Overview
The theory test is the written part of the Vietnamese driving licence (GPLX, giay phep lai xe) exam. Candidates also take practical tests. The official Vietnamese government sites for the exam could not be opened with a valid security certificate when this page was written, so the details below come from news reports of the announcements by the Traffic Police Department and the Ministry of Transport. Confirm them with your driving test centre.
The 600-question bank
According to reports of the Traffic Police Department (Ministry of Public Security), a new set of 600 theory questions has been used in motor vehicle driving tests since 1 June 2025. The number of questions is the same as in the previous bank, but many were revised or added. Each question has exactly one correct answer. Candidates who started training before 1 January 2025, including those retaking, continued to use the old bank until 31 August 2025.
The bank has six chapters:
| Chapter | Topic | Questions |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | General regulations and road traffic rules | 180 |
| 2 | Traffic culture, driver ethics, fire prevention and rescue skills | 25 |
| 3 | Driving techniques | 58 |
| 4 | Vehicle construction and repair | 37 |
| 5 | Road signs and signals | 185 |
| 6 | Traffic diagrams and handling traffic situations | 115 |
Electric vehicle knowledge is included for the first time. The old chapter on transport operations is gone. Drivers of commercial transport vehicles now complete a separate professional training course.
Licence categories and exam papers
One report lists the 600-question bank as used for categories B, C1, C, D1, D2 and D, and the trailer categories BE, C1E, CE, D1E, D2E and DE. It says that 60 of the 600 are critical "fail" questions on serious traffic safety situations. A wrong answer on a critical question fails the whole theory test.
The same report describes how many random questions a paper holds:
| Category | Questions on the paper |
|---|---|
| B (car) | 30 |
| C1 (light truck) | 35 |
| C (truck) | 40 |
| D1, D2, D, BE, C1E, CE, D1E, D2E, DE | 45 |
| A1, A, B1 (motorbikes) | 25 |
Each paper includes one critical question. The reports differ on the motorbike categories: the CarDoctor report lists the 600-question bank for the car, truck and bus categories and gives a 25-question paper for A1, A and B1, while the Vietnam.vn report says the motorbike categories use smaller banks. Vietnam.vn gives 300 questions (30 critical) for B1 and 250 questions (20 critical) for A1 and A. These bank sizes come from one news report, so check with your testing centre which bank applies to your category.
Marking and results
The pass mark and the time allowed were not given in the sources reviewed, so they are left out here. The one fixed rule reported is that a wrong answer to the critical question on the paper is an automatic fail.
Expired licences
Circular No. 35 of the Ministry of Transport was issued to align with the Road Traffic Safety Law that took effect on 1 January 2025. VietNamNet reports that the law removes the earlier three-month grace period for renewal. An official quoted by VietNamNet says that a licence expired for less than a year needs a theory test to renew, even if it expired a day ago. A licence expired for more than a year needs both theory and practical tests, including a simulated driving test and an on-road test.
Preparation tips
Study the full bank for your category, including the critical questions.
Learn the road signs well, since signs and situation questions make up the largest share of the bank.
Do not rely only on memorising answers; the Traffic Police Department advised learning the law and applying it flexibly.
FAQs
Is there a single pass mark?
The sources reviewed did not state one. Ask your testing centre, and remember that one wrong critical question fails the theory test regardless of score.
Did the question bank change in 2025?
Yes. A new 600-question bank applied from 1 June 2025, with the old bank kept until 31 August 2025 for candidates who began training before 1 January 2025.