Starting a driving school in Belgium: approval, conditions and fees

Which authority approves your driving school?

The lesson hours that count towards a driving licence may only be given at an approved driving school. The competent Region is that of the approval holder's registered office. An establishment unit falls under the Region where it is located, even if that is a different one.

The basis everywhere is the royal decree of 11 May 2004 (in Dutch), some of whose articles have a regional version. The official pages: Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels.

Which conditions must you meet?

These are the main lines of the royal decree. Check the text that applies in your Region.

• Approval goes to a natural person or a commercial company, and nobody can hold more than one approval.
• Every school has a director, who may hold that post at one school only.
• You need at least one establishment unit in Belgium, with a reception area, toilets, an administrative area, a classroom for at least ten students and a multiple-choice computer for every ten students. The premises may not be in a dwelling or a licensed bar.
• Category B needs no training ground. Categories A, C, D, E and G do, and the ground must be approved.
• You have at least one training vehicle per category. A category B vehicle is less than five years old and has dual controls.
• Every training vehicle is insured for the student's civil liability and for damage to the student or their belongings.
• Instructors hold the right certificate, a teaching permit and a licence valid for at least category B for three years, or for category A if they only teach motorcycle lessons. Those who teach practical lessons undergo a medical examination.

How do you become a driving school director?

Certificate I (brevet I) gives access to the post of driving school director. Flanders and Wallonia require you to have held certificate II (category B practical) and certificate III (theory) for at least three years, and to pass a written and an oral exam. You then apply for the management permit, in Wallonia online with the SPW. Brussels does not yet organise these exams itself: candidates register for the Dutch-language exams of the Flemish Region or the French-language exams of the Walloon Region.

The steps to approval

The order is largely the same in the three Regions.

1. 1

   Director

   Arrange certificate I and the management permit for the person who will run the school.

2. 2

   Business

   Set up your company or start as a sole trader, register with the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises through a business one-stop shop and activate your VAT number if you are liable for VAT. The director's name appears in the articles of association. See business.belgium.be.

3. 3

   Establishment unit and vehicles

   Fit out your premises and vehicles and, if your category requires it, your training ground.

4. 4

   File

   Submit the applications for approval, the operating licence and the training ground together, with staff forms, recent criminal record extracts and a scale drawing, among other things. In Flanders and Wallonia you also need a certificate from the mayor or the fire service.

5. 5

   Decision

   For a complete file the authority decides within three months, with one month's extension if it informs you. If no decision comes, your application counts as accepted.

6. 6

   Start

   The approval and the licence are published in the Belgian Official Gazette. If you do not start teaching within six months, the authority withdraws the licence, after hearing the director.

What does approval cost?

The amounts are indexed. These are the amounts as published on 4 November 2026: the Walloon table and the Brussels amounts apply to 2026, the Flemish page gives no year. On top of that come the costs of your business, premises, vehicles and insurance.

What is changing in Flanders?

The decree of 15 March 2024 on professional driving instruction (in Dutch) enters into force on a date set by the Flemish Government, and on 31 December 2026 at the latest. It introduces a licence for everyone who teaches professionally, including outside an approved school, and reworks the approval of schools. It leaves most of the conditions to the Flemish Government. As of 4 November 2026 we had not found those implementing decisions published, and vlaanderen.be still refers to the royal decree. So ask the Departement MOW which rules apply to your file.

The paperwork from your first lesson

An approved school has these fixed obligations from the start.

• A written contract with every student, and your rates displayed on the premises.
• A registration card per student, an attendance list per theory cycle, a daily sheet per instructor and an annual register per establishment unit.
• A register of your training vehicles.
• Further training: at least twelve hours a year for the director and instructors (article 14).
• For invoices to companies, the rules on structured e-invoices via Peppol.

This guide gives general information and is not legal advice. Put your plans to the competent authority of your Region before you invest.

Your paperwork with BIQSDRIVE

BIQSDRIVE is driving school software for Belgium, with settings per Region (Regions and localisation). Planning, lesson reports, trip sheets and the digital registration card come together in one file per student, as described on Digital driving school. Prices are on Pricing.