Driving license without driving school: candidate can take test in automatic transmission and drive manual car

The draft new regulations for obtaining a National Driver's License (CNH), which is open for public consultation until November 2, allows prospective drivers to take their practical test in a car with an automatic transmission and, later, also be licensed for cars with manual transmissions. This changes the licensing rules that have always been in effect.

According to the draft resolution, driving school classes have become optional. The type of vehicle used for the practical test has also become optional. The vehicle may also be owned by the driver, an accredited instructor, or the State Department of Transportation (Detran).

The vehicle does not need to have a specific age, whether minimum or maximum, but it must be in “good safety and conservation conditions”, in addition to being identified as an instruction vehicle, “at the discretion of the competent traffic executive body or entity”.

This information was anticipated in a column by journalist Paula Gama, from UOL, and confirmed by Gazeta do Povo with the Ministry of Transportation. The relaxation of vehicle regulations would meet a demand from the driver's license market itself, according to the Ministry of Transportation.

Driving license without driving school makes rules more flexible

Under the command of Minister Renan Filho (MDB-AL), the Ministry of Transport presented a proposal that, according to the ministry, aims to modernize and facilitate the obtaining of a CNH, with the aim of making the process cheaper, faster and safer, despite contradicting and generating alert among experts.

According to the ministry's own estimates, around 20 million Brazilians drive without a license. In 2024 alone, more than 900,000 violations were recorded for driving without a license, based on data from the National Traffic Secretariat (Senatran).

The proposal is open for public consultation on the Participa + Brasil platform until November 2nd.

Driving licenses without driving schools divide the government

The proposal to end the requirement to attend driving schools to obtain a National Driver's License (CNH), which was authorized to continue by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), is contrary to the Minister-in-Chief of the Secretariat of Institutional Relations, Gleisi Hoffmann (PT-PR) .

The divergent opinions among senior officials reveal a lack of harmony within the federal government. The administration has not yet commented on the ministers' lack of alignment on the issue.