Driving school tuition in the Republic of Belarus could rise significantly. The potential increase in cost is linked to the Ministry of Transport and Communications' decision to change the approach to training future drivers and to implement new state standards.

The sweeping changes to the curricula will officially take effect on January 1, 2027.

More hours behind the wheel: emphasis on practice

The main innovation concerns the redistribution of instructional time. The total number of hours allocated for the entire course will remain the same, but the program structure will change dramatically.

Currently: the required hours for practical driving are 50.

From January 1, 2027: the mandatory practical driving time with an instructor will increase to 70 hours.

Because future drivers will spend considerably more time behind the wheel of training vehicles, this will inevitably lead to higher costs for driving schools in fuel purchases, vehicle depreciation, and instructor wages. Industry experts agree that the additional load will be reflected in the final price of services – the average cost per trainee will rise.

Digitalization and simulators

In addition to increasing driving hours, the Ministry of Transport and Communications plans to actively introduce modern technical solutions into the educational process. Driving schools will begin using specialized virtual‑reality simulators and interactive software products.

This approach is intended to simulate complex and emergency road situations for trainees in a safe classroom environment. The ministry expects that integrating simulators and increasing real practice will improve training quality, and that novice drivers will behave more responsibly and confidently on public roads.