A CBT is a day of training, not a test. You cannot fail it. You either complete all five elements to the instructor's satisfaction, or you come back another day and finish the parts you did not get through.
Here is what the day consists of.
Element A: Introduction and eyesight
The paperwork and the eyesight check. You read a number plate at the required distance, wearing glasses or lenses if you use them.
The instructor covers what the course involves and what you will and will not be able to do afterwards. Bring your provisional or full driving licence, because without it the day does not start.
Element B: Practical on-site training
Machine familiarisation, off road, on the training body's own site.
You go through the controls, the daily checks a rider should do, how the bike behaves, and how to get it on and off the stand and move it around by hand. If you have never sat on a bike before, this is where that gets sorted out.
You choose here between automatic and manual, and the choice matters more than most people realise. Complete your CBT on an automatic and, under current rules, you may still ride a geared bike afterwards. That is one of the things the DVSA is looking at changing.
Element C: Practical on-site riding
Riding, still off road.
Slow control, using the clutch and gears if you are on a manual, braking, changing direction, a figure of eight, a U-turn, and riding at a controlled slow speed in a straight line.
This is where most people spend the longest. Slow-speed control is the hardest thing on the day for a complete novice, and the U-turn in particular catches people out. Nobody fails, but plenty of people repeat this element until it clicks. If your day is running long, this is usually why.
The emergency stop is here too, and it is worth taking seriously rather than treating as a formality.
Element D: Practical on-road training
Back in the classroom, briefly, before you go out.
Road positioning, what other traffic will and will not see, weather and surface conditions, legal requirements, and the specific hazards a rider faces that a driver does not. Rear observation, filtering, junctions and the value of being where people are looking.
Element E: Practical on-road riding
At least two hours on public roads, in radio contact with the instructor, usually in a group of no more than two trainees per instructor.
You will cover junctions, roundabouts, traffic lights, gradients, bends, obstacles, U-turns and a couple of emergency stops. Real traffic, real roads, and it is the part of the day people find most useful.
Complete this to the instructor's satisfaction and you get your certificate the same day.
What you get, and what it lets you do
The certificate is valid for two years.
On a CBT you may:
- Ride a moped at 16, or a motorcycle up to 125cc and 11 kW at 17
- Ride on public roads with L plates front and rear
On a CBT you may not:
- Carry a pillion passenger
- Use motorways
- Ride anything above 125cc or 11 kW
If you pass a full motorcycle test within the two years, the CBT becomes irrelevant. If you do not, you retake it.
What to bring and what to expect
Bring your licence, and anything you own in the way of kit. Most schools provide a helmet, gloves and a jacket, but your own gear will fit better.
Wear something over your ankles and something that is not shorts. Boots or sturdy footwear, long trousers, and a jacket you do not mind getting wet in.
Expect a full day. Seven to nine hours is normal, and being told you need a second day is common enough that nobody should treat it as a failure. It is a training course, and the point is that you leave able to ride.
What the 2026 consultation could change
The CBT is under review for the first time in decades.
The consultation examines the structure and content of the CBT itself, which has remained largely unchanged since its introduction in 1990. The DVSA's concern is riders who never progress: between March 2023 and March 2025, 77,000 riders renewed CBT courses, making up almost a quarter of certificates issued in that period.
Proposals under discussion include minimum waiting periods before a learner can retake a CBT once it has expired, and revisions to the course to improve practical skills and hazard awareness. Also mandatory theory learning before CBT and changes to the duration and structure of certificates.
The one that would affect most learners directly: the DVSA is considering restricting learner riders to automatic machines if that is what they used for their CBT, meaning anyone wanting to ride a manual afterwards would need extra training.
The consultation ran from 7 January 2026 and closed on 11 May 2026. Nothing has changed, and any change requires legislation. If you are choosing between automatic and manual today, the current rules still apply, though doing your CBT on a manual is the option that stays useful whichever way the reform lands.
FAQs
Can you fail a CBT?
No. It is training rather than a test. If you have not completed every element by the end of the day you return and finish it, which is common and not a mark against you.
How long does a CBT take?
A full day, typically seven to nine hours. Complete novices sometimes need a second session, usually because of slow-speed control.
Do I need a CBT if I have a full car licence?
For a motorcycle, yes. Car licences issued before February 2001 carry some moped entitlement, but anything larger needs CBT.
Does the certificate expire?
After two years. Pass a full motorcycle test before then and it stops mattering. Otherwise you retake the course.