Korean Driving Skills Test (Course Test)

The skills test (기능시험) is inside the test center, not on public roads. You take it after you pass the written test.

Car (Class 1 and Class 2 Ordinary)

You drive at least 300 m on the course. Pass mark: 80 out of 100. Fee: 25,000 KRW. English and Chinese voice and screen guidance are available.

What is checked:

Controls: lights, turn signals, wipers, gear
Lane keeping and sudden stop
Stop and start on a hill
Left and right turns
Right-angle (T) parking
Intersection with traffic lights
Acceleration section

Instant fail (car)

No seatbelt.
An accident, or a tire touches the curb.
You do not start within 30 seconds of the start signal.
You skip or fail an item (no stop on the hill, not touching the parking check line, no speed-up in the acceleration section).
Hill: more than 30 seconds, or rolling back 1 m or more.
Running a red light, or the front bumper crosses the stop line.
Not following the examiner, or driving drunk or impaired.

Tips (car)

Put on your seatbelt before the start and keep it on to the end.
You have about 5 minutes to finish the course.
Controls: wait until the voice finishes. Then do exactly what it asks, with your foot on the brake.
Use your turn signal at the start, at every turn and at the finish. Each missed signal costs 5 points.
Hill: stop fully in the stop zone for at least 3 seconds, then go. Rolling back 50 cm costs 10 points.
Parking: you have 2 minutes. A wheel on the line, going over time, or forgetting the parking brake each cost 10 points. After the "complete" announcement, pull up the parking brake, then release it.
Traffic lights: on red or yellow, stop behind the line.
Acceleration section: speed up to over 20 km/h, then slow down smoothly before the end.
Drive slowly. Touching a curb ends the test.

Motorcycle (Class 2 Small) and motorized bicycle

Four courses: zigzag, S-curve, narrow road, and continuous lane change. Pass mark: 90 out of 100. Fee: 14,000 KRW (Class 2 Small, over 125cc) or 10,000 KRW (motorized bicycle, 125cc or less). Multi-wheel motorized bicycles do only the zigzag and S-curve.

Instant fail:

Not starting within 20 seconds.
Failing any course.
An accident or leaving the course.
No helmet or protective gear from start to finish.

With a pass mark of 90, you can lose only one small point. Ride slowly and stay inside the lines.

If you fail

You can try again 3 days after the test day. For example, fail on Monday the 1st and you can retake from Thursday the 4th. You must pass within 1 year of passing the written test.

Book your test: How to book. Next: Road test.

Sources: Skills test · KOROAD English guide · License process