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Classes C1, C1E, C & CE

Truck licence in Essen

From the 7.5-tonne rigid to the artic: here you can see at a glance what each class is allowed to drive, what you need to bring along and who can pay for the training.

AZAV-certified training provider

The truck classes compared

The truck classes C1, C1E, C and CE compared: minimum age, licences required beforehand, maximum authorised mass and trailers.
ClassMinimum agePrior licencePermissible total massTrailer
C118 yearsClass B3,501–7,500 kgup to 750 kg
C1E18 yearsClass C1up to 12,000 kgover 750 kg
C21 yearsClass Bover 3,500 kgup to 750 kg
CE21 yearsClass C–over 750 kg

Which class do you need?

Class C1 – Vans & light trucks

Over 3.5 up to 7.5 tonnes

With C1 you drive vehicles with a permissible total mass of more than 3.5 t and no more than 7.5 t. A trailer up to 750 kg is included.

Minimum age
18 years
Prior licence
Class B
Permissible total mass
3,501–7,500 kg
Trailer
up to 750 kg
Passenger seats
up to 8
Validity
5 years, renewed with a medical examination

The right fit when your vehicle sits just above the 3.5-tonne ceiling of class B – in the trades, in delivery work or for your own motorhome.

For example
  • Removal van
  • Ambulance
  • Large motorhome
  • 7.5-tonne rigid

Commercial driving needs code 95

Class C1E – C1 with a heavy trailer

Combination up to 12 tonnes

C1E puts a trailer or semi-trailer of more than 750 kg behind your C1 vehicle – as long as the combination together does not exceed 12 t.

Minimum age
18 years
Prior licence
Class C1
Trailer
over 750 kg
Combination mass
up to 12,000 kg
Validity
5 years, renewed with a medical examination
Includes
BE

The right fit when you regularly tow more than BE allows but want to stay below the big truck classes.

For example
  • 7.5-tonne rigid with trailer
  • Horse trailer
  • Plant transport

Commercial driving needs code 95

Class C – Trucks with no mass ceiling

Everything over 3.5 tonnes

With C you drive vehicles with a permissible total mass of more than 3.5 t – with no upper limit. Trailers up to 750 kg are included, and so is C1.

Minimum age
21 yearsfrom 18 with the professional driver qualification (under certain conditions)
Prior licence
Class B
Permissible total mass
over 3,500 kg
Trailer
up to 750 kg
Passenger seats
up to 8
Validity
5 years, renewed with a medical examination
Includes
C1

The right fit when you want to start as a driver and your company runs rigids – local haulage, construction sites, waste management.

For example
  • Rigid on distribution runs
  • Tipper
  • Refuse truck
  • Concrete mixer

Commercial driving needs code 95

Class CE – Artics & heavy drawbar trains

The classic 40-tonner

CE is the largest truck class: a class C towing vehicle plus a trailer or semi-trailer of more than 750 kg. That covers what runs in long-distance haulage.

Minimum age
21 yearsfrom 18 with the professional driver qualification (under certain conditions)
Prior licence
Class C
Trailer
over 750 kg
Validity
5 years, renewed with a medical examination
Includes
BE, C1E, T

The right fit when you are heading for haulage. Most people take C and CE together – doing them separately takes longer and rarely costs less.

For example
  • Artic on long-distance runs
  • Drawbar train
  • Low loader
  • Tanker

Commercial driving needs code 95

Licence facts

Every class, officially explained.

What you may drive, the minimum age, the paperwork the authority asks for and how much theory and practice the law prescribes at minimum — for every class, exactly as the official licence information sheets state it.

Truck

Truck

C – Truck

Over 3.5 t, no upper limit

Minimum age
21years
Theory
16double lessons
Extension from class B
Special drives
10drives
Extension from class B — or together with B
Validity
5years

You may drive

  • Vehicles over 3,500 kg permissible total mass with at most eight seats besides the driver’s — with a trailer up to 750 kg
  • Also emergency, rescue and workshop vehicles, motorhomes, wheelchair-accessible vehicles or hearses of this weight class
  • Within Germany also buses without passengers when only the technical condition is checked
  • Includes C1. Valid for 5 years, then renewal with a new examination.

Source: the official licence information sheets used by the school, as of October 2026. Minimums under the German driver training regulation — how many practice lessons you need beyond them is something you decide together with your instructor.

Private or commercial?

As long as you are not driving commercially – your own motorhome, say, or a private house move – the licence alone is enough. As soon as you carry goods commercially, the professional driver qualification comes on top: code 95. Initial qualification and periodic training both come from us, from a single source.

Everything about the driver qualification

Requirements & paperwork

AZAV certificate: provider approved under German employment promotion lawAZAV-certified training provider

Up to 100 % fundable

As an AZAV-certified training provider we bill your training directly to the funding body – for example against an education voucher (Bildungsgutschein).

  • Federal Employment Agency (Agentur für Arbeit)
  • Jobcenter
  • German Pension Insurance (Deutsche Rentenversicherung)
  • Statutory Accident Insurance (Berufsgenossenschaft)
  • Armed Forces Career Service (Berufsförderungsdienst)
  • Your employer (training for employees)
How the funding works

Frequently asked questions about the truck licence

C or CE – which one do I need?

With C you drive trucks over 3.5 t with no upper limit, but only with a trailer up to 750 kg. As soon as a heavier trailer or a semi-trailer is coupled up, you need CE. If you are heading for haulage, most people take both together; for local haulage, construction sites or waste management, C is often enough.

Is C1 enough for my motorhome or a 7.5-tonne truck?

The permissible total mass in the vehicle registration document (Fahrzeugschein) decides. Up to 3.5 t, class B is enough. Over 3.5 t and up to 7.5 t you need C1 – so that covers the classic 7.5-tonne rigid and large motorhomes. Anything above that is class C. A trailer up to 750 kg comes with C1; for a heavier one you need C1E, as long as the combination does not exceed 12 t.

From what age can I start?

C1 and C1E from 18. C and CE from 21 as a rule – or already from 18 with an initial qualification under the German Professional Drivers Qualification Act (Berufskraftfahrerqualifikationsgesetz). You can file the application with the driving licence authority at the earliest six months before the birthday in question. We work out what applies in your case during the consultation.

Which medical checks do I need – and how often?

Two records: a medical examination for signs of conditions that can rule out fitness to drive, and a certificate of eyesight issued by a doctor or an optician – or alternatively an ophthalmologist’s report. A truck licence is issued for five years at most; to renew it you submit both records again. The assessment of mental performance applies only to the bus classes, not to C, C1, CE or C1E.

Is the truck licence funded?

Up to 100 % is possible – for example with an education voucher (Bildungsgutschein) from the Federal Employment Agency (Agentur für Arbeit) – since 2025 also if a Jobcenter looks after you – through German Pension Insurance (Deutsche Rentenversicherung), the Statutory Accident Insurance (Berufsgenossenschaft) or your employer. We are AZAV-certified and bill the funding body directly. As a rule there is no legal entitlement to funding: whether and to what extent it is granted is decided by the funding body after a consultation. The law does know exceptions – catching up on a vocational qualification, for one. The funding page has the detail.

Do I need code 95 for private driving too?

No. The professional driver qualification applies to commercial carriage of goods and passengers. For non-commercial journeys – your own motorhome, your private house move – you do not need it. Anyone carrying materials, equipment or machinery for their own occupation is also exempt, provided driving is not their main activity.

Free consultation

Message us on WhatsApp or give us a call – we answer your questions and prepare the quote your funding body needs.

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“Hello, I am interested in the truck licence (C/CE) and in possible funding.”

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0201 74757464
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Isinger Tor 14, 45276 Essen

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As a rule there is no legal entitlement to funding – whether and to what extent it is granted is decided by the funding body after a consultation.