Become a truck or bus driver: training, requirements and support

Why more drivers are needed

In the article Utbilda dig för jobb (Train for a job) from 2 September 2026, Arbetsförmedlingen (the Swedish Public Employment Service) writes that bus and truck drivers are among the occupations that lack properly trained staff. The employment officer in the article says that anyone who takes a bus driver training programme has very good chances of getting a job, and that thousands of new bus drivers will be needed in the coming years.

Arbetsförmedlingen’s own assessment of the occupations, from June 2026, looks like this:

• Truck drivers: high chances of a job and a shortage of drivers, both in Sweden and in Västra Götaland.
• Bus and tram drivers: medium chances today, but demand in Sweden is expected to increase over the next five years.

The industry itself expects an even greater need. The employers’ organisation Transportföretagen estimated in February 2026 that 6,900 bus drivers will need to be hired over the next three years, and that a quarter of today’s bus drivers are 61 or older. Among the truck drivers that haulage companies hired during one year, 34 per cent had less than one year of experience, according to TYA, which is run jointly by employers and trade unions in the transport industry (2025). So it is possible to get a job when you are new to the occupation.

Truck or bus: licence categories and age

To drive heavy vehicles, you need a higher driving licence category. With professional driver training, you can get the licence at a younger age than otherwise:

There are also smaller categories, such as C1 for trucks up to 7.5 tonnes and D1 for smaller buses. Most jobs as a truck or bus driver require C, CE or D.

What you need to drive professionally

1. Category B licence. You need a Swedish driving licence for cars. To work as a bus driver, according to Västtrafik you need to have had it for at least one year.
2. Learner’s permit with a medical certificate. Before you may practise driving and take the tests, you need a learner’s permit (körkortstillstånd) for the heavy category. With the application, you send a medical certificate that is no more than two months old. The permit is free and normally takes up to four weeks.
3. Good eyesight. You need a visual acuity of at least 0.8 in the better eye and 0.1 in the weaker eye. Glasses and contact lenses are fine.
4. Licence tests at Trafikverket (the Swedish Transport Administration). A theory test with 60 questions, where you need 44 points, and a driving test.
5. Driver CPC (YKB). To transport goods or passengers professionally, you need a driver CPC (yrkeskompetensbevis, YKB) in addition to your driving licence. The initial training is 140 hours if you have reached the licence age, otherwise 280. It ends with a test at Trafikverket. The certificate is valid for five years and is renewed with 35 hours of periodic training.

According to Västtrafik, as a bus driver you also need a good command of spoken and written Swedish. The theory test for bus and truck is not translated, but you can apply to take it with an interpreter.

Training routes in Gothenburg

Labour market training through Arbetsförmedlingen

If you are registered with Arbetsförmedlingen, you can express interest in labour market training (arbetsmarknadsutbildning). At the end of September 2026, there was a 20-week basic training programme for trucks in Gothenburg, with a category C licence, the driver CPC (YKB), an ADR basic course for dangerous goods and forklift training. For buses, there was a two-week preparatory part in Gothenburg, while the 18-week basic training itself took place in Uddevalla.

For both, you must have turned 21 and have a category B licence. In addition, the usual conditions for labour market training apply, and it is Arbetsförmedlingen that assesses and decides. The selection changes all the time, so search for yourself in Hitta arbetsmarknadsutbildning (Find labour market training).

Vocational adult education (yrkesvux) via GRvux

Municipal adult education (Komvux) in Gothenburg has a professional driver programme for buses that starts on 4 January 2027. The last day to apply is 12 October 2026. You need to have turned 21 by the start, have a category B licence and a learner’s permit for buses, and have studied Swedish at basic level. If you do not have that, there is a combined programme where you study vocational Swedish at the same time, with Sfi C as the requirement.

For trucks, there is currently a programme in Kungsbacka starting on 11 January 2027, also with 12 October 2026 as the last day to apply. It gives category C and CE licences, the driver CPC (YKB), ADR basic, Arbete på väg (work on roads) and a forklift certificate.

The bus companies’ own training

According to Västtrafik, the transport companies often arrange their own training, and whether you get a salary during it depends on the programme and who arranges it. In Gothenburg, bus operators include Keolis, Nobina and Transdev. Keep an eye on their job pages. When this was written, we did not find any open paid training programme.

A driving school on your own

You can also take the licence and the driver CPC (YKB) at a driving school with a permit from Transportstyrelsen (the Swedish Transport Agency). Then you pay for it yourself.

Money and costs during the training

• Labour market training: you can apply for activity support (aktivitetsstöd) from Försäkringskassan (the Swedish Social Insurance Agency), SEK 365 per day or up to SEK 1,236 if it is based on your previous income.
• Vocational adult education: the programme is free of charge, and you can get student finance (studiemedel) from CSN (the Swedish Board of Student Finance), SEK 1,030 in grants and SEK 2,368 in loans per week of full-time study (2026). You pay for the driving licence, certificates and the driver CPC (YKB) yourself, but the school pays for one driving test, one theory test and one YKB test. For the bus programme in Gothenburg, course books and safety shoes also cost about SEK 2,800.
• A-kassa: the main rule is that you cannot study and get benefits from your unemployment insurance fund (a-kassa) at the same time. Talk to your a-kassa before you start.

If you train on your own, these are the official fees in 2026 for daytime tests on weekdays:

How to get started, step by step

1. 1

   Talk to Arbetsförmedlingen

   Ask whether labour market training for trucks or buses is an option for you, and what applies to your compensation.

2. 2

   Apply for a learner’s permit

   Book an appointment for a medical certificate and apply to Transportstyrelsen. It takes up to four weeks, and the permit is required for most of the training programmes.

3. 3

   Choose a route and apply

   Labour market training, yrkesvux or the bus companies’ own training. For yrkesvux in January, you apply by 12 October 2026 at the latest.

4. 4

   Training and tests

   Theory and driving, then the YKB test, the theory test and the driving test at Trafikverket.

Later on: your own haulage or bus company

Many drivers stay in the occupation for their whole working life. Others want to start their own business in time. Anyone who wants to transport goods or passengers for payment in their own company needs an operator licence (yrkestrafiktillstånd) from Transportstyrelsen.

One of the requirements is professional competence (yrkeskunnande): at least one person, the transport manager (trafikansvarig), must have passed Trafikverket’s written test. This is something different from your YKB, which applies to you as a driver. If you want to know more, there is a comparison of the professional competence tests for bus, taxi and goods at YK Kurser.

If you take part in Prepare and Match

We do not provide driver training ourselves. But in Prepare and Match (Rusta och matcha), your coach can help you see what is required, compare the training programmes and apply to yrkesvux in time. If we think labour market training would help you, we tell Arbetsförmedlingen, which assesses and decides.

Thinking about other occupations than bus and truck? Read our guide on when education can be the next step.

Written by Ajdin KurbegovicCo-founder, operations manager and job coach at Swefleet

We are a provider of Prepare and Match on behalf of Arbetsförmedlingen in Gothenburg. The text is based on the sources below and was updated on 27 September 2026. Rules can change, so always check your own case with Arbetsförmedlingen or Försäkringskassan.