The British Columbia knowledge test

By the end of this topic you can

• You can state how many questions the test has and the pass mark.
• You can choose between taking the test online or at a driver licensing office.
• You can explain how the skip feature and early finish work.
• You can say how long you must wait to try again if you do not pass.
• You can build a study plan using official ICBC resources.

What you need to know and understand

• The test has 50 multiple-choice questions and you need 40 correct to pass.
• You can take it online or at an ICBC driver licensing location; some areas offer only a written version.
• It is not open book, and phones and other electronic devices are not allowed.
• It is offered in English, French and several other languages, including Punjabi, Mandarin, Cantonese, Farsi and Vietnamese.
• If you do not pass, you must wait one day before trying again.
• You need a piece of primary ID even to take the online test.
• ICBC's free practice test and app draw from a bank of almost 200 questions.

How the test screen works

The in-office and online versions look and work the same way. A status bar shows how you are doing as you go. The test stops as soon as you have answered enough questions correctly to pass, or as soon as you have gone past the number of wrong answers allowed, so you may not see all 50 questions.

If a question is hard, you can press skip. Skipped questions come back at the end, and you can skip through the full set up to two times. For passenger vehicle tests in an office, you can ask staff to reword a question you do not understand. They will not give hints.

What the questions cover

• Regulatory, warning, school zone and construction signs, and what each shape and colour means.
• Traffic lights, flashing signals, lane control signals and pavement markings.
• Right of way at intersections, four-way stops, traffic circles and roundabouts.
• Speed limits, following distance, parking rules and sharing the road with cyclists, buses and emergency vehicles.
• Graduated licensing restrictions, impairment, distraction and the see-think-do approach.

A study plan that works

The site also has a longer guide to the ICBC knowledge test and a guide to B.C. signs, signals and markings.

1. Read Learn to Drive Smart over a few weeks rather than cramming the night before.
2. Make short notes on numbers such as speed limits, parking distances and following distances.
3. Take the free ICBC practice test several times, ideally at the same time of day as your real test.
4. Go back to the guide for any topic you keep getting wrong.
5. Sleep well, arrive early, read each question slowly and avoid rushing your answer.

Common mistakes

• Relying on unofficial question lists instead of the ICBC guide. Every real question comes from the guide.
• Arriving late at the office. Plan to be there at least an hour before closing.
• Answering on impulse. Read the whole question and every option first.
• Forgetting ID for the online test. You still need primary identification.

Test yourself: The British Columbia knowledge test

Answer each question, then read the explanation. Questions come in a random order each time.

Go deeper

• ICBC Knowledge Test
• BC Road Signs, Signals and Markings