Driving licence at 17
BF17 – accompanied driving in Frankfurt
A year earlier behind the wheel: you get exactly the same driving licence as everyone else, but until your 18th birthday you drive with a registered accompanying person in the car. Then you carry on driving alone – with a year of real driving experience that others don't have.
| Start of training | typically from 16½ years of age – from then on, the application to the authorities is also possible; advice available at any time |
|---|---|
| Theory test | at the earliest three months before the 17th birthday |
| Practical test | one month in advance at the earliest |
| Accompanying person | at least 30 years old · category B licence held for at least five years · a maximum of one point in Flensburg |
| How many? | as many as you like – parents, grandparents, neighbours |
| Training | identical to the normal one Class B |
| Over 18 | you continue driving alone; your probationary period has been running since your driving licence was issued |
Any questions about that? Request consultation · Branch near you · register online
Feel free to pop in as a couple – it’s usually the parents who have the most questions about BF17.
Jump straight to a topic
The real reason
What BF17 offers you
One year of driving experience before heading out alone. If you start at 17, you gain experience in the meantime – in the rain, in the dark, in rush-hour traffic.
The Federal Highway Research Institute examined accompanied driving and, in the first year of driving independently, found significantly fewer involvements in accidents and traffic violations than among novice drivers without an accompanied phase (Report M 218).
The most important question
Who is allowed to accompany you?
Three conditions, nothing more. Whoever meets them can be registered – regardless of whether they are related or not.
- At least 30 years old – those who are exactly 30 are already allowed to.
- Category B for at least five years. Driving licences from the EU, EEA and Switzerland are also counted.
- At most one point in the driver fitness register in Flensburg. What counts is the status at the time of application.
There are no further requirements – no training, no relation. Five things are important in everyday life:
- Multiple people are possible, there is no upper limit. Add more than one from the beginning – otherwise the car will sit idle if that one person is working or away.
- You can add to it later, via the driving licence office. The new person is only allowed to accompany once registered; there is a fee for this.
- The driving licence must be carried and be handed over upon request.
- No particular seat is prescribed – the front passenger seat is still useful anyway.
- The accompanying person is not a driving instructor. They support you and only step in in an emergency. You are responsible for the vehicle.
Practical tip: Add more than one person from the start. If only one parent is registered and is working, ill or away, the car stays parked. Having two or three people registered makes everyday life noticeably easier.
If the accompanying person no longer meets the requirements during the journey, the accompaniment is no longer valid – and the consequence affects you, not them. Details of the legal limits for alcohol and cannabis can be found below in the FAQs.
Before starting
Requirements, documents and procedure
The training starts as a rule from the age of 16½ You can drop by earlier at any time for advice or to put your name down.
You need this for the application:
- Identity card or passport
- Biometric passport photo
- Eye test, no more than two years old at the time of application
- First-aid course with nine teaching units – the certificate does not expire
- Consent of the legal guardians
- Details and driving licence copies of all accompanying persons
Full details can be found on the page Documents and paperwork.
For BF17 you also need the application for accompanied driving and the documents of the accompanying persons.
Before submitting your application, check the current procedure set out by the city, or enquire at the driving licence office or a local government office to find out whether your complete BF17 application can be submitted online. Allow plenty of time, as the application must be processed before the test.
Advice and registration
No appointment is needed; to start with, your ID is sufficient. Your legal guardians must also sign.
Application and accompanying persons
At the earliest half a year before your 17th birthday. The accompanying persons are registered at the same time.
Theory and driving lessons
Just like any Category B licence – theory, practice lessons as needed and the special training drives.
The two exams
You can take the theory test no earlier than three months before your 17th birthday, and the practical test one month before.
Driving from the age of 17
The test certificate is valid from your 17th birthday.
BF17 is not a separate driving licence category and doesn’t change anything about the training – the same theory, the same practical driving sessions, the same test as for any Class B licence. The specific procedure depends on whether you choose the standard Class B, B197 or B78. The number of additional practice hours required varies from person to person.
Scope, examinations and procedure in detail: Class B. If you want to do it more quickly, there’s also the Intensive course Possible with BF17.
Often decided together
Circuit, B197 or B78
These terms answer two different questions. BF17 determines when It's your turn to drive. Circuit, controlled by B197 and B78, whereby you drive. You decide both independently of each other – and all three routes can be combined with BF17.
The three pathways within class B
Class B (classic)
- Practical test on
- Control van
- Additionally required
- –
- You are allowed to drive afterwards
- Manual and automatic
- Can be combined with BF17
- Yes
B197
- Practical test on
- Automatic
- Additionally required
- Training in manual gear-changing at a driving school and proof of this
- You are allowed to drive afterwards
- Manual and automatic
- Can be combined with BF17
- Yes
B78
- Practical test on
- Automatic
- Additionally required
- –
- You are allowed to drive afterwards
- automatic only – the driving licence bears the code 78
- Can be combined with BF17
- Yes
The practical question is: what will you be practising in? If the car you will drive with your accompanying person is an automatic or an electric car, taking the test in an automatic makes sense. If a traditional manual car is available, you may not drive it with B78 – not even with an accompanying person.
Don't just think about today's car, but also about what you want to drive after your 18th birthday. We'll go through that with you during the consultation.
Everything on the two paths: B197 – Learn in an automatic, drive a manual · B78 – automatic only
The transition
Test certificate, 18th birthday and abroad
After passing the exam you will receive a Test certificate. You are granted the Class B – and, as a result, automatically AM (mopeds up to 45 km/h) and L (slow tractors). The requirement to be accompanied does not apply to these two: you may drive them alone straight away.
From your 18th birthday the requirement lapses automatically – you don't need to apply for anything or provide any proof. You photographic driving licence you get from the driving licence office; check with them a few weeks in advance how and when.
Abroad the test certificate is generally not valid – it is proof for journeys within the country. Austria is the exception: It will be recognised there until your 18th birthday, under the same conditions as here – so your registered accompanying person must travel with you. Important: In Austria, the German three-month grace period after your 18th birthday does not. From your 18th birthday onwards, you will need the photocard driving licence there.
Your two-year probationary period doesn't start at 18, but upon the issue of the driving licence – so, at the earliest on your 17th birthday. Even if you pass the test a month beforehand, that doesn't change anything. Whoever starts early finishes correspondingly earlier.
Enquire before travelling abroad. It is best to check beforehand with the licensing office or automobile club whether and under what conditions the test certificate is valid in the destination country. Registered vehicle restrictions apply abroad in the same way as they do here.
To be honest
Offences, probation period and insurance
Driving without a registered accompanying person. This is no minor offence: a fine, one penalty point – and the driving entitlement is revoked. It does not automatically revive on your 18th birthday: you have to reapply, and that is only possible with proof of an advanced training seminar (Aufbauseminar). In addition, the probationary period is extended by two years.
Alcohol and cannabis. Neither limit applies to you: no alcohol and no cannabis. This applies during the entire probationary period and additionally to everyone under 21 – the general THC limit for adults does not apply to you.
The probationary period runs from the date of issue, so at the earliest on your 17th birthday – not only from 18. Anyone who starts early finishes correspondingly sooner.
For parents
The most common parents' question: What happens if something happens? Whether the young driver is covered under the policy, and under what conditions, depends on the specific policy. Therefore, please report BF17 before the first journey to your insurance company.
Many insurers offer more favourable terms for accompanied driving. Make sure to ask about this explicitly – it isn't always offered automatically.
The accompanying person is not liable in the way a driving instructor is; you are responsible for the vehicle yourself.
Your driving school
Why FAHRPLAN
- Theory lessons from Monday to Friday you don't wait for a new course, but start whenever it fits around school.
- Four locations in Frankfurt – you freely choose where you register and practise.
- Automatic and manual – if the family car is an automatic, you take your test in an automatic. Both can be combined with BF17.
- Selection advice – Standard Class B, B197 or B78: We’ll go through this with you step by step.
- Driving lessons in over ten languages – and you can take the theory test in twelve languages. The theory lessons themselves take place in German.
Good to know
Frequently asked questions about BF17
The questions that teenagers and parents ask us most often during a consultation.
Can we add someone later?
Yes. Additional persons can be applied for at the driving licence office at a later date. They are only permitted to accompany once the authority has checked them and officially included them in the valid certificate. A fee is charged for each person; the amount varies regionally.
Is the accompanying person allowed to have consumed alcohol?
They must stay below 0.5 per mille; from 0.5 per mille they may not accompany you, and the same applies from 0.25 mg/l of breath alcohol.
Can I bring friends?
Yes, as long as a registered accompanying person is with you.
What must I have with me during a police check?
Your test certificate and your identity card – the certificate has no photo, so you prove your identity with your ID card as well.
How much more does a BF17 licence cost than a standard driving licence?
We will go through what it adds up to in your case during the consultation.
Free and without obligation
Get personal advice
We'll call you back and discuss everything further – or you can just come by directly. Whether you sign up is entirely up to you.