What category codes do I have on my driving licence?
When you view a driving licence on DAVIS or through the Gov.uk ‘View/Share My Licence‘ service, a list of category codes will appear. The information provided will tell you which vehicles the licence holder is entitled to drive.
The list below contains the latest driving licence category codes and descriptions issued by the DVLA. These codes are provided for information only, for further details about your driving licence, visit https://www.gov.uk/view-driving-licence.
A business is required, by law, to carry out checks on its drivers if they’re driving on behalf of the company. The checks extend to the vehicles the employees are driving too, even if those vehicles are employee owned. This is known as ‘Grey Fleet’ – employee owned vehicles that are driven for work purposes.
| Motorcycles | |||
| Description | Category | Minimum Age | See Note |
| Light motorcycles with a cubic capacity not exceeding 125cc and a power output not exceeding 11kW (14.6bhp). | A1 | 17 | |
| Motorcycles up to 25kW(33bhp) and a power to weight ratio not exceeding 0.16kW / kg. Motorcycle combination with a power to weight ratio not exceeding 0.16kW / kg. | A | 17 | |
| Any size motorcycle with or without a sidecar. | A | 21 | 1 |
| 3 or 4 wheeled light vehicles | |||
| Description | Category | Minimum Age | See Note |
| Motor tricycles / quad cycles, 3 or 4 wheeled vehicles with an un-laden weight not exceeding 550kg. | B1 | 17 | 2 |
| Cars | |||
| Description | Category | Minimum Age | See Note |
| Motor vehicles with a MAM not exceeding 3500kg having not more than 8 passenger seats with a trailer up to 750kg. Combinations of towing vehicles in category B and a trailer, where the MAM of the combination does not exceed 3500kg and the MAM of the trailer does not exceed the unladen mass of the towing vehicle. | B | 17 | 2 |
| Automatic cars | |||
| As cars, but with automatic transmission. | B Automatic | 17 | 2 |
| Cars with trailers | |||
| Combinations of vehicles consisting of a vehicle in category B and a trailer, where the combination does not come within category B. | B+E | 17 | |
| Medium Sized Vehicles | |||
| Description | Category | Minimum Age | See Note |
| Lorries between 3500kg and 7500kg with a trailerup to 750kg. | C1 | 18 | 3 |
| Medium Sized vehicles with trailers | |||
| Lorries between 3500kg and 7500kg with a trailer over 750kg – total weight not more than 12000kg (if you passed your category B test prior to 1.1.1997 you will be restricted to a total weight not more than 8250kg). | C1+E | 21 | 3 |
| Large Vehicles | |||
| Description | Category | Minimum Age | See Note |
| Vehicles over 3500kg with a trailer up to 750kg. | C | 21 | 4 |
| Large Vehicles with trailers | |||
| Vehicles over 3500kg with a trailer over 750kg. | C+E | 21 | 4 |
| Minibuses | |||
| Description | Category | Minimum Age | See Note |
| Vehicles with between 9 and 16 passenger seats with a trailer up to 750kg. | D1 | 21 | 5 |
| Minibuses with trailers | |||
| Combinations of vehicles where the towing vehicle is in subcategory D1 and its trailer has a MAM of over 750kg, provided that the MAM of the combination thus formed does not exceed 12000kg, and the MAM of the trailer does not exceed the unladen mass of the towing vehicle. | D1+E | 21 | 5 |
| Buses | |||
| Description | Category | Minimum Age | See Note |
| Any bus with more than 8 passenger seats with a trailer up to 750kg. | D | 21 | 5 |
| Buses with trailers | |||
| Any bus with more than 8 passenger seats with a trailer over 750kg. | D+E; | 21 | |
| Other Categories | |||
| Description | Category | Minimum Age | See Note |
| Agricultural tractors | F | 17 | 6 |
| Road Rollers | G | 21 | 7 |
| Tracked Vehicles | H | 21 | |
| Mowing machine or vehicle controlled by a pedestrian | K | 16 | |
| Electric vehicles | L | 17 | |
| Vehicles used for very short distances on public roads | N | ||
| Mopeds | P | 16 | |
| Notes | |||
| Note 1 | |||
| Age 21 or 2 years from the date of standard A test pass. | |||
| Note 2 | |||
| Age 16 if you are currently getting Disability Living Allowance at the higher rate (mobility component). | |||
| Note 3 | |||
| Age 18 if combination weight is under 7500kg. | |||
| Note 4 | |||
| Age 17 if member of armed forces. | |||
| Age 18 if member of the Young Drivers Scheme. | |||
| Note 5 | |||
| Age 17 if member of armed forces. | |||
| Age 18(i) while learning to drive or taking passenger carrying vehicle (PCV) test; or (ii) after passing a PC V test when: | |||
| driving on a regular service where the route does not exceed 50km, or | |||
| driving a PCV constructed to carry no more than 16 passengers, and | |||
| the vehicle is operated under a Public Service Vehicle (PSV) operator’s licence or permit. | |||
| (iii) not engaged in the carriage of passengers | |||
| Note 6 | |||
| Age 16 for tractors less than 2.45m wide. It must only pull trailers less than 2.45m wide with two wheels, or four close coupled. | |||
| Note 7 | |||
| Age 17 for small road rollers with metal or hard rollers. They must not be steam powered, weigh more than 11.69 tonnes or be made for carrying loads. | |||
Who should use DAVIS?
DAVIS is an award-winning platform that provides integrated services for businesses to help them manage driver and vehicle risk.
If you’re an individual looking for information about your driving licence for personal use, please visit https://www.gov.uk/view-driving-licence.
If you’re looking for licence checking, grey fleet management, e-learning or driver audit services for a business, please get in touch
