What Is a Class E Driver’s License? Tests, Cost, and Renewal

A Florida Class E driver’s license is the state’s standard non-commercial license, and it’s the one most Florida drivers carry. It covers passenger cars, pickups, SUVs, vans, and recreational vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating under 26,001 pounds. To get one, you’ll pass a vision screening, a 50-question knowledge exam, and a behind-the-wheel driving test, and pay a $48 fee.¹

What a Class E License Lets You Drive

Any non-commercial motor vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating below 26,001 pounds. That includes passenger cars, pickups, SUVs, vans carrying up to 15 people (driver included), and RVs.¹ Two- and three-wheel vehicles with engines of 50 cc or less, like mopeds and small scooters, are covered too.

Motorcycles are not. To ride one legally, you need a motorcycle endorsement added to your Class E (the card will read “Motorcycle Also”) or a standalone motorcycle-only license.¹

You can tow a trailer on a Class E license as long as the combined weight of vehicle and trailer stays under the 26,001-pound threshold. Cross that line and you’re in commercial driver license territory. Farmers and drivers of authorized emergency vehicles who are exempt from CDL requirements still need a Class E.

Who Can Apply

You must be at least 16 to get a Class E license. Adults 18 and older can apply directly, though they still have to pass every required test. If you’re under 18, three additional conditions apply before you’re eligible.

You’ve held a Florida learner’s license for at least 12 months, or until your 18th birthday, whichever comes first. The learner’s license itself requires you to be 15 and to complete a driver education course.
You have no moving violation convictions during that 12-month learner period. One exception: a single moving violation where adjudication was withheld (traffic school, no formal conviction) won’t disqualify you.²
A parent, guardian, or responsible adult over 21 has certified at least 50 hours of behind-the-wheel practice, with at least 10 of those hours at night.²

Documents to Bring

Florida wants three things when you apply, and showing up short on any one of them means a wasted trip.

Primary identification: an original U.S. birth certificate, valid U.S. passport or passport card, Consular Report of Birth Abroad, or a Certificate of Naturalization or Citizenship.
Proof of your Social Security number: original Social Security card (showing your current name), a W-2, a paycheck stub, or a 1099.
Two proofs of Florida residential address, from two different documents. A deed, mortgage statement, or lease works. So does a utility bill, bank statement, or credit card statement dated within the past 60 days.³

If your current legal name differs from the name on your primary ID, bring the paperwork that connects the two. Marriage certificates, divorce decrees, and court-ordered name change documents all do the job.⁴

The Three Tests

Vision Screening

You’ll take a vision test at the service center. The standard is 20/40 or better in at least one eye, with or without corrective lenses. Score worse than 20/40 and you’ll be referred to a licensed eye specialist to see whether your vision can be improved. If one eye is blind or 20/200 or worse, the other eye has to be 20/40 or better.⁵ Need glasses or contacts to pass? Your license will carry a corrective-lenses restriction.

A hearing screening is also administered. Deafness by itself does not disqualify you.²

Knowledge Exam

Fifty multiple-choice questions on road signs and traffic laws. You need 40 right (80%) to pass.⁶ The exam is offered at FLHSMV service centers, tax collector offices, and through authorized third-party administrators.

Driving Skills Test

The road test checks your handling of real driving situations: turns, parking, lane changes, and traffic signals. Bring a vehicle with valid registration and proof of insurance. Fail it, and you can retest another day for a $20 retake fee, plus the $6.25 service fee if you’re at a tax collector office. Only one attempt per day.

Cost and Where to Apply

The base fee for an original Class E license is $48. Apply at a local tax collector’s office and you’ll pay an additional $6.25 service fee per transaction. Veterans who provide evidence of veteran status are exempt from the service fee.⁷

You can apply at any FLHSMV service center or participating tax collector office. Bring your documents, take the vision screening and knowledge exam on-site, and either schedule or take the driving test. Pass everything, pay the fee, and you’ll walk out with a temporary paper license you can use immediately. The permanent card comes by mail at the residential address you provided.

Get the REAL ID Version at the Same Visit

Since May 7, 2025, a REAL ID-compliant license (or another federally accepted ID) is required to board domestic commercial flights.⁸ Florida’s REAL ID-compliant cards are marked with a gold star in the upper right corner.⁴ The documents required for REAL ID are essentially the same as for a standard Class E license, so if you’re already assembling the paperwork, ask for the REAL ID version and save yourself a second trip.

Curfews That Still Apply After You Get Your License

Florida’s graduated licensing system doesn’t fully release teens the moment they pass the road test. If you’re 16 or 17, nighttime driving limits remain in force.

At 16, you can drive only between 6 a.m. and 11 p.m., unless you’re going to or from work or have a licensed driver age 21 or older in the car.
At 17, the window widens to 5 a.m. through 1 a.m., with the same work and supervised-driving exceptions.²

Both curfews lift when you turn 18.

Moving to Florida With a License From Another State

Establish residency in Florida, and you have 30 days to get a Florida license.⁹ You’ll bring the same identity and residency documents and take the vision screening. If your out-of-state license is valid and in good standing, you may be allowed to skip the written exam and driving test. The FLHSMV decides case by case, so bring your current license with you. You’ll surrender it when your Florida one is issued. If your old license is expired, or if it’s from a country Florida doesn’t have a reciprocal agreement with, plan on taking the full set of tests.

How Long It Lasts and How to Renew

A Class E license is valid for eight years if you’re under 80 when it’s issued. At 80 or older, the term is six years.¹⁰ Renewal costs the same $48, plus the $6.25 service fee if you renew at a tax collector office.⁷

Eligible drivers can renew online through the MyDMV Portal. You’ll need to go in person if you have to update your photo, change your name, or weren’t REAL ID compliant at your last renewal.

How to Keep Your License: Points and Suspensions

Florida tracks traffic violations with a point system. Points stay on your record for at least five years from the date of conviction. Pick up too many in a short span, and a suspension follows automatically.

12 points in 12 months: 30-day suspension.
18 points in 18 months: 3-month suspension.
24 points in 36 months: 1-year suspension.¹¹

Some offenses skip the point system entirely. A conviction for DUI, fleeing a law enforcement officer, or motor vehicle theft can each trigger an automatic revocation on its own. Once revoked, you cannot apply for reinstatement until the full term of any sentence, probation included, has run.¹² Treat any traffic citation as worth contesting or taking traffic school for the first time it happens; points compound faster than most drivers expect.

1
Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. License Classes, Endorsements and Designations
2
Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Licensing Requirements for Teens, Graduated Driver License Laws and Driving Curfews
3
Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. U.S. Citizen
4
Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. REAL ID
5
Cornell Law School. Florida Admin Code 15A-1.013 – Minimum Visual Standards for Licensing
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Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Class E Knowledge Exam and Driving Skills Test
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Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Fees
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Transportation Security Administration. TSA to Highlight REAL ID Enforcement Deadline of May 7, 2025
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Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. New Resident
10
Florida Senate. Florida Statutes 322.18
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Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Points and Point Suspensions
12
The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 322.274 – Automatic Revocation of Driver License