Provisional licence
How to Get a Provisional Licence in Zimbabwe
Before you leave home
You apply in person at the Vehicle Inspection Department, not at a driving school. Take your national identity document. The regulations also provide for specimen signatures and photographs, and the depot may capture those electronically. If your eyesight needs correction, wear the glasses or contacts you will use when you drive.
Be at least 16 on the day. An examiner may not issue a learner's licence for any class of motor vehicle to someone under 16. Heavier vehicles and public-service passenger vehicles have higher age and experience bars.
What happens at the depot
- Eye test. If you do not meet the eyesight standard, you will not be sat for the computer test.
- Registration. Your name, address and identity number are captured.
- Fee. You pay the learner's test fee prescribed for that day and keep the receipt.
- Computer test. You answer 25 questions on a screen. Candidates in the same room do not all see the same paper.
- Result. It is produced when you finish. A pass leads to the learner's licence.
Do the studying before this visit. People who open the app in the queue are already late. PassDrive's first 4 lessons are free, which is enough to see how the lessons and questions work before you pay US$4.99 for unlimited access.
The week after you pass
Put the L plates on before the first lesson on the road. Book a supervisor who actually holds a licence, or book on-road lessons. In Harare, PassDrive's partner Appheal Driving School teaches in dual-control cars. Keep the learner's licence with you whenever you drive.
Free practice question
These are PassDrive practice examples, written so you learn the rule. The VID screen randomises its questions, so the wording on the day will be different.
Practice
You arrive at VID without your national ID, but you have a photo of it on your phone. What should you expect?
- The photo is accepted for the learner's test
- You can write the test and bring the ID later
- You need the identity document itself before you can be tested
- A driving school stamp replaces the ID
Show the answer
C. You need the identity document itself before you can be tested. Registration for the provisional test is tied to your identity. A photo on a phone is not a substitute. Go back with the document.
Questions people ask
Can I apply online and only collect the licence?
The eye test and the computer test are done at VID. Treat it as an in-person visit.
Which depot do I use?
The VID depot that serves the town where you live. Major cities have permanent depots. Smaller centres often test on set days.