I sat my test in NZ and a hill start was part of the driving test. I did that in an 87 Toyota Corolla with manual transmission. Back then if you sat your test in an auto, you were restricted to autos.I was 16 when I took my driving test, and back then you weren't allowed to take it in an automatic. And the toughest part of the test was that you had to stop on a steep hill, and start moving again without rolling back. A piece of cake in an automatic, not so easy in a stick shift.
When I moved to Ireland and changed over, I was given an automatic only licence. Had to resit the test to remove the restriction. A hill start was part of the test here too.