the eight licence types and their minimum ages from the federal regulation, then the fees RTA publishes for Dubai — and says plainly that the regulation itself fixes no amount at all.
The classes are federal. The prices are Dubai’s.
Driving licences in the UAE are issued emirate by emirate under one federal regulation. The classes, the minimum ages and the way the tests are marked are federal and the same everywhere. The question counts, the pass mark and every fee on this page are the Roads and Transport Authority’s, which examines and licenses in DUBAI — if you are testing in another emirate, the federal half still applies to you and the figures do not.
Which licence, and from what age
The eight licence types the regulation issues
Federal, and the same in every emirate. The Arabic name is the one on the licence itself.
| Licence | What it lets you drive | Minimum age |
|---|---|---|
| Motorcycleدراجة نارية | All types of motorcycle. | 17 |
| Disabled-transporterناقلات المعاقين | Vehicles built specially for, and used only by, a person with a physical disability.Unladen weight no more than 250 kg | 17 |
| Light vehicleمركبة خفيفة | The ordinary car licence — a light vehicle, and a passenger vehicle within the seat limit.Unladen weight no more than 2,500 kg · Up to 14 passengers, not counting the driver | 18 |
| Heavy vehicleمركبة ثقيلة | Heavy vehicles, and light vehicles as well. | 20 |
| Light busحافلة خفيفة | Light buses within the seat limit, and light vehicles.Up to 26 passengers, not counting the driver | 21 |
| Heavy busحافلة ثقيلة | Every type of heavy and light bus, and light vehicles. | 21 |
| Light tractor or mechanical equipmentجرار أو جهاز ميكانيكي خفيف | Tractors and light mechanical equipment within the weight limit.Unladen weight no more than 7,500 kg | 20 |
| Heavy tractor or mechanical equipmentجرار أو جهاز ميكانيكي ثقيل | Every type of heavy and light tractor and mechanical equipment. | 20 |
The weights above are UNLADEN weights — the vehicle’s own weight, which the regulation measures by the chassis and engine as approved for that vehicle, not the weight it is allowed to carry.
What the tests cost
The regulation fixes no amount at all
Every figure below is published by RTA for Dubai.
The federal regulation makes a licence conditional on “payment of the prescribed fees” and repeats that phrase for renewals and replacements — without ever prescribing an amount. It contains no fee schedule and no dirham figure for any test or licence. So the prices below are the Roads and Transport Authority’s, for Dubai, and would be different elsewhere.
| What you are paying for | Amount (AED) | Payable to |
|---|---|---|
| Knowledge Test | 200 | Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), Government of Dubai |
| Yard Test | 200 | Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), Government of Dubai |
| Road Test | 200 | Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), Government of Dubai |
| Knowledge and Innovation fee | 20 | Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), Government of Dubai |
Each of the three tests is booked and paid for separately, and each carries the same per-booking Knowledge-and-Innovation line — so one test booking comes to AED 220.
Once you have it
How long the licence runs
Two years the first time, and then it depends on nationality.
A licence issued for the first time runs 2 years. On renewal it runs 10 years for UAE citizens and 5 years for everyone else. A renewal application is made within thirty days of expiry, with proof of identity and residence and a certificate that any traffic fines have been settled.
There is no probationary or novice-driver regime in the regulation — no separate status, no extra restrictions, no watch period. The shorter first licence is a document term, not a probation.
A medical certificate from the competent health authority is required before a licence is granted, and the regulation does not say how long one stays valid.
The two tests themselves are covered on the theory test page and the road test page.
Next step
The theory test in Dubai
The federal traffic regulation says the theory test covers traffic rules, road etiquette and signs, and that it may be written or oral. It sets no number of questions and no pass mark. Those come from the Roads and Transport Authority, which is the body that examines you in Dubai — so this page keeps the two apart and tells you which is which.
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