Belarus GAI Theory A/AM cheat sheet

A driver must carry and hand over for inspection: driving licence of the correct category, vehicle registration certificate, and compulsory civil liability insurance certificate; a valid medical certificate is required when the licence carries a medical condition restriction.

The driver of the vehicle involved must stop, switch on hazard lights, display the warning triangle, and report the incident to the police (GAI) if anyone is injured, killed, or material damage exceeds the statutory threshold; leaving the scene is prohibited.

Category AM covers mopeds (engine up to 50 cc or electric motor up to 4 kW, design speed up to 50 km/h) and light quadricycles; category A covers motorcycles with engine over 50 cc or electric power over 4 kW.

Category A is granted from 18 years; AM from 16 years. A driver holding A may drive AM vehicles; subcategory A1 (125 cc, 11 kW) is granted from 16 years and does not authorise riding a full-power motorcycle.

Drivers must obey the orders of police officers regulating traffic even when those orders contradict signs, markings or signals; traffic controller signals outrank traffic lights, which outrank signs, which outrank markings.

The driver must present documents on demand and must not transfer control to a person lacking the corresponding category, or to a person in a state of intoxication, illness or fatigue that endangers safety.

Seat belts must be worn by the driver and all occupants where fitted; motorcyclists and moped riders must wear a fastened protective helmet, and carrying a passenger without a helmet is prohibited.

Registration plates must be legible and mounted in the prescribed places; driving a vehicle that has not passed the mandatory technical inspection, or with a prohibited tint on glass, is an offence.

Warning signs are triangular with a red border on a white ground and give advance notice of a hazard 50-100 m ahead in built-up areas and 150-300 m outside them, unless a supplementary plate states another distance.

Priority signs (the inverted red-bordered triangle 'Give Way', the red octagon 'STOP', and the yellow diamond 'Priority Road') regulate right-of-way independently of the general priority rules at an intersection.

Prohibitory signs are round with a red border (or blue ground for mandatory instructions); they begin at the sign and end at the nearest intersection or at an 'end of restriction' sign or a supplementary plate showing the length of the restricted section.

A round red-bordered sign with a red cross on blue ground ('No Stopping') prohibits both stopping and parking; a single red diagonal stroke ('No Parking') prohibits parking only, and stopping for up to 5 minutes for boarding or loading remains allowed.

Information and special-prescription signs are usually rectangular or square with a blue ground; a blue square with a white arrow indicates a one-way road, and lane signs show the permitted direction for each lane.

Supplementary plates (small white rectangles below a sign) specify distance to, length of, or direction of the restriction, and can restrict the sign's action to a class of vehicles or to certain days and hours.

Temporary signs on a yellow ground and portable warning signs take precedence over permanent signs of the same meaning when they conflict, because they reflect the actual roadworks situation.

A 'No Entry' sign (red disc with white horizontal bar) forbids entry for all vehicles from that side; a red-bordered disc with a white arrow pointing up ('No Vehicles') forbids movement of all vehicles in both directions.

A solid white line along the carriageway edge or centre may not be crossed; a broken white centre line may be crossed only when it is safe and does not interfere with oncoming traffic.

A double solid line (two parallel solid lines) may not be crossed from either side; a combination of a solid and a broken line may be crossed only from the side of the broken line.

A solid yellow line at the kerb marks a section where stopping and parking are prohibited; a broken yellow line marks a section where parking is prohibited but a short stop is allowed.

White zigzag lines approaching a pedestrian crossing mean stopping and parking are prohibited there, keeping the approach sightlines clear.

A wide broken white line across the lane (a 'give way' line) requires the driver to yield; a solid white transverse line with the word STOP requires a full stop before the line.

Arrows painted on the roadway prescribe the direction of travel from that lane; a driver who has entered a lane with a prescribed arrow must follow it, and changing lanes across a solid line is prohibited.

A hatched area bounded by solid lines (a traffic island) may not be entered or driven over; a hatched area bounded by a broken line may be crossed only when necessary and safe.

Yellow diagonal cross-hatching inside a junction box means the driver may not enter the box unless the exit beyond it is clear, so as not to block cross traffic.

A steady red light means stop before the stop line (or before the traffic light if there is no line); a steady yellow light means stop, except when stopping would require emergency braking, in which case proceeding is allowed.

A flashing yellow light means the intersection is uncontrolled and the driver must apply the general priority rules and the requirements of the signs and markings present.

A green light permits movement, but a driver turning left or right must yield to pedestrians crossing the road being entered and to vehicles coming from the opposite direction when turning left.

A green arrow in an additional section permits movement in the indicated direction regardless of the main signal, but only if the vehicle is in the lane from which that direction is permitted.

A red light combined with a green arrow in the additional section allows movement only in the arrow direction, after yielding to other road users.

Traffic controller signals: arms extended horizontally to the sides mean vehicles may proceed straight ahead and to the right from the controller's sides, and pedestrians may cross behind and in front of the controller.

Traffic controller signals: right arm extended forward means vehicles may proceed only to the right of the controller, and pedestrians may cross behind the controller's back.

Traffic controller signals: the 'attention' position (right arm raised vertically) means all vehicles must stop in all directions except those already in the intersection, which must clear it.

Priority order of regulation: traffic controller signals > traffic lights > road signs > road markings; a driver must follow the higher-ranking regulator when they conflict.

Before starting, changing lanes, turning or stopping, the driver must signal with the direction indicator, check mirrors and blind spots, and yield to other road users already on the road; the signal does not confer the right of way.

Vehicles must keep to the right-hand lanes; on a road with two lanes in the same direction, the left lane may be used for overtaking, for turning left, or when the right lane is occupied or unsuitable.

Overtaking is prohibited at pedestrian crossings, at railway crossings and immediately before them, on bridges, in tunnels, at intersections (except on priority roads), and where visibility is limited.

Overtaking must be completed on the left; passing on the right is permitted only when the vehicle ahead is signalling a left turn and there is room to pass on the right without leaving the carriageway.

A driver being overtaken must not increase speed; the overtaking driver must ensure the lane ahead is clear for the whole manoeuvre and return to the original lane without cutting in.

A U-turn is prohibited at pedestrian crossings, in tunnels, on bridges, at railway crossings, where visibility is under 100 m, and at intersections with a 'No U-Turn' sign.

Reversing is prohibited at intersections, on pedestrian crossings, at railway crossings, on bridges and overpasses, and where visibility is under 100 m; the reversing driver must yield to all other road users.

Turning left or making a U-turn, the driver must yield to oncoming vehicles going straight or turning right; turning right, the driver must yield to pedestrians and cyclists continuing along the road being entered.

In built-up areas (settlements) the maximum permitted speed is 60 km/h; in residential and courtyard areas it is 20 km/h; outside built-up areas on ordinary roads it is 90 km/h.

On motorways the maximum is 110 km/h; a vehicle towing a trailer is limited to 70 km/h, and a motorcycle towing a trailer or carrying a passenger in a sidecar is subject to the same towing limits.

The driver must choose speed so as to stop within the distance visible ahead; where visibility is under 100 m, speed must not exceed 50 km/h, and in fog, rain or snow the same limit applies.

The driver must maintain a following distance that allows stopping without collision if the vehicle ahead brakes suddenly; a common rule is at least half the speedometer reading in metres, and at least 2 seconds in time.

Stopping and parking are prohibited within 5 m of a pedestrian crossing, at intersections and 5 m from the edge of the crossed carriageway, at bus stops, and where the vehicle would block a traffic light or sign.

Parking is prohibited where the vehicle would leave less than 3 m between it and the opposite kerb or a solid line, and on the carriageway of a road with a solid line when a shoulder is available.

On a hill, a parked vehicle must be secured against rolling: wheels turned towards the kerb when facing downhill, towards the road when facing uphill, with the parking brake applied and a gear engaged.

Stopping is permitted for boarding or alighting passengers and for loading or unloading, provided the vehicle is not left unattended and does not obstruct traffic; parking means leaving the vehicle for longer than 5 minutes.

At an uncontrolled intersection of equal-priority roads, the driver must yield to vehicles approaching from the right (the 'interference on the right' rule); a tram has priority over all trackless vehicles regardless of direction.

At an intersection of unequal-priority roads, vehicles on the priority road have the right of way; a driver on a secondary road must yield at the 'Give Way' or 'STOP' sign, and the STOP sign requires a full stop.

A driver turning left must yield to oncoming vehicles going straight or turning right; a driver turning right must yield to pedestrians and cyclists crossing the road being entered.

A driver entering an intersection on a green light may complete the turn even if the light changes, provided the exit is clear; entering an intersection when the exit is blocked is prohibited.

A roundabout marked with a 'Give Way' sign requires entering drivers to yield to vehicles already circulating; without such a sign, the general right-hand rule applies.

A vehicle emerging from a yard, courtyard, petrol station or other adjacent territory must yield to all vehicles and pedestrians on the road it enters, regardless of the priority of that road.

When two vehicles approach from opposite directions and one is turning left while the other goes straight, the turning vehicle yields; when both turn left, the general right-hand rule decides.

An emergency vehicle with a blue flashing beacon and siren has priority; drivers must clear the way, and following directly behind such a vehicle to use its priority is prohibited.

Approaching a railway crossing, the driver must reduce speed and be ready to stop; stopping on the crossing or within 5 m before it is prohibited.

A driver must stop before a crossing when the barrier is closed or closing, when the crossing signal shows a red flashing light (with or without a sound signal), or when a train is approaching.

A driver must also stop when the crossing attendant signals a stop, when the barrier is open but a train is visible, or when there is a traffic jam beyond the crossing that would leave the vehicle on the tracks.

Overtaking at a railway crossing and closer than 100 m before it is prohibited; reversing and U-turns at crossings are prohibited.

The crossing must be crossed in one movement without stopping, changing gear or disengaging the clutch; if the vehicle stalls on the tracks, occupants must leave and warn the train by running towards it.

A red flashing light at a crossing, even with the barrier open, has the same force as a prohibiting signal: movement is forbidden until the light stops flashing.

Outside built-up areas, a driver must reduce speed to no more than 50 km/h when approaching a crossing with limited visibility, and must be able to stop before the barrier or stop line.

At an uncontrolled pedestrian crossing the driver must yield to pedestrians already on the carriageway or stepping onto it, and must stop before the crossing line if necessary.

Overtaking is prohibited at pedestrian crossings and closer than 5 m before them; approaching a crossing, the driver must be able to stop without emergency braking.

In poor visibility (fog, rain, snow, dusk) the driver must use dipped headlights, reduce speed, increase following distance, and avoid sudden manoeuvres; rear fog lamps are used only when visibility is under 50 m.

In a traffic jam the driver must not enter an intersection or a pedestrian crossing if the exit is blocked, and must not change lanes unnecessarily or use the shoulder to bypass the queue.

When a school bus or a vehicle carrying children displays a flashing beacon and children are boarding or alighting, drivers must slow down and, where required, stop and yield.

On mountain roads and steep descents the driver must use a low gear to control speed and must yield to an ascending vehicle at narrow sections where passing is impossible.

In a tunnel the driver must switch on dipped headlights, keep a safe distance, and must not stop, reverse, turn around or tow a vehicle unless authorised.

When an accident or breakdown occurs, the driver must warn other road users with hazard lights and a warning triangle placed at least 15 m behind the vehicle in a built-up area and 30 m outside it.

A motorcycle must be equipped with a service brake on both wheels (or a combined system), a working headlamp, a red rear lamp, a brake light, direction indicators, a rear-view mirror on each side, and a horn.

The rider and any passenger must wear a fastened protective helmet of the correct size; carrying a passenger under 12 years of age on a motorcycle is prohibited, and a moped may carry only one passenger where a seat is fitted.

A motorcycle rider must ride with the headlamp on at all times; lane splitting between rows of vehicles is prohibited, and the rider must occupy a full lane as a vehicle.

A motorcyclist may carry a passenger only if the motorcycle has a proper pillion seat and footrests; the passenger must sit astride facing forward and hold on, and the load must not interfere with control.

Cargo on a motorcycle must not protrude more than 0.5 m beyond the rear axle, must be secured, and must not obstruct lights, indicators or the rider's view.

Category AM riders are limited to mopeds with a design speed of 50 km/h and must not use motorways; category A riders may use motorways but must observe the general speed limits.

Braking on a motorcycle requires both brakes applied progressively, with more force on the front brake on dry surfaces and more on the rear on slippery surfaces; sudden front braking can cause a fall.

A motorcyclist must not ride with a blood alcohol concentration above the statutory limit, must not ride while fatigued, and must wear protective clothing, gloves and footwear for crash protection.

At an accident scene the sequence is: stop and secure the scene (hazard lights, warning triangle), call emergency services, assess casualties, provide first aid within competence, and do not move an injured person unless there is fire or traffic danger.

Severe bleeding is controlled by direct pressure on the wound with a clean dressing; a tourniquet is applied only when direct pressure fails, and the time of application must be recorded.

For a casualty who is not breathing, start chest compressions at 100-120 per minute, 5-6 cm deep, with 30 compressions to 2 rescue breaths, and continue until the ambulance arrives or the casualty recovers.

An unconscious but breathing casualty is placed in the recovery position on the side, with the airway kept open; a motorcyclist's helmet is removed only if the airway is obstructed and by trained rescuers using two hands.

Driving while intoxicated, exceeding the speed limit by more than 20 km/h, and driving without a licence are administrative offences carrying fines and licence suspension; repeated offences carry heavier penalties.

Refusing a medical examination for intoxication is treated as an admission of intoxication and carries the same or heavier liability, including licence withdrawal for a statutory period.

Leaving the scene of an accident in which someone was injured is a criminal offence; the driver must remain, render assistance and report to the police.

Third-party liability is covered by compulsory civil liability insurance; the insurer compensates the injured party, and the at-fault driver may face recourse claims and increased premiums.