Learner's Licence Test Pass Mark: How Each Section Is Marked

Ask five people for the learner's licence test pass mark and you may hear five answers: 80%, 51 out of 64, "about three quarters". None of them is quite right. The test has three sections, each with its own minimum, and you must reach all three. This post sets out the numbers, where they come from, and why your score in each section matters far more than your total.

The three sections

Regulation 104 of the National Road Traffic Regulations requires the examiner to be sure you know and understand three areas:

1. The rules of the road: speed limits, right of way, overtaking, parking, lights, crashes and the rules about the vehicle itself.
2. Road traffic signs: signs, traffic signals and road markings.
3. The controls of the vehicle for the class of licence you want. For a Code 2 learner's licence, that is a light motor vehicle, like a normal car.

The learner's licence test pass mark for each section

The minimum marks are set in Government Notice R.93 of 2006, paragraph 5.4. The consolidated regulations still carry that notice, with no amendment noted.

Section	Questions	You need at least	Wrong answers you can afford
Rules of the road	28	22	6
Road traffic signs	28	23	5
Vehicle controls	8	6	2
Total	64	Each section's minimum	No pass mark for the total

Notice the small differences. Signs needs one mark more than rules, even though both sections have 28 questions. And controls, the smallest section, leaves you the least room: a third mistake there is a fail.

Does the computerised test use the same numbers?

The gazetted notice was written when the test was on paper. We found nothing official that replaces it for the computerised test. An RTMC spokesperson told The Citizen that the computerised test also draws 64 questions and keeps the three sections. That is a press report of an official, not a gazette, but it matches the notice.

You may read online that the test has 68 questions, split 30, 30 and 8. We found no official source for that split. Read more in our post on the computerised learner's licence test.

Worked examples: pass or fail?

Add the three minimums together and you get 51 of 64, which is about 80%. That is where the "80%" idea comes from. But 51 correct answers only pass if they fall in the right places. Look at these four results.

Learner	Rules (need 22)	Signs (need 23)	Controls (need 6)	Total	Result
Ayanda	22	23	6	51	Pass
Pieter	26	27	5	58	Fail: controls is short
Lerato	28	22	8	58	Fail: signs is short
Sipho	25	24	7	56	Pass

Ayanda scraped through every section by the smallest margin and passed with 51. Pieter and Lerato both scored 58, seven more than Ayanda, and both failed. One section let each of them down.

Pieter: the controls trap

Pieter knew his rules and signs very well. But controls has only eight questions, so three wrong answers took him below six. A small section is easy to ignore while you study, and that is exactly why it catches people.

Lerato: perfect rules, still a fail

Lerato got every rules question right. It made no difference. Six mistakes in signs left her one mark short of 23, and there is no overall mark that could carry her over.

Why section marks matter more than the total

Because each section has its own minimum, your test result is decided by your weakest section, not your average. That changes how you should study.

• Find your weakest section first. A practice test with a total score alone hides the problem. Look at each section's score against its own minimum.
• Do not over-study your best section. Moving rules from 25 to 28 earns nothing if signs stays at 21.
• Give controls real time. It is only eight questions, but it can fail the whole test on its own.
• Signs has a tight margin. Five mistakes is all you can afford, and the computerised test is reported to draw on a wide range of signs. Learn the uncommon ones as well. Our guide to reading signs by shape and colour helps here.
• Aim above the minimum. A pass by one mark in practice is not safe on the day. Keep practising until you clear all three minimums with room to spare, several times in a row.

How our mock tests are marked

Each mock test on K53 Easy has 64 questions: 28 rules, 28 signs and 8 controls. A mock is marked section by section, with the same minimums of 22, 23 and 6. On the results page, every section is shown beside its own minimum, so you can see at a glance which one is holding you back.

The questions are our own, modelled on the computerised test's style. They are not the official questions, which are not published.

Next step

Sit your first mock on the practice page. It is free, and the section scores will show you where to start. Then read our study plan for the learner's licence test, or open the free introduction to the study guide.