Study guide
1.1 The Regulation Examination: Facts, Booking and Study Plan
Barbados Regulation Examination Exam
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1 Chapter 1: The Regulation Examination and the Licensing Path
1.1 The Regulation Examination: Facts, Booking and Study Plan 1.2 Learner's Permit Conditions and Supervision 1.3 Driving Test, Licence Classes, Renewal and Demerit Points
2 Chapter 2: Traffic Signs
2.1 Sign Shapes, Colours and Legal Force 2.2 Warning Signs in the Ninth Schedule 2.3 Regulatory Signs: Prohibitions and Mandatory Orders 2.4 Information Signs, Temporary Signs and Construction Zones
3 Chapter 3: Light Signals, Driver Signals and Police Directions
3.1 Traffic Light Signals 3.2 Driver Signals, the Horn and Police Directions
4 Chapter 4: Road Markings and Pedestrian Crossings
4.1 Road Markings and Lane Use 4.2 Pedestrian Crossings
5 Chapter 5: Road Position, Overtaking, Junctions and Roundabouts
5.1 Keeping Left, Being Overtaken and Overtaking 5.2 Junctions, Turning and Emerging 5.3 Roundabouts
6 Chapter 6: Speed Limits and Stopping Distances
6.1 Barbados Speed Limits 6.2 Following Distance and Stopping Distance
7 Chapter 7: Stopping, Parking and Lights
7.1 Stopping, Waiting and Parking Rules 7.2 Lighting-Up Times and Use of Lights
8 Chapter 8: Vehicle Condition, Loads and Occupant Safety
8.1 Vehicle Condition, Equipment, Loads and Towing 8.2 Seat Belts and Child Safety Seats
9 Chapter 9: Alcohol, Drugs, Distraction and Fitness to Drive
9.1 Alcohol, Drugs and the Breath-Test Law 9.2 Phones, Distractions, Fatigue and Fitness to Drive
10 Chapter 10: Sharing the Road
10.1 Pedestrians, Children and Processions 10.2 Cyclists and Motorcyclists 10.3 Animals, Animal-Drawn Vehicles and Slow Traffic 10.4 Emergency Vehicles, Buses and Public Service Vehicles
11 Chapter 11: Accidents, Insurance and Traffic Offences
11.1 Duties After an Accident 11.2 Insurance, Documents and Traffic Offences
12 Chapter 12: Defensive Driving and Emergencies
12.1 Defensive Driving and Hazard Perception 12.2 Rain, Night, Breakdowns and Emergencies
1.1 The Regulation Examination: Facts, Booking and Study Plan
Key Takeaways Explain This Topic AI
The BLA describes the Regulation Examination as a theoretical test of the road rules; a pass lets you apply for a learner's permit.
To sit it you must be at least 16, show proof of identity, book an appointment and pay BBD $30.
The BLA does not publish the number of questions, the time limit or the pass mark; driving schools report a 20-question paper with 15 correct needed.
The licence path has four BLA steps: Regulation Examination, learner's permit (BBD $80), driving examination (BBD $100) and licence card (BBD $50).
First-time permit holders must practise for at least three months before applying for the driving examination.
Last updated: October 2026
The Regulation Examination is the first gate on the road to a Barbados driver's licence. The Barbados Licensing Authority (BLA) describes it as "a theoretical test all applicants must conduct to prove their understanding of the road rules in Barbados," and says that a pass "grant[s] applicants the ability to apply for a Learner's permit." In other words, you prove you know the rules before you are allowed to practise on public roads.
Important
Some older summaries describe getting a learner's permit first and taking the regulations test afterwards. The BLA's current service pages (checked 1 October 2026) list a Regulation Examination pass certificate as a prerequisite for the learner's permit, so follow the BLA order.
The four BLA steps to a licence
The BLA's "driver licence life cycle" has four services. Each has its own requirements and fee, payable through the BLA or its online portal.
- Step BLA service Published requirements Fee
- 1 Regulation Examination Age 16+, proof of identity, appointment BBD $30
2 Learner Permit Age 16+, Regulation Examination pass certificate, proof of identification (PSV applicants also need a PSV Examination pass) BBD $80
3 Driving Examination Age 16+, proof of identity, a valid learner permit, appointment BBD $100
4 Driver Licence Age 16+, proof of identity, Driving Examination pass certificate, medical certificate if 70 or older BBD $50
The learner permit page adds one more rule that matters for planning: a first-time permit holder is "required by law to practice for a minimum three (3) months before applying for the driving examination." Budget at least three months between passing this test and sitting the practical test.
Booking and paying
An appointment is required . The BLA asks applicants to register an account on its website (bla.gov.bb), where the public can pay for and schedule Regulation, PSV and Driving Examinations and apply for or renew permits and licences. The BLA's main office is on Pine East–West Boulevard, The Pine, St. Michael, and its published opening hours are Monday to Friday, 8:15 am to 4:30 pm. Bring the identification you used when booking.
What is, and is not, published about the format
The BLA publishes the eligibility rules and fee, but not the number of questions, the time allowed, the pass mark or a question bank. Treat any figure you see elsewhere as unofficial:
Barbados driving schools (for example, the published FAQs of Tyrone's Driving School and DrivingYouth) say the written test "usually consists of 20 questions" and that answering 15 or more correctly (75%) is a pass, with a new BBD $30 fee for each attempt.
Practice papers that circulate online with 45, 52, 67 or 72 questions are study compilations, not the official paper. They are useful for seeing the style of question, but some of their "answers" come from the United Kingdom Highway Code rather than Barbados law.
Confirm the current format with the BLA when you book, and prepare to a standard well above any reported pass mark.
What the examination tests, and why
The legal anchor is the Road Traffic Act, Cap. 295 . Section 65(5) says the examiner must be satisfied that a candidate "is conversant with the contents of the Highway Code ... or with the rules of the road." The Highway Code is prepared by the Chief Technical Officer under section 119 (as replaced in 2017) and may be revised every five years. Breaking the Code is not by itself an offence, but a court may rely on it when deciding who was at fault.
The enforceable "rules of the road" sit mainly in two instruments:
The Road Traffic Act, Cap. 295 : licensing, insurance, seat belts, speeding, drink-driving, accident duties and demerit points.
The Road Traffic Regulations, 1984 (with later amendments, including S.I. 2017 No. 106): rules for driving, signals, speed limits, parking, lights, signs, pedestrian crossings, cyclists and mobile phones.
This guide follows that structure, and it cites the section or regulation for each rule so you can check it.
A practical study plan
- Week Focus Chapters
- 1 Sign shapes, every sign in the official schedule, light signals 2, 3
- 2 Markings, crossings, keeping left, overtaking, junctions, roundabouts 4, 5
- 3 Speed limits, stopping distances, parking, lights, vehicle and load rules 6, 7, 8
- 4 Alcohol, phones, vulnerable road users, accidents, insurance, defensive driving 9 to 12
Make a one-page sheet of the numbers that examiners like to test:
16 : minimum age for the Regulation Examination and learner's permit.
3 years : how long your supervising driver must have held a licence for that class of vehicle.
10 metres : no stopping within 10 m of a corner, pedestrian crossing or bus stop.
60 / 80 / 50 / 30 / 25 km/h : general limit, signed roads for cars, buses and heavy goods vehicles, vehicles towing, construction zones.
18:30, 19:00 and 18:00 to 05:00 : the three "at night" periods.
24 hours : the deadline to report an accident at a police station.
35 micrograms per 100 ml of breath : the drink-driving limit.
Finish with timed practice sets, and review every wrong answer against the rule it tests.