A learner’s permit is a restricted driver’s license that lets you practice on public roads only when a licensed adult is in the car with you. Every state issues one as the first step in a graduated driver licensing system, which hands out driving privileges in stages rather than all at once.1National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Teen Driving To get one, you’ll prove your identity, pass a vision screening and a written knowledge test, and agree to follow a set of restrictions until you’re ready for the road test.
What a Learner’s Permit Is
The permit is stage one of three. Stage two is an intermediate or provisional license, which you earn by passing a road test; it lets you drive alone but keeps limits on nighttime driving and passengers. Stage three is the full, unrestricted license.1National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Teen Driving
The point of starting with a permit is to put new drivers in low-risk situations while they build experience. You don’t drive at night, you don’t drive with a car full of friends, and you don’t drive alone. To move from the permit to the intermediate license, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recommends staying crash-free and conviction-free for at least six consecutive months.2National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Traffic Safety Facts – Laws
How Old You Have to Be
Minimum age depends on the state. Across the country, the floor ranges from 14 to 16, with 15 the most common as of early 2026.3Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Graduated Licensing Laws Table NHTSA recommends no state issue a permit before age 16.2National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Traffic Safety Facts – Laws
Having a permit doesn’t mean you can immediately take the road test. States impose a mandatory holding period, typically six months, though some require nine or twelve. A few shorten it if you finish an approved driver education course.
Hardship Exceptions
A small number of states issue hardship or restricted licenses to minors younger than the standard permit age, sometimes as young as 14. These are for situations where the family genuinely needs the teen to drive, such as reaching a school with no bus route, commuting to a job that supports the household, or transporting a family member to medical appointments. Hardship licenses come with tight limits: daylight hours, a set mileage radius, and specific destinations. They usually expire when the teen reaches the normal permit age.
Documents to Bring
Because of the federal REAL ID Act, every state verifies the same categories of documents before issuing a permit.4Department of Homeland Security. REAL ID Act Text Since May 2025, a REAL ID-compliant permit or license is also what you’ll need to board a domestic flight or enter certain federal buildings.5Transportation Security Administration. REAL ID Plan to bring:
- A photo identity document such as a passport, or a birth certificate paired with a photo ID, showing your full legal name and date of birth.
- Proof of your date of birth. A certified birth certificate or passport usually covers both this and the identity requirement.
- Your Social Security number, shown on your Social Security card or an official document that displays all nine digits, such as a W-2.
- Two documents proving your home address, like a utility bill, bank statement, or official school record.
- Proof of U.S. citizenship or authorized immigration status.
These are federal minimums; your state may ask for more. Everything must be an original or certified copy. Photocopies won’t be accepted.
Parental Consent for Minors
If you’re under 18, a parent or legal guardian must sign the application. Some states require the parent to appear in person; others accept a notarized consent form. That signature isn’t just paperwork. In most states, the signing parent takes on a share of civil liability for accidents the minor causes while driving, and that liability lasts until the teen turns 18 or the parent formally withdraws consent.
The Tests at the Licensing Office
Two evaluations stand between you and the permit. The first is a vision screening. Nearly every state requires visual acuity of at least 20/40, with or without correction. If you only meet it with glasses or contacts, your permit will carry a corrective-lens restriction, meaning you must wear them whenever you drive.
The second is a written knowledge test, usually 20 to 50 multiple-choice questions on signs, right-of-way, speed limits, and safe driving basics. Every state publishes a free driver’s manual that covers exactly what the test asks, and many offer online practice versions. The common passing threshold is around 80 percent correct, though the exact cutoff varies. Fail, and most states let you retake after a short wait, often the next business day or within a week.
Permit fees generally fall between $15 and $50. Some states hand you a temporary paper permit on the spot and mail the permanent card a few weeks later.
What You Can and Can’t Do With a Permit
A learner’s permit is not a license. Break the restrictions and you can face fines or lose your driving privileges before you ever earn a full license.
Supervised Driving
You cannot drive alone. A licensed adult has to sit in the front passenger seat every time you’re behind the wheel. NHTSA recommends that supervisor be at least 21 with a valid license.2National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Traffic Safety Facts – Laws Some states go further, requiring the supervisor to have held a license for a minimum number of years, or limiting the role to a parent, guardian, or driving instructor.
Nighttime Driving
Most states block permit holders from driving late at night. Specific windows vary; common curfews run from around 10 p.m. or midnight until 5 a.m.3Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Graduated Licensing Laws Table
Passengers and Phones
Teenage passengers are a proven distraction, so NHTSA recommends states cap who can ride with a permit holder.2National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Traffic Safety Facts – Laws Most states do, with exceptions for family members.
Phones and other portable electronic devices are also off-limits in most states while you’re driving on a permit. That covers texting, calls, and in many states even hands-free systems. These rules are stricter for permit holders than for fully licensed adults in nearly every state.
Alcohol
Federal law requires every state to treat any driver under 21 as legally impaired at a blood alcohol concentration of 0.02 percent.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 23 USC 161 – Operation of Motor Vehicles by Intoxicated Minors For a permit holder, any detectable alcohol can mean an immediate suspension and criminal charges. The threshold is low enough that cough syrup can trigger it.
Logging Practice Hours and Moving to the Next License
Most states require a set number of supervised practice hours before you can take the road test. The range runs from 20 hours to 70, with 50 the most common. Usually 10 of those hours must be at night.3Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Graduated Licensing Laws Table A parent or guardian typically signs the log to confirm the hours are real. A handful of states don’t require a specific hour count, but the crash data still favors more supervised time behind the wheel.
Once you’ve held the permit long enough, logged your hours, and kept your record clean, you can schedule the road test. Passing it earns an intermediate or provisional license. That drops the supervising-adult requirement but usually keeps the nighttime curfew and passenger limits in place until you turn 18.2National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Traffic Safety Facts – Laws
Insurance While You Hold a Permit
Every state requires minimum auto insurance, and permit holders are included. The usual approach for a teenager is being added to a parent or guardian’s policy. Many insurers extend coverage to a permit-holding teen in the household automatically, but call to confirm. A gap in coverage during an accident can be financially devastating.
Remember that the parent who signed the application may already share liability for crashes the teen causes. That exposure is another reason to verify coverage is in place before practice driving starts.
If You’re an Adult Getting Your First Permit
Adults who never learned to drive still need a permit first. The core process is the same: identity documents, a vision check, a knowledge test. The restrictions, though, are much lighter. Holding periods are shorter, sometimes as few as 90 days. There’s generally no driver’s education requirement, no curfew, and no passenger limit. Some states waive the holding period entirely for adults who previously held a license somewhere else. You still can’t drive without a supervisor during the permit stage, but the supervisor doesn’t have to be a parent.
The biggest practical difference is insurance. You can’t ride on a parent’s policy the way a teenager can, so you’ll need your own coverage before you start driving. If you don’t own a car, a non-owner policy provides liability coverage when you drive someone else’s. Premiums tend to be lower during the permit stage than they will be once you have a full license and start driving unsupervised.
Driving a Permit Across State Lines
There is no federal law requiring states to honor each other’s learner’s permits. Some states accept out-of-state permits without issue. A few, including Arizona, the District of Columbia, and Hawaii, explicitly do not. Most fall in between, accepting the permit but requiring the visiting driver to follow local restrictions, which can be stricter than the rules at home.
If you’re planning a trip or moving, check the destination state’s DMV before you drive there. Being pulled over with an out-of-state permit in a state that doesn’t recognize it is the same as driving without a license. When in doubt, let the supervising adult take the wheel until you’ve confirmed the rules.