BC Class 7 overview
BC Class 7 study guide: key rules on all 18 topics (Part 2)
Free BC Class 7 study guide, part 2 of 2: Graduated licensing and penalties. Plain-language notes with official sources and related practice questions.
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Graduated licensing and penalties
Learner (L) and novice (N) stage restrictions, supervisor and passenger rules, GLP penalties, fines and penalty points, impaired driving penalties and vehicle impoundment.
Practise Graduated licensing and penalties questionsFlashcardsOfficial chapter
The Graduated Licensing Program
- GLP aims to cut crashes among new drivers of any age by building experience gradually under lower-risk conditions.
Learner (L) restrictions, October 19, 2026
- A qualified supervisor must sit beside you: age 22 or older, holding a valid Class 1–5 licence without a zero-BAC/BDC restriction (current ICBC rule from October 19, 2026).
- Zero blood alcohol content: no driving after any amount of alcohol.
- Zero blood drug concentration: no driving with certain drugs in your body, including cannabis (THC).
- No hand-held or hands-free electronic devices (cellphones, music/gaming devices, GPS) while driving.
- Display the official L sign in the back windshield or on the rear of the vehicle, visible to drivers behind.
- Passenger limit: one passenger, excluding the qualified supervisor and immediate family (from October 19, 2026).
- Driving hours: only between 5 a.m. and midnight.
- Free replacement L signs at any driver licensing office; a temporary L sign can be downloaded from icbc.com.
Novice (N) restrictions, October 19, 2026
- May drive unsupervised. N drivers under 25 must display the N sign and follow the passenger limit below; drivers aged 25+ are exempt from those two requirements. All N drivers must keep zero alcohol and drug content and must not use hand-held or hands-free electronic devices.
- Passenger limit: one passenger, unless (a) the passengers are immediate family — parents, children, spouse, brothers, sisters, grandparents, including step and foster relationships; (b) a qualified supervisor aged 22+ with a valid Class 1–5 licence without a zero-BAC/BDC restriction sits beside you; or (c) you are in driver training supervised by a licensed instructor.
- Free replacement N signs at licensing offices; temporary N sign downloadable.
GLP penalties
- New drivers' records are closely monitored by the Superintendent of Motor Vehicles; a ticket or offence can bring a warning letter, probation or a prohibition. GLP drivers face extra penalties on top of the regular ones.
- Breaking any L or N restriction can bring a fine and penalty points; so can speeding and other violations.
- More points or more serious offences can lead to a prohibition of one month to a year or more.
- Violating the alcohol restriction or driving under the influence of drugs can bring an immediate roadside suspension or prohibition, recorded on your record, possibly followed by a further prohibition.
- Prohibition in the L stage: the L stage is extended — no time counts toward the N stage until the prohibition is served and the licence reinstated.
- Prohibition in the N stage: all time accumulated toward graduating is lost. (Duration needed afterwards not used — scope limit.)
- Fast fact: GLP drivers who need a device must pull over and stop where safe.
Penalties for unsafe driving; fines and points table
- A prohibition makes it illegal to drive for a set time. Driving while prohibited can lead to impoundment plus fines or jail.
- Licence reinstatement fee after a prohibition: $250.
- Table (fines include the 15% victim surcharge levy):
- Speeding in a school zone, 1–20 km/h over: $196, 3 points
- Speeding, 1–20 km/h over: $138, 3 points
- Going through a red light: $167, 2 points
- Improper turn at an intersection: $109, 3 points
- Passing without a clear view: $109, 3 points
- Failing to yield to a pedestrian: $167, 3 points
- Using an electronic device (effective June 1, 2016): $368, 4 points
- Total: $1,254, 21 points
- A passenger refusing to wear a seatbelt: $167 fine; if the passenger is under 16, the driver gets the fine.
- Most fines can be reduced by $25 if paid within 30 days.
- ICBC also sends a driver penalty point bill based on points accumulated in the year.
- Driving without a valid licence, in the wrong class, or contrary to licence restrictions can breach your insurance coverage (claim may be denied).
Driver improvement
- The threshold for intervention (warning letters, prohibitions) is stricter for GLP drivers.
GLP impaired-driving penalties
- Violating zero BAC or zero drug rules in GLP can bring an immediate roadside suspension or prohibition, a fine, penalty points and/or vehicle impoundment; these go on your record and may lead to a much longer prohibition; more violations, longer prohibitions.
- N-stage prohibition: the clock toward graduating resets to zero.
Vehicle impoundment
- Besides impaired driving, police can impound the vehicle you drive for: driving unlicensed; driving while suspended or prohibited; excessive speeding (40 km/h or more over the posted limit); street racing or stunt driving; riding, or letting a passenger ride, while improperly seated.
- Immediate impoundment: 7 days, which can escalate to 30 or 60 days for repeat offenders.
- The owner pays the towing and storage fees to get the vehicle back.
- Owners must make sure only licensed drivers use their vehicles (e.g. a company vehicle lent to a prohibited/unlicensed driver can be impounded).
Written in our own words from: Learn to Drive Smart
Official learning resources
Our questions are original, unofficial practice. These free public resources are published by government bodies or test providers. Official courses and certification may have separate fees.
Official study guide / resources · EN
Learn to Drive Smart guide (icbc.com) (opens in a new tab)Official practice quiz · EN
ICBC practice knowledge test (icbc.com) (opens in a new tab)
Keep practising
- ICBC signs test50 B.C. road sign, traffic light and road marking questions for the ICBC knowledge test, each explained with the Learn to Drive Smart page behind it.
- B.C. road signs chartEvery road sign drawn in our ICBC practice bank on one page, from stop and yield to work-zone and railway signs, with what each one means and what to do.
- BC Class 7 questions and answers (printable)50 original BC Class 7 practice questions on one printable sheet, with a separate answer key, an explanation and the handbook chapter for every answer. Print it or save it as a PDF. Free; not the official test.
- How to get a learner's licence in B.C.
- ICBC road test guide
- Online or in-person knowledge test
- Current L driving restrictions
- BC Class 7 Mock Exam 1 – 50 QuestionsTimed practice · 45 minutes · answers explained
- BC Class 7 Mock Exam 2 – 50 QuestionsTimed practice · 45 minutes · answers explained
- BC Class 7 Practice Test 150 questions with explanations
- BC Class 7 Practice Test 250 questions with explanations
- BC Class 7 Practice Test 350 questions with explanations
Practice by topic
- Regulatory signsStop, yield and speed signs, school and playground zone signs, crosswalk signs, lane use and turn control signs, parking signs and reserved lane signs.
- Warning signs and object markersYellow diamond warning signs for curves, hills, merges, lane endings, crossings, wildlife and road hazards, plus object markers on obstructions.
- Construction, guide and railway signsOrange construction and work zone signs, information and destination signs, and railway crossing signs.
- Traffic lights and lane control signalsSteady and flashing lights, green and yellow arrows, transit priority signals and overhead lane control signals.
- Road markingsYellow and white lines, passing rules by line type, crosswalk and stop lines, reserved lane and bicycle lane markings, and painted islands.
- Your vehicle and safety equipmentSeat and head restraint adjustment, seatbelts, child car seat stages, airbags, mirrors, controls, lights, anti-lock brakes, pre-trip checks, tires and winter preparation.
- Intersections and right-of-waySignalling, controlled and uncontrolled intersections, where to stop, right-of-way at lights, stop signs and yield signs, traffic circles, roundabouts and entering a roadway.
- Lanes, turns and passingChoosing a lane, turning right and left, multiple and two-way left-turn lanes, U-turns, HOV, bus and bicycle lanes, passing, merging, freeway entrances and exits, and turning around.
- Parking rulesWhere parking is illegal, required distances from hydrants, crosswalks, stop signs and railway crossings, curb distance and hill parking.
- Observation and hazard perceptionScanning ahead, behind and at intersections, mirror and shoulder checks, blind spots, hazard perception, assessing risk and choosing a solution.
- Speed, space and communicationSpeed limits and appropriate speeds, curves, steering, stopping distance, the two-second rule, space behind and beside, safe gaps, signals, lights and the horn.
- Pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclesYielding to pedestrians, passing distance and rules for cyclists, and sharing the road with motorcycle riders and other passenger vehicles.
- Large vehicles, buses, emergency vehicles and trainsLarge vehicle blind spots, school buses, transit buses, emergency vehicles, stopped vehicles with flashing lights, construction zones, railway crossings and horses.
- Fitness to drive, distraction and attitudeVision, health and fatigue, cellphones and other devices, dangerous emotions, risk taking, peer pressure, unsafe passengers and aggression on the road.
- Alcohol, drugs and impairmentHow alcohol and drugs affect driving, blood alcohol facts, medications, illegal drugs, cannabis and combining drugs with alcohol.
- Emergency driving strategiesEmergency braking, anti-lock brakes, skid recovery, tire blowouts, brake failure and other breakdowns, animals on the road, collision avoidance and what to do at a crash.
- Weather, visibility and night drivingLoss of visibility, glare, rain, hydroplaning, deep water, ice and snow, being stranded, wind and turbulence, headlight use and overdriving your headlights.
- Graduated licensing and penaltiesLearner (L) and novice (N) stage restrictions, supervisor and passenger rules, GLP penalties, fines and penalty points, impaired driving penalties and vehicle impoundment.