This translation of the approach has been updated more recently.
Article in reference language (fr)
Wallonia is responsible for the regulation of driving lessons, for verifying the conditions of access to the profession and for issuing licences when needed. It also verifies the conditions of access to the market and provides accreditation for driving schools. Driving schools must be accredited to be able to provide the compulsory theory and practical driving lesson hours in accordance with the regulations on driving licences. To obtain such accreditation, applicants must submit a specific application and pay a fee.
For a driving school to be accredited, it must have at least one establishment unit in Belgium. An application for accreditation must therefore be submitted simultaneously with an application for authorisation of an establishment unit.
This procedure is available in French, English and German.
Creating a file
Send your accreditation application to the Walloon Public Service’s Directorate for Road Transport Regulation by emailing formation.conduite.automobile@spw.wallonie.be, attaching the following documents:
- Form AE001 – Application for accreditation for a driving school, available at http://mobilite.wallonie.be/home/je-suis/une-ecolede-conduite/formulaires.html
- The following documents must be provided with the accreditation application:
- For legal persons subject to the publication obligation, the annexes to the Belgian Official Gazette in which the company’s memorandum of association and any amendments thereto are published in full or as an extract. NB: the director of the driving school must be included in the company’s articles of association.
- A staff form for each director and qualified instructor, for which form AE 015 ‘Application for accreditation of a member of staff’ is available at http://mobilite.wallonie.be/home/jesuis/une-ecole-deconduite/formulaires.html, together with the annexes thereto (copy of driving licence and permit to teach/manage or to undertake a training course).
- A criminal record certificate less than 3 months old attesting to compliance with the conditions laid down in Article 12(1)(1) and (2) for the person(s) legally representing the legal entity or for the natural person applying for accreditation, as well as for the management and teaching staff.
- The following documents must be provided with the accreditation application:
- Form AE002 – Application for authorisation to operate an establishment unit, available at http://mobilite.wallonie.be/home/je-suis/une-ecole-de-conduite/formulaires.html
- The following documents must be provided with the application for authorisation to operate an establishment unit:
- A sworn statement attesting to the use of the premises to be used for Obtaining authorisation to operate an establishment unit Obtaining accreditation for a member of the staff of a driving school Obtaining approval for a training site Obtaining a permit to teach – Accredited driving school instructor administration of the establishment unit.
- A scale drawing of the classroom(s) and training site (not necessary when the application is made only for category B), indicating the equipment referred to in Articles 15 and 16 of the Royal Decree of 11 May 2004 and the teaching categories applied for. NB: if the site has already been approved, the applicant should only mention the registration number of the site on the application.
- A certificate from the mayor or the competent fire brigade stating that the classroom(s) and administrative premises meet the legal standards in force.
- An outline of the theory and practical lessons for the categories applied for for this establishment unit in accordance with annexes 4, 5, 5/1 and 5/2 of the Royal Decree of 23 March 1998 on driving licences.
- A copy of the certificate of conformity (for a category AM vehicle) and the registration certificate(s) for any other vehicles owned by the driving school or at its disposal under a use agreement. NB: proof of purchase of a vehicle may be sufficient if the driving school does not yet have one.
- The following documents must be provided with the application for authorisation to operate an establishment unit:
Validation of the file
When the conditions are met, the SPW will issue a driving school accreditation no later than 3 months after submission of the complete application and the authorisation to operate an establishment unit and, unless one already exists, the approval of the training site.
Applicants will be informed in writing as to whether their application is complete or incomplete, no later than 3 months after the application is received. In the absence of a notification concerning the completeness of the application within this period, the application shall be considered complete.
Should a complete file not be received within 3 months of the date of receipt of the letter indicating that the application was incomplete, the accreditation application will be closed.
The SPW may extend the period for issuing its decision by 1 month. It will inform the applicant of this accordingly.
If the accreditation of the driving school, authorisation to operate an establishment unit or approval of a site for a complete application is not issued within the prescribed period, the absence of a decision is equivalent to an acceptance decision.
Accreditation for a driving school may be granted only to a natural person or to a commercial company as referred to in Article 2(2) of the Company Code, with the exception of economic interest groups and ‘sociétés à finalité sociale’ (social-purpose enterprises) as referred to in Article 661 of the aforesaid Code, save as otherwise provided for in Article 2 of the Royal Decree of 11 May 2004. A natural person or legal entity may hold only one driving school accreditation. Obtaining a driving school accreditation also depends on the conditions specified in the accreditation application and the application for authorisation to operate an establishment unit.