Guides/Theory test
Hand Signals for the Driving Test in Ireland: Every RSA Signal Described in Words
Updated 3 September 2026 · 6 min read
Yes, hand signals are still tested in Ireland, twice. At the start of the practical driving test the tester asks you to demonstrate two of the three driver signals at the desk, before you get near the car. In the theory test, around 20 questions in the car bank show a drawing of an arm and ask what the signal means. Below is every signal in words, taken from the RSA Rules of the Road and the Road Traffic (Traffic and Parking) Regulations 1997, which is where the legal wording lives.
The three signals you give to traffic behind you
These are the ones the tester asks for. All three are given with the right arm out of the driver's window, so following traffic can see them. Practise them with the window down.
| Signal | How to do it | When it is used |
|---|---|---|
| I am going to slow down or stop | Extend the right arm and hand fully out of the window, palm turned downwards. Move the whole arm slowly up and down. | Approaching a pedestrian crossing or a hazard when you doubt the brake lights are enough, or when following traffic is very close. |
| I am going to turn left | Extend the right arm and hand out to the right, then rotate the arm and hand in an anti-clockwise direction (a slow circling motion). | Turning left when your indicator may not be seen, for example with a van parked on the corner or low sun on the lens. |
| I am going to move out or turn right | Extend the right arm and hand fully to the right, palm facing the front. Hold it rigid, straight out and horizontal. | Moving out past parked traffic, changing lane to the right, or turning right. |
The left turn is the one people get wrong. You do not wave your left arm across the car. In a car the left signal is the right arm out the window, circling anti-clockwise. The Rules of the Road spell it out: "Note that the car driver moves his arm and hand in an anti-clockwise direction." A cyclist is different: they hold the left arm straight out to the left, palm to the front.
Signals to a Garda or pointsman (and to oncoming traffic)
A Garda on point duty is in front of you and cannot read your indicators well, so the law (Regulation 18(2), Table B of the Second Schedule) says you must show them where you want to go, either by indicator or by hand. These signals are given through the windscreen or out the window, where the Garda can see them.
| Signal | How to do it |
|---|---|
| I want to go straight ahead | Raise the forearm and hand upwards, palm facing the front. Keep it below the mirror so the Garda can see it through the windscreen. |
| I want to turn left | Point the right forearm and hand to the left, across your body, fingers extended. |
| I want to turn right | Extend the right arm and hand fully to the right out the window, palm to the front, rigid and horizontal. Same as the signal to traffic behind. |
| I want to slow down or stop | Same as the slow-down signal above: right arm out, palm down, moving slowly up and down. |
Signals given by a Garda, and what you must do
A Garda directing traffic overrides the traffic lights. If the light is green and the Garda signals stop, you stop. These five signals are listed in the Second Schedule of the Regulations and in Section 12 of the Rules of the Road.
| What the Garda does | What it means | What you do |
|---|---|---|
| Right arm and hand raised at full length above the shoulder | Halt traffic approaching from the front | If you are facing the Garda, stop. |
| Left arm and hand extended horizontally from the shoulder | Halt traffic approaching from behind | If you are approaching the Garda from behind, stop. |
| Right arm raised above the shoulder and left arm out horizontally at the same time | Halt traffic from the front and from behind | Everyone stops. |
| Beckons with the hand and forearm | Proceed as beckoned | Traffic from the front, from the right or left, or traffic already halted moves on in the direction shown. |
| Points towards a particular traffic lane | Move into that lane | Change into the lane the Garda points to. |
School wardens have the same legal power to stop you. When an adult warden raises the round Stop sign you must stop and stay stopped until the children have crossed, the sign is lowered, and the warden is back on the footpath. Junior school wardens work in teams and signal to both sides of the road at once. A Stop/Go board held by an authorised person at roadworks is also binding, and driving through it is marked as a fault on the practical test.
When you still need hand signals in 2026
Indicators do the job 99% of the time. The Rules of the Road lists the situations where a hand signal on top of the indicator helps other people understand you:
- Your indicators are not working. Signal by hand and get them repaired before you drive on.
- You believe another road user cannot see your indicator: low sun on the lens, a parked van blocking the view, or a cyclist alongside who is looking at your window rather than your lights.
- Turning right just after moving out to pass stationary traffic on the left, when a right indicator alone is easy to miss.
- Telling oncoming traffic that you intend to give way at a pedestrian crossing.
One legal point worth remembering for both tests: a signal shows what you intend to do. It never gives you right of way. The Regulations also ban giving two contradictory signals at the same time, so do not indicate left while your arm says right.
How hand signals are asked in the theory test
The category B (car) question bank has about 20 signal questions. The format is a drawing plus a short stem: "What does this hand signal mean?" or "What does this Garda signal mean?", with three or four options such as "The driver intends to turn left", "The driver intends to slow down or stop", "Stop if approaching from behind". Cyclist signals are in there too, so know that a cyclist's left arm straight out means a left turn. One text question asks what to do if you suspect your indicators have not been seen. The answer is to use a clear, decisive hand signal as well.
How they are tested in the practical driving test
The RSA standard procedures for testers (2025 edition) fix the oral test at 14 items: 6 verbal Rules of the Road questions, 6 road signs, and 2 hand signals, all done at the desk before you walk to the car. The tester names a signal ("show me the signal for turning left") and you demonstrate it with your arm as if it were out the window. Only the three driver signals to traffic behind are asked, not the Garda ones.
Getting one signal wrong does not fail you on its own. The marking guidelines say a grade 2 fault is recorded when three or more of the 14 oral items are wrong or unanswered, hand signals included. Grade 2 faults add up over the whole test, though, and 9 of them is a fail, so it is a cheap mark to protect.
Practise the signal questions with the real drawings
Hand signal and Garda signal questions are in the free car practice bank. Road signs are covered separately in the signs reference and quiz.
Start car practice freeFrequently asked questions
+Do you have to do hand signals in the Irish driving test?
Yes. The oral part of the test at the desk includes 2 hand signals alongside 6 Rules of the Road questions and 6 road signs. The tester asks you to demonstrate them with your arm before you go out to the car. Three or more wrong answers across those 14 items is recorded as a grade 2 fault.
+What are the hand signals for the driving test in Ireland?
Three signals to traffic behind, all with the right arm out the window: slow down or stop (arm out, palm down, moving slowly up and down), turn left (arm out, rotating anti-clockwise), and move out or turn right (arm held straight out, palm to the front). The tester picks two of the three.
+Are hand signals in the theory test?
Yes. The car question bank has around 20 questions that show a drawing of a driver, cyclist or Garda and ask "What does this hand signal mean?" or "What does this Garda signal mean?". You need to recognise the driver signals, the cyclist signals and the five Garda point-duty signals.
+What is the hand signal for slowing down?
Extend the right arm and hand fully out of the window with the palm turned downwards, then move the arm slowly up and down. It is the same signal whether you are warning traffic behind or telling oncoming traffic you intend to give way at a crossing.
+What does a Garda hand signal mean?
Right arm raised straight above the shoulder means traffic approaching from the front must stop. Left arm held out horizontally means traffic approaching from behind must stop. Both at once stops everyone. A beckoning hand and forearm means proceed as directed, and pointing at a lane means move into it. Garda signals override traffic lights.
+How do you signal a left turn to a Garda?
Point your right forearm and hand to the left across your body with the fingers extended, where the Garda can see it through the windscreen. This is different from the left-turn signal to traffic behind, which is the right arm out the window rotating anti-clockwise.