Right-of-way in Québec: the rules the test loves

Right-of-way is the documented trap zone of the SAAQ knowledge test: the illustrated intersection scenarios are where candidates stumble the most. The reason is simple — every rule is easy to recite, but the test makes them play together, on a specific scene, where you have to decide who yields and who goes. Here are the rules that keep coming up, and how to work on them.

The rules the test makes play together

The all-way stop. A complete stop, then everyone goes in order of arrival: you yield to any vehicle that reached the intersection before you.
The yield sign. Slow down and let road users with the right-of-way pass; a complete stop is only required when someone has the right-of-way. The nuance with the stop sign is a test classic.
The left turn. You wait for oncoming traffic to clear before completing the turn — even if the light changes while you’re committed in the intersection.
The traffic circle. Priority goes to the vehicles already in the ring — over those waiting to enter, never over the pedestrians crossing an exit.
Emergency vehicles. As soon as their flashing lights or siren are on, you yield to them: slow down, pull to the right, stop if needed — keeping away from intersections.

How the test examines right-of-way

Often in pictures: an illustrated intersection, numbered vehicles, and questions like “Which vehicle must yield?” or “In what order do the vehicles go?”. These questions count in sections that are each passed separately — the format: 28 questions · 3 sections · 75% each. The other styles of questions the test asks have their own page; the right-of-way ones are the most visual — and the least forgiving of a rule half-learned.

How to work on them

Not by rereading the rules: by solving scenarios. Permis 101’s right-of-way scenario module presents illustrated intersections to solve one by one, in a progression that follows the real difficulty: all-way stops, yields, lights with turns, traffic circles, pedestrians and cyclists, emergency vehicles, then mixed scenes. Every scenario is corrected with a step-by-step explanation — which rule applies, in what order the vehicles go, and the classic mistake with the reason it’s wrong.

3 scenarios can be practised free; the full module is part of full access. And once the scenarios are mastered, the mock test puts them back under real conditions — numbered vehicles, a timer, a verdict per section.

Frequently asked questions

At an all-way stop, who goes first?

After your complete stop, you yield to any vehicle that reached the intersection before you: first to arrive, first to go. Order of arrival decides — not the size of the vehicle, nor its impatience.

In a traffic circle, who has the right-of-way?

Vehicles already in the ring have priority over those waiting to enter. But watch for the trap: that priority never applies against the pedestrians crossing an exit — as you leave the ring, you yield to them.

Why are right-of-way questions so tricky?

Because several rules combine in them: order of arrival, signs, turns, pedestrians, emergency vehicles — and the right answer depends on the exact scene. A rule learned in isolation can be recited; on the test, it has to be applied to a specific intersection, often an illustrated one.

How do I practise right-of-way scenarios?

By solving them one at a time, with a correction that explains which rule applies and in what order. Permis 101’s scenario module is built for that — 3 scenarios can be practised free, the rest is part of full access.

Go further

Official sources

The facts on this page come from the official pages of the Société de l’assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ).

The right-of-way scenarios, one by one

Illustrated intersections to solve, each with the rule that applies, the order the vehicles go in — and the classic mistake, explained.

Free to start · $19.99 CAD once · No subscription

Permis 101 is an independent app, not affiliated with the SAAQ. For official information and to book your test, go to the SAAQ.