DGT Practical Test Manoeuvres (2026)

Updated: September 2026. Manoeuvres are the most measurable part of the Spanish practical test. The DGT does not grade them on how smooth they looked: it counts movements, measures distances in centimetres and runs a clock. Parking has a two-minute limit, five movements to enter is an eliminatory fault, four is deficient, and finishing more than 30 centimetres from the kerb fails you outright. This page lists every countable limit from both criteria documents.

Which manoeuvres you have to do

The manoeuvres are lettered in the criteria, and which ones you face depends entirely on your licence class.

Key takeaways

01. The circuit uses a stricter pass mark. Four minor faults fail you on the closed circuit. Ten fail you on the road. Each stall is one minor fault.

02. Movements are counted, not judged. For a category B parking attempt, four movements to enter is deficient and five is eliminatory. There is no partial credit for a tidy fifth movement.

03. Turning the wheel while stationary is a deficient fault, penalised every single time you do it. On a four-minor budget, two of those ends the circuit.

04. Parking on the road is measured against the cars around you, not against an absolute line, and the thresholds are half a vehicle and one metre.

The circuit pass mark is not the road pass mark

The definition of an eliminatory fault also changes on the circuit. It is not about danger there, but about vehicle control: insufficient control preventing execution of the manoeuvre, or manifest lack of skill in handling the vehicle or its controls. The fault-level guide includes a calculator covering both baremos.

Parking: the numbers that decide it

One allowance is written in: an extra movement is permitted for echelon or perpendicular parking. For B96 with a moving front axle trailer, the counts rise to six movements deficient and seven eliminatory.

The two-minute limit deserves a rehearsal strategy of its own. Two minutes is generous for a manoeuvre done decisively and very tight for one done tentatively, which is the same trap the movement count sets. Practising against a timer changes how the manoeuvre feels more than any amount of general practice does.

Reversing in a straight line and around a corner

Manoeuvre G looks simple and carries some of the most specific penalties on the circuit.

• Turning the steering wheel with the vehicle stationary is a deficient fault, and the criteria say it is penalised each time it happens. On a budget of two deficient faults, this alone can end the circuit test.
• Leaving the delimited lane with any wheel of the rear axle is eliminatory. For cars, the criteria are stricter still: any wheel.
• Stopping with a forward correction movement is eliminatory. Stopping without steering input is only a minor fault. Trailers with a moving front axle are the exception and may make one forward correction.
• A noticeably oblique final position is a minor fault.
• Driving with the parking brake applied is deficient if it affects the vehicle's progress, minor if it does not. The same rule covers electric parking brakes.

Where a particular vehicle physically cannot complete the manoeuvre in the regulation width, the criteria allow the lane to be widened in 25 centimetre increments. This is a real accommodation, not a courtesy.

Parking on the road: a different set of rules

Section 9 of the March 2026 criteria governs stopping and parking during the on-road drive, and it measures your finished position against the vehicles already parked rather than against painted limits.

Further minor faults in the same section: leaving the vehicle noticeably oblique within the parking zone, echelon parking without leaving the car centred in the available space, and forcing or striking the kerb hard without mounting it. Choosing a space clearly shorter than the vehicle and entering it fully with the rear is a deficient fault.

Echelon parking that blocks the pavement and obstructs pedestrians is graded more seriously, in line with the rest of the criteria's treatment of pedestrians. See parking rules in Spain for the underlying law.

Leaving the vehicle

If you get out of the driving seat, a further set of faults applies, and they are easy to forget because they happen after the driving is over.

• Not applying the parking brake
• Not selecting the correct gear for an uphill or downhill slope
• Not switching off the engine when appropriate
• Opening the door or getting out without observing, which is deficient if it obstructs someone and minor if it does not

For motorcycles, not putting the machine on its stand at the end of the test is a minor fault, and being unable to put it on the stand, or dropping it while trying, is eliminatory.

The kerb rule and its exceptions

Mounting the kerb is eliminatory as a general rule, but the criteria carve out two exceptions that candidates rarely know.

• When a car mounts the kerb with a rear wheel, it is only a minor fault.
• On lowered or low kerbs, it is not graded at all during the manoeuvres of joining traffic, parking, stopping and changing direction.

A related definition applies throughout: striking or forcing the kerb hard enough that the tyre loses contact with the road surface counts as mounting it, even if the wheel never visibly climbs.

Motorcycle circuit manoeuvres

For A1 and A2 the circuit is a sequence of six manoeuvres with its own hazards.

• There is a clock. Manoeuvres C, D and F combined must be completed within 25 seconds. Exceeding it is eliminatory.
• Putting a foot down with the machine stopped is eliminatory, except after a stall. Putting a foot down without the machine stopping is deficient. Lifting a foot off the peg without touching the ground, through a momentary loss of balance, is a minor fault.
• Each stall is a minor fault, and revving in neutral is another.
• Touching, knocking or moving a pole or cone is eliminatory, as is taking them out of order, or leaving the limits of the marked area.
• On acceleration and braking, crossing the stop line with half the motorcycle is eliminatory; touching it with the front wheel is deficient. Braking so early that you stop before the marked zone is also deficient.

A helpful detail: if the motorcycle's design causes the engine to stall while retracting the stand, that is not graded as a stall, and the examiner simply tells the candidate to retract it.

How to practise against these numbers

• Count your movements out loud during practice parking. The limit is a count, so making it audible turns an abstract rule into feedback you get on every attempt.
• Time the parking manoeuvre. Two minutes is the limit on the road, and knowing where you usually land tells you how much margin you have.
• Break the habit of steering while stopped. It is a deficient fault every time on the circuit, and it is one of the most common ingrained habits from informal practice.
• Measure 30 centimetres once, then learn what it looks like from the driving seat. Most candidates overestimate their distance from the kerb.
• Rehearse getting out of the car, including the handbrake, the gear and the observation before opening the door.

Frequently asked questions

How long do I have to park?

Two minutes, under section 9.4 of the March 2026 criteria.

How many times can I shunt back and forth when parking?

On the circuit, four movements to enter is a deficient fault and five is eliminatory. Four movements to exit is eliminatory. One extra movement is allowed for echelon or perpendicular parking.

How close to the kerb do I need to finish?

Within 30 centimetres for line parking on the circuit. Beyond that is an eliminatory fault. For a bus or coach stopping to let passengers board, the limit is 20 centimetres.

Is it really a fault to turn the wheel while stopped?

Yes, on the closed circuit, during the reversing manoeuvre. It is a deficient fault and it is penalised every time it happens.

Does mounting the kerb always fail me?

No. It is eliminatory as a general rule, but it is only a minor fault when a car mounts with a rear wheel, and it is not graded at all on low or lowered kerbs during joining traffic, parking, stopping and changing direction.

Do the circuit and road faults add up together?

They are graded under separate documents with separate pass marks, and the circuit scale is stricter. Treat them as two separate budgets.

Sources

• DGT, Subdirección Adjunta de Formación Vial, Criterios de Calificación de la Prueba de Control de Aptitudes y Comportamientos en Circuito Cerrado, January 2013. Manoeuvres by licence class, the circuit baremo, movement counts, measurements and the motorcycle sequence.
• DGT, Subdirección Adjunta de Formación Vial, Criterios de Calificación, March 2026. Section 9 on stopping and parking, section 15.2 on kerbs.
• DGT, Examen práctico, official process page.

Last updated: September 2026. Criteria checked: September 2026. The closed-circuit criteria cited here are dated January 2013.

This guide summarises the DGT's published grading criteria and does not replace them. Confirm current details with the DGT or your driving school before your test.