With the automatic transmission 10-1 for vehicle according to the present embodiment, since multistage transmission of eight forward gear stages can be obtained by means of four sets of planetary gear sets 12, 16, 18 and 20, four clutches C1 through C4 and three brakes B1 through B3, the transmission can be fabricated to be light in weight and made compact, wherein the mountability thereof in a vehicle can be improved. Further, as has been made clear in FIG. 1(b), since speed change in the respective gear stages can be carried out only by a shifting action of any two of the clutches C1 through C4 and brakes B1 through B3, the speed change control can be facilitated and it is possible to prevent a shock to the transmission from occurring.