Australia does not restrict new riders by engine size alone. The Learner Approved Motorcycle Scheme caps capacity at 660 mL and power-to-weight at 150 kW per tonne, and then requires the specific make and model to appear on a published approved list. A bike can meet both numbers and still be illegal for a learner because it is not on the list, and a bike on the list stops being approved the moment you modify it. Checked August 2026; the road authority in your own state or territory is the binding source.
The two numbers and the list
New South Wales states the criteria plainly. For a motorcycle to be approved for learner, P1 and P2 riders it must have an engine capacity of 660 mL or less, a power-to-weight ratio of 150 kW per tonne or less, a power output of 25 kW or less if it is electric, and it must appear on the Approved Motorcycles for Novice Riders list.
That last condition is the one that trips people up. The list is the operative document, not the specification sheet. NSW is explicit that motorcycle power and weight are based on manufacturer data supplied for Australian Design Rules compliance, and that a motorcycle cannot be modified or restricted in order to be reclassified as approved. Buying a big bike and fitting a restrictor is not a route into the scheme, which is the opposite of how Europe's A2 category works.
Queensland applies the same two thresholds through its own LAM Scheme page, with a useful simplification at the small end. An RE class holder can ride almost any production model up to and including 250 mL without checking a list, because most of them comfortably clear the ratio. The exceptions are named individually: the Suzuki RGV250, Kawasaki KR250 in KR-1 and KR1s form, Honda NSR250, Yamaha TZR250 and Aprilia RS250 all exceed the maximum power-to-weight ratio and are excluded despite being 250s.
Those five bikes are the clearest illustration of why the scheme uses a ratio at all. A 1990s two-stroke 250 makes more power for its weight than a modern 650 twin, and treating capacity as a proxy for performance would have put novices on exactly the wrong machines.
How LAMS compares with the European approach
| Element | Australia, LAMS | Europe, A2 |
|---|---|---|
| Capacity limit | 660 mL | None |
| Power limit | Set by the ratio, not stated separately | 35 kW |
| Power-to-weight | 150 kW per tonne, that is 0.15 kW/kg | 0.2 kW/kg |
| Electric machines | 25 kW or less in NSW | Covered by the same 35 kW and ratio limits |
| Restricting a bigger bike | Not permitted, modification voids approval | Permitted if the unrestricted output is 70 kW or less |
| Approved model list | Yes, and it is binding | No list, the specification decides |
The Australian ratio is tighter, but the capacity cap does more work in practice. A rider in Europe on A2 can be on a 900 cc twin producing 35 kW. In Australia the same rider is limited to 660 mL whatever the output, which pushes learners towards a genuinely different class of machine.
Checking a specific bike before you buy it
- Search the state list by make and model first. Not by capacity, not by what a dealer says. If the model is absent, treat it as not approved.
- Read the notes column. Approvals are often version-specific — the Queensland list carries entries such as "under 661 mL versions only" and models approved only with a particular engine-number prefix.
- Check the individual vehicle, not just the model. Queensland provides a registration-status check for exactly this reason, because two bikes wearing the same badge can differ.
- Ask what has been done to it. An aftermarket exhaust and a remap can take a bike outside the allowable modifications and out of the scheme, and the seller has no obligation to volunteer that.
- Confirm the list you are reading is your state's. The lists are similar and not identical, and it is your responsibility, not the seller's, to be on an approved machine.
The cost of getting this wrong is not a warning. Riding a non-approved machine on a restricted licence is riding outside your licence conditions, which is a licensing offence and, more expensively, a reason for an insurer to decline.
The restricted period, and what you cannot do during it
The staged licence sits on top of the machine restriction, and the two are separate. Queensland's structure runs from an RE learner through RE provisional to RE open, with the state's licence-type guidance setting out that you can learn to ride an unrestricted R class motorcycle once you have held an RE provisional or open licence for at least two years, under the supervision of someone who has held an R open licence for at least a year.
New South Wales runs learner, P1 and P2 rider licences, and LAMS applies across all three. One consequence catches visiting riders and new ones equally: lane filtering is legal in NSW only for fully licensed motorcyclists. A learner or provisional rider filtering through stationary traffic is committing an offence even at walking pace.
The honest downside of the Australian system is the 660 mL ceiling for riders who are physically large or who ride long distances. A 175 cm rider commuting 20 km (12 miles) each way is well served by a LAMS 650. A 195 cm rider crossing the Nullarbor is not, and there is no exemption route for either height or distance. That is the price of a scheme that is simple to enforce.
Choosing a LAMS bike you will not resent
The scheme leaves more room than new riders expect. Within 660 mL and 150 kW per tonne sit adventure bikes, retro twins, supermotos, scooters and a long tail of restricted versions of otherwise full-power machines, which is a wider spread of riding styles than most restricted classes anywhere.
That breadth is where the real decision lies, and capacity is the wrong axis to decide it on.
- Seat height and weight matter more than power on a first bike. A tall LAMS adventure machine and a low LAMS cruiser have identical paperwork and completely different learning curves.
- Restricted versions of full-power bikes usually make their power differently. A 660 twin restricted to fit the ratio will feel flat where the unrestricted one comes alive, and the money is spent on a chassis you cannot use yet.
- Older approved bikes carry a resale advantage. The approved list is long-lived, and a well-kept LAMS machine sells to the next learner rather than to the general market.
- Check insurance before purchase, not after. Premiums for restricted riders vary enormously between models in a way that has little to do with the LAMS numbers.
The honest downside of the scheme's design is that it rewards buying the biggest thing on the list. A 650 twin at the ratio limit is legal, capable of highway speeds, and a lot of motorcycle for a first season. Nothing in the rules stops a rider going straight to it, and plenty do.
One further point that costs riders money rather than licence points: approval is checked against the machine, not against the rider's intention. A bike bought in good faith from a private seller who fitted a full exhaust system three years earlier is outside the scheme from the day you take it home, and the previous owner's paperwork will not help you. Ask specifically what has been changed, ask for the original parts, and treat a bike sold with aftermarket engine or exhaust work as a bike you cannot legally ride until it is put back to standard.
Frequently asked questions
What are the LAMS limits in Australia?
Engine capacity of 660 mL or less, a power-to-weight ratio of 150 kW per tonne or less, and the make and model must be on the approved list. New South Wales also caps electric motorcycles at 25 kW.
Can I restrict a bigger bike to make it LAMS approved?
No. NSW states that motorcycles cannot be modified or restricted in order to be reclassified as approved, and modification takes a bike out of the scheme.
Are all 250 cc motorcycles learner approved?
Almost, but not all. Queensland excludes the Suzuki RGV250, Kawasaki KR250 in KR-1 and KR1s form, Honda NSR250, Yamaha TZR250 and Aprilia RS250 for exceeding the power-to-weight ratio.
Can learner riders lane filter in New South Wales?
No. Filtering is permitted only for fully licensed motorcyclists, and only below 30 km/h with several further conditions.
Is the LAMS list the same in every state?
The criteria are consistent but the lists are maintained separately. Check the list published by your own state or territory.
The filtering rules that go with an Australian licence are covered in lane filtering laws outside the USA, and the European contrast in European motorcycle licence categories and A1 to A2 to A progression. Visitors riding on a foreign licence should read the international driving permit guide first, since Australia recognises the 1949 version. If your restricted year is going to be spent on long weekend rides, the Great Ocean Road guide covers a route a LAMS bike handles well, and a bar-mounted riding system keeps the phone out of the equation on it.
