During one of the lessons, I told my instructor that I have an Indian driving license and I have been driving for 15+ years.
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We have been living in Finland for a couple of years now, due to the excellent public transport facilities in Helsinki, Espoo and surrounding areas, for the most part, we never really felt a need to own a car. However, though the public transport is great within the capital region and surrounding areas, you might still need a car to take kids around to after-school activities, weekend activities (When public transport is running at a reduced capacity), haul large goods, go on a one-day trip to neighbouring cities etc. During the summer (Summer of 2024) I had 4 weeks of vacation with no travel plan, and I finally decided to get my Finnish driver’s license.
As an immigrant in Finland, I had two options to obtain a Finnish driver’s license,
- Exchange my Indian driver’s license for a Finnish driver’s license since India is a signatory for the Vienna Road convention. Only licenses permitting the driving of Group 1 vehicles can be exchanged
- Get a new license after completing the training and examination
So, the only option was to complete the training and examination to obtain the new license.
The steps and official costs involved in obtaining a new passenger car license are
- Obtaining a driving license permit – The driving license permit can be obtained online if the age requirement is met for the driving license category. The permit cost is €24
- Completing driving instructions – The driving instructions can be obtained either at a driving school, from the person holding an instructor permit or with a combination of the two.
At a minimum, we need 22 hours of lessons.- 4 hours of EAS theory lessons (ENSIMMÄISEN AJOKORTIN SUORITTAJAN – Training for first driver’s license)
- 4 hours of risk management theory lessons
- 10 hours of driving lessons including driving in the city, motorway, secondary roads etc.
- 4 hours of risk management driving lessons including driving in the rain, dark, slippery conditions etc
- Completing the theory and driving exam – The theory and driving test can be taken at Ajovarma service points (Ajovarma Oy is a service company that handles all customer services for the Finnish transportation agency TRAFICOM). Apart from the official languages Finnish and Swedish the theory and driving tests can be taken in English. The cost of the theory test is €40. The cost of the driving test is €99
I applied for the driver’s license permit online from the Finnish transportation authority and obtained it instantly. The permit is valid for three years.
Selecting a driving school
Armed with the above information related to the overall process of obtaining a new license and driver’s license permit, I started the driving school hunt at the beginning of May. The main criteria for choosing a driving school were:
- Theory and driving lessons in English
- Well-reputed driving school with more licenses issued on the first try
- It provides only the minimum required training hours since I already know the basics of driving. Most driving school packages involve more hours of training since they are tailored for teenagers who need more training hours. But in recent years many driving schools started offering packages with minimum required training hours to cater for the needs of immigrants coming to Finland who are experienced drivers.
- Reasonable cost. The cost of driving training in Finland (like other European countries) is very high. Many driving schools charge more than €1200 for minimum driving instructions.
After searching and reviewing the driving schools, I decided to get driver’s training from “Autokoulu Eco” driving school in Espoo. This is a family-run driving school with only one branch. I Choose the “EcoLiteS” course for €759 in a manual car.
The “EcoliteS” course includes:
- 8 theory lessons – Possibility to take classes virtually
- 14 driving lessons – 7 lessons in the car and 7 in the simulator.
- DL e-book – Online e-book for self-studies
- Netreeni – Training program to prepare for theory exams
- Using driving school car for the 1st driver’s test – For subsequent tests (If the first test is failed) then we can use the driving school car after paying the additional cost)
The payment is made in multiple stages:
- €50 To get access to the learning portal with DL e-book and Netreeni training portals.
- €349 To start EAS and Risk management theory lessons and simulator lessons
- €350 To start driving lessons in the car and to use the driving school’s car in the test
Major terms and conditions of the driving school
- If the student doesn’t cancel a booked simulator or driving lessons before midnight of the previous working day, the driving school will impose a fee of €74.
- During the driving test, the student is responsible for the driving even though the examiner may intervene in the case of an emergency. If something goes wrong (Damage to the car etc.), then the student is responsible for paying a risk fee of €1200.
- Extra driving lessons cost €74
Self-study
After paying €50, I got access to the learning portal. I started the DL e-book. DL e-book is an online self-study material that gives a basic introduction to the concepts of driving passenger cars.
There are 19 modules in it and those are:
- Driver training and learning
- Car and its handling
- Vehicle behaviour and controls
- Basic skills of a responsible driver
- Interaction skills in traffic
- Traffic environment and traffic control
- Driving in city traffic
- Junctions: Lanes and positioning
- Junctions: Right of way
- Driving on Highway
- Overtaking
- Driving in difficult conditions: rain and darkness
- Driving in difficult conditions: slippery roads
- Planning your trip
- Anticipation - incident - accident
- Social and ecological aspects of driving
- The driving task and self-control
- Controlling your driving condition
- Car and self-control
Each module has a video explaining the concept and the same are provided in PDF format as well. At the end of many modules, there is an exercise which students need to complete. These exercises are time-bound, meaning we must answer them within 10 seconds. All questions must be answered correctly to mark a module as completed. After completing a module, we get a unique completion code, and we must give it to the instructor if requested (To check if the module was completed by the student). By the end of May, I had completed the self-study modules.
Online theory lessons
EAS theory lessons are mainly related to the following topics:
- Driver education and learning environment
- Goals of driver education and traffic management
- Basic skills of a responsible driver
- Traffic interaction
Risk management theory lessons are mainly related to the following topics - Traffic accidents and helping in a traffic accident
- Car safety equipment and economical driving
- Driving in difficult weather conditions
- Managing your driving ability (internal risks)
Each lesson is broken down into multiple chapters, after each chapter there are exercises. We can move to the next chapter only after completing the exercises. The chapters can’t be skipped.
The online theory lessons can be watched only once, the lessons can be only taken when the control room of the driving school is operational. When we take online lessons, the person from the control room can call us on WhatsApp or Signal to check if we are really in front of the computer to take the classes. In my case, no one called me while I took the classes.
Along with the lessons, I was also doing exercises and mock theory tests on the Netreeni and preparing for the theory tests.
By mid-June, I completed all the theory lessons and booked the first simulator lesson at the beginning of July.
Driving lessons
At the beginning of the summer vacation, I paid the third instalment of €350 and visited the driving school for the first lesson. The first lesson is always on the simulator. I was able to take the second lesson on the same day since the simulator was free. The first two lessons were about car controls and driving on a track at multiple speeds, moving forward and reversing the car in a continuous “S” shape that progressively gets sharper.
The third driving lesson was in a car, we went to an industrial area with wide roads. In my previous interactions, I had told the instructor that I have a driver’s license from India and have been driving for 15+ years. After the third class, he believed that I had sufficient knowledge about the car controls and had no problem with moving the car in first gear or crawling at 5 Km/h. In the past, it seems he had a few students who claimed that they had licenses from other countries but didn’t know anything about the cars let alone the driving. After those incidents, he is sceptical about students who claim to have licenses from other countries. He didn’t mention the countries of those students and I didn’t ask
Theory test
Once I had cleared 5 mock tests on the Netreeni training tool. The instructor booked the theory test on my behalf on 16th July at 11 AM. The driving school can only book the test; however, we must pay before appearing for the test using an online booking confirmation link. We must pick up the EAS theory lesson completion certificate from the driving school before appearing for the test
I reached the test centre around 10:30 AM. Customers with an appointment must wait in the lobby till their appointment time and no need to get any tokens. At 11 AM they called for people waiting for the test. At the counter, they checked my ID, checked the EAS theory lesson completion certificate. Mobile phones or other devices are not allowed inside the test room. They must be handed over for depositing in a secure locker. I handed over my mobile phone at the counter.
Then they handed us the tablet to take the test and directed me to one of the test rooms. Each test room has a chair, table and tablet holder. Each room has surveillance cameras.
The instructions for the test are first displayed on the screen and once I read through all the instructions, the test data set gets downloaded to the table and the test gets started.
The exam has a 30-minute time limit and the exam includes three areas:
- Multiple choice questions 15 (maximum mistakes 4) – The questions deal with cars, traffic and rules related to driving
- Risk questions 5 (maximum mistakes 1) – The questions deal with the risk involved with driving. Risk questions may contain images.
- Situational questions (images) 50 (maximum mistakes 7) – Image questions deal with
- I can drive straight from this lane
- I can turn right from this lane
- I can turn left from this lane
- I need to give way when driving straight
- I need to give way when turning right
- I need to give way when turning left
- I can overtake
- I can change the lane
- I need to stop
- The car in the picture is parked correctly
Netreeni also uses similar computer-generated images In the mock tests and exercises. An example image is
Enthusiasts can take a free Netreeni theory test at Netreeni. Change the language to English and open the Netreeni Demo
I completed the test in about 20 minutes. Then for about 6 to 7 minutes I double-checked the answer and submitted the answer. The overall results are emailed and displayed on the screen instantly. The questions and the correct answers are not emailed or displayed. So after submitting the answers, there is no way to know which questions we got wrong.
I passed the test. The questions were straight forward and the English language used in the questions was very good. It wasn’t a bad translation job.
After the test, I went back to the counter and handed over the table. They gave a printed payment receipt (For online payment) and gave the mobile phone from the secure storage.
Continuing the driving lessons
Post completing the theory test, I continued the driving lessons. I planned to take the driving test at the end of July. Since it was a holiday season, all the slots were full till the end of August. Many university students use the summer vacation to get their first driver’s license.
The only option was to stretch the remaining driving lessons in August after my summer holidays. And the instructor didn’t want me to complete the lessons in July and take the test at the end of August or the beginning of September.
After one of the classes, the instructor was checking for an open slot for a driving test and there was an available slot on 2nd August at 8 AM. He asked if I could make it. Even though the vacations were over, I said I could make it since it was at 8 AM. He then booked the driving test and we worked backwards and scheduled all the remaining lessons.
Driving test
The driving test ensures that you know how to act as a responsible driver and that you know how to apply basic driving skills independently and safely in various situations. You must know how to identify and evaluate risks and your activities and their effects on traffic safety. The driving test lasts 60 to 65 minutes, of which at least 45 minutes is driving time.
The basic skills checked during the examination are:
- Knowledge-related workings of different car controls turn signals, wipers, fog lamps, defoggers, lights, seat control, mirrors etc.
- How to check oil level, coolant level, fuel level etc etc
- Car controls
- Observation and appraisal
- Situational speed
- Signals
- Driving line and driving order
- Distance to other road users
- Following traffic guidance
The most common reasons for driving test rejection:
- Passing a stopped or parked vehicle in front of the pedestrian crossing without stopping
- Driving when the traffic light is red
- If you do not stop at a STOP sign
- Passing a traffic divider on the wrong side
- Incorrect driving order
- Prohibited driving direction
- Incorrect grouping for turning
- Short safety distance
- Accidentally changing lanes at an intersection
- Overspeeding
- Reversing dangerous way
- Changing lanes without good observations
- Ignoring a bus leaving the bus stop
- Weak observation in the equal intersection
- Weak observation of pedestrians and cyclists
- Driving in the opposite lane
- Difficulties in vehicle handling skills
- Too slow speed when joining the highway
Two days before the test I paid €99 using the driving test booking link
I reached the driving school at 7:15 AM and filled out the self-assessment form for the driving test and risk training completion certificate.
The assessment areas and the possible grades are as follows:
- Vehicle handling and management
- Consideration of road users
- Anticipation and management of traffic situations
- Management of own operations
I was very conservative in giving self-assessment and I gave 3,2,2,2 respectively.
Then we completed the last 30 mins of driving lessons and went through common mistakes people make during the tests. We reached the test centre exactly at 8 AM.
The examiner checked my ID card against the application permit and checked the Risk training completion certificate and self-assessment form. He entered my self-assessment grades on his tablet. He then went through how he would be giving the directions to follow while driving, it could be “take next left”, “take next right”, “take the exit towards Helsinki”, “take the third exit at the roundabout” etc. Missing a turn is ok and it doesn’t influence the outcome of the test. But the test taker must follow the traffic rules even after missing the exit or turn. He also clarified that he is not looking for a perfect driver, he is looking at how well I can adapt to conditions around us, how I consider other road users while driving, and if I drive ecologically, and responsibly. He also clarified that during the test I could ask questions or discuss about driving situation with him if needed.
Afterwards, we started the driving test and drove for about 45 minutes. We did drive through motorways, primary roads, secondary roads, and roundabouts.
We reached the test centre, the last task was to park the car in the parking space. I reversed the car into the parking space. He said the test was over, I passed it and he is happy to give me the license. I then told him I have been driving for 15+ years and he said “I can tell that you have driving experience based on your driving”. We went through the self-assessment grades and he changed my grades from 3,2,2,2 to 4,4,4,4. Overall he was satisfied with my driving performance. He handed over a temporary paper license which is valid for 6 months and assured me that I would get my license card in the post within a week. He also clarified that the paper license is only valid in mainland Finalnd and is not valid in Åland Island and the rest of the EU.
A few aspects were not tested during the driving test:
- Stop sign
- Using car controls while driving
- General questions related to car checks. Like, as opening the boot, oil check etc
- General questions related to car usability. Like turning on the wiper, rear wipers, high beam, seat adjustment, mirror adjustment etc.
I am happy that I was able to get the license on my first attempt and overall it was a nice experience to get driving lessons from a school.
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