Become a bus driver — the road from cat. B to code 95

Cat. B is the prerequisite for going further. Without a valid car driving licence, you can take neither a bus licence nor the initial qualification. If your cat. B is in order, you can go straight on.

Choose the category according to the bus you want to drive: D1 is the small bus (no more than 16 persons besides the driver and length no more than 8 m), while D is the large bus (more than 8 persons besides the driver — there is no weight requirement). If you need to tow a trailer above 750 kg, a +E extension is required.

A category D licence requires you to be 24, and D1 that you are 21. Both can be taken from 18 when you take the licence together with the initial qualification (BEK 718/2026 §§ 48-49). With code 95 from the direct test you may drive D1 and regular routes ≤ 50 km from 18 and all D driving from 20; with code 95 from the intensive training from 21 and 23 respectively (BEK 412/2025 §§ 10-11).

A bus driving licence (group 2) requires a medical certificate — a health approval with stricter eyesight requirements — and a valid first-aid certificate. Book an appointment with the doctor in good time; an approved certificate is a prerequisite for taking the driving test.

Complete driving lessons at a driving school offering bus training and pass the theory and practical tests for category D (or D1). That is the actual bus driving licence — but it is not yet enough to drive professionally.

Commercial driving requires the initial qualification (driver qualification certificate) from an approved training centre. Since 1 October 2025 it is obtained through the direct test — written tests of at least 4 hours, a driving test of at least 90 minutes and a practical test of at least 30 minutes, with no teaching requirement — or through intensive training of at least 140 hours with 10 individual driving lessons. The written test requires 85 % correct answers and is taken without aids (BEK 412/2025 §§ 14-15 and 19; the Danish Road Traffic Authority's test guidance of 23 June 2026).

Disability awareness training is part of bus driver training: transporting people with reduced mobility, 4-point wheelchair tiedown, use of lift/ramp and communication with passengers with disabilities (Executive Order 412/2025 annex 1, item 3.8).

Once the initial qualification is passed, code 95 is entered on the licence/card — the documentation of the professional qualification. For commercial passenger transport there is also an endorsement: code 425 for categories D1 and D, code 426 for D1 only (Executive Order 718/2026 annex 3). After that you may drive buses commercially — and must then maintain code 95 with periodic training.