CAP courses, here's all you need to know

CAP (Certificado de Aptitud Profesional) courses are mandatory training that all drivers of vehicles intended for the professional transport of goods or passengers must complete. This is why, if you need to drive a bus or truck, you must possess the certificate that allows you to drive on public roads in Spain and other European Union countries.

The CAP courses are vocational training programs that are part of the French education system. CAP stands for "Certificat d'aptitude professionnelle," which translates to "Certificate of professional aptitude." These courses are designed to provide students with practical skills and knowledge in a specific trade or profession.

You should know that there are two types of courses to obtain the professional aptitude certificate:

• Initial CAP: These initial courses are mandatory for all drivers who obtained their truck or bus driving permits after September 9, 2009. It's important to know that these courses last 140 hours and have a specific curriculum, depending on whether it's for a bus or truck. When you complete the training, you must also pass the exam to obtain the CAP card.

  Immediately afterward, you must complete the CAP continuous training course every five years. This is in order to renew your card.

• CAP continues: This, for its part, is mandatory for drivers who obtained their bus permits before September 9, 2008. And for truck drivers, those who obtained them before September 9, 2009. Furthermore, in this case, the initial CAP course must also be completed and the CAP cards renewed every five years. However, this training lasts for 35 hours.

And after the course, do you have to take any exams?

Now, upon completing the CAP courses, you have six months to take the exam. The dates are set by the competent authority in each Autonomous Community and are published in their official bulletins.

You might be interested to know that the exam consists of 100 multiple-choice questions, each with four answer options.

Finally, when you pass the exam, the competent authority must issue you the certificate with its corresponding qualification card. The card is valid for a maximum of five years, which is why after this time it is necessary to renew it by taking the corresponding course.

You can also read: The importance of driving courses