Question 1

How do I get a Car Permit?

Accepted Answer

You must be 16 years of age or older to apply for a learner permit. If you are under the age of 18, your parent or your legal guardian must sign the consent section of your form MV-44 (Driver License Application). Your parent or legal guardian can sign the form before you bring it to a DMV office. Your parent or legal guardian is not required to go to the DMV office with you to sign form MV-44. You do not require consent if you are age 17 and you have a form MV-285 driver education certificate. You must have proof of identity.

The proof must have a total value of at least six points and must prove your date of birth. If you do not have 6 points of proof of identity, your parent or your legal guardian can complete form MV-45 at a DMV office and show proof of identity. You must show your Social Security card. If you are not eligible for a Social Security Number, you must get a letter from the Social Security Administration that indicates that you are not eligible for a Social Security Number. You must show the letter to the DMV.

When You Apply for a Learner Permit – Complete form MV-44 (Driver License Application). Take the form and your proofs of identity and date of birth to a local DMV office. Take a vision test at the DMV office, or bring a valid form MV-619 (Eye Test Report) completed by an eye-care professional. If the form MV-619 has a print date of 9/03 or earlier, the form is valid for 6 months after the date of the eye test.

If the form has a print date of 3/04 or later, the eye-care professional marks a box on the form to indicate if the form is valid for 6 months or for 12 months after the date of the eye test. Bring cash, a personal check or a credit card to pay the application fee and the driver license fee. See the driver license fee schedule to determine your fee. Take the written permit test. Review the hours for written tests and any requirement for a test appointment on the local DMV office page. To pass the test, you must give the correct answers to at least 14 of the 20 multiple-choice questions, which includes the correct answers to at least two of the four questions about road signs. If you do not pass the written test for a non-CDL class license (class D, DJ, E, M, or MJ), you can take the written test again any number of times without a limit.

For the non-CDL license classes, you do not pay additional fees to take the test more than one time. If you do not pass, the DMV recommends that you study the Driver’s Manual and take the test on another day. If you pass the test, the DMV issues you a learner permit valid for approximately 5 years. The exact expiration date depends on your date of birth and the date that you applied for the permit. You are not required to take the written test if you have a form MV-285 driver education certificate. If you are under age 18, read the Graduated License Law section of the Resources for the Young Driver pages at this web site to learn about the restricted driving privileges for learner permits and junior licenses.

Question 2

How long is a Teen Driver Ed Course?

Accepted Answer

The course (offered through approved high schools) is a total of 48 hours. 24 hours of classroom and 24 hour of automobile (6 hours behind the wheel and 18 hours of observation)

Question 3

Road Test Request Form

Accepted Answer

Please CONTACT US to request a road test date. We will contact you to discuss your exam and training options. You must have a NY Learners Permit in order to schedule a Road Test.

Question 4

How can I register for Drivers Education?

Accepted Answer

Driver Education is only offered through an approved high school driver education program.

Question 5

Where and how CAN a teen drive?

Accepted Answer

With your Junior Learner Permit you may drive only between the hours of 5 AM and 9 PM and only under the direct supervision of your parent, guardian, or a person “in loco parentis,” or a driver education teacher or a driving school instructor. The person who supervises your driving must be at least age 21 and have a license valid for the vehicle you are driving. The vehicle being driven must have dual controls (dual brakes). The only passenger allowed in the front seat is your supervising driver. With no more than one passenger under age 21 unless the passengers are members of your immediate family. You can have more than one passenger under age 21 if your supervising driver is your licensed parent, guardian, person “in loco parentis”, driver education teacher or driving school instructor. If your permit was issued before February 22, 2010, you can drive with no more than two passengers under age 21 unless the passengers are members of your immediate family. If your permit was issued before February 22, 2010, you can have more than two passengers under age 21 if your supervising driver is your licensed parent, guardian, person “in loco parentis,” driver education teacher or driving school instructor. Only when you and every passenger wear a seat belt, one seat belt per person. All children under age four must ride in federally-approved child safety seats. If the child is more than 40 pounds in weight, they must use a proper child restraint system such as a booster seat. Until their 8th birthday children must use a proper child restraint system. Children more than four feet nine inches tall are allowed to use a seat belt and shoulder harness.

Question 6

Where can a teen NOT drive?

Accepted Answer

You may not drive anywhere for any reason between 9 PM and 5AM:

At any time on any street within a park in New York City, or any bridge or tunnel under the jurisdiction of the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority.
At any time on the Cross County, Hutchinson River, Saw Mill River, or Taconic State parkways in Westchester County.
At any time in a DMV road test area.
At any time without a proper supervising driver or in violation of the above restrictions.
Visit www.NYSDMV.com/YoungerDriver for information on restrictions outside the 5 Boroughs

Question 7

Important Information for Junior Drivers with Permits

Accepted Answer

When you take your road test, you must give the DMV license examiner your photo learner permit and a completed form MV-262 (Certification of Supervised Driving). With this statement your parent or guardian verifies that you have completed at least 50 hours of practice driving with a proper supervising driver (as defined above), with at least 15 hours at night (after sunset). You do not need proof of practice driving if you are age 17 and present a valid form MV-285 driver education certificate as proof that you passed a state-approved driver education course.
MV-278 pre-licensing course completion certificate. Before you can make a road test appointment, you must first complete an approved pre-licensing safe driving course. If a certified driver education course is completed, and an MV-285 Student Certificate of Completion is issued, the MV-278 is not required. However, the driver education teacher may issue an MV-278 when what would be covered in the 5 hour course has been covered during the driver education course. To complete this requirement, all other drivers must take a special five-hour course available at most professional driving schools. To locate where this course is offered, look in the yellow pages of your local telephone directory under “Driving Instruction. “

Question 8

New York City Restrictions (5 Boroughs) – Senior License

Accepted Answer

When you are age 18, the DMV will issue you a senior license (Class Dor Class M). If you have a valid junior license (Class DJ or MJ) you will automatically receive your senior license in the mail. If you pass your road test when you are age 18 you will automatically receive a senior license. If you are age 17, you are eligible for a senior driver license if you have a junior driver license or limited junior driver license and have completed a state-approved high school or college driver education course. To change your junior license to a senior license ,bring your junior license and the form MV-285 driver education certificate that you received from your instructor to any motor vehicle office. You must give the DMV office your certificate and junior license to receive a senior license. If you do not change your junior license to a senior license, you still must obey the restrictions for junior drivers until you are age 18, even if you carry the completion certificate with you. With a senior license you are allowed to drive without any restrictions.

Question 9

Alcohol and Other Drug Violations by Drivers under Age 21

Accepted Answer

If you are under age 21 when arrested, your permit, license, or driving privileges will be revoked for at least one year if you are convicted of any alcohol- or drug-related driving violation. You will also be revoked if a judge finds that you refused to submit to a chemical test (includes a test under the NYS “Zero Tolerance Law”). Even if you complete an approved Drinking Driver Program in fewer days, your revocation will continue until the end of the scheduled period of revocation. A second violation finding within five years requires a revocation for one year or until you turn age 21, whichever is longer. These penalties apply even if you are adjudicated as a youthful offender, or if you were arrested or convicted in another state.

Question 10

What is the Junior Drivers / Graduated License?

Accepted Answer

You must be age 16 or over to drive in NYS. Drivers under the age of 18 must obey the restrictions described in the Graduated License Law section of the Resources for the Young Driver pages at this web site. If you have a learner permit or a driver license from another state, you are not exempt from this rule. An out-of-state driver under the age of 18 must also obey all restrictions of the state that issued the driver license. The New York State Department of Motor Vehicles requires all Drivers License Applicants aged 17 or under to have received at least 50 hours of supervised training in order to qualify to take their Road Test. Although students who complete an approved Drivers Education Program are exempt from this requirement, it does not reduce the importance of students receiving the additional training they need. Every driver license applicant who is 16 or 17 years old at the time of the road test, and who has a junior learner permit, must present an MV-262Form (Certification of Supervised Driving*) to the DMV at the time of the road test. must be signed by a parent/guardian

Question 11

Parent withdrawal of Consent

Accepted Answer

As a parent or guardian you may need to decide whether or not to allow your teen to continue driving. The teen may demonstrate driving behavior that is not safe. The teen may not yet have the maturity to handle driving responsibility. Regardless of the reason, you can withdraw your consent for driving privileges if your teen is:

under age 18, and has a driver license with a Class designation that includes the letter “J” (junior), for example “DJ” or “MJ”.

Note: A driver can qualify for a driver license that is not a junior driver license at age 17 with the completion of Driver Education. You cannot withdraw consent for a driver age 17 who has received a license without a license class designation that includes the letter “J”. To withdraw consent, complete and send to DMV form MV-1W (Withdrawal of Consent).

Teen Driver Education