In Missouri, no age by itself requires a senior to take a behind-the-wheel driving test. What changes with age is how you renew: once you turn 70, you must renew your license in person every three years and pass a vision screening and a road sign recognition test each time. A full driving exam only comes into play if the Department of Revenue receives a credible report that you may be unsafe behind the wheel, and that can happen at any age.1Missouri Department of Revenue. Driver License and Nondriver ID Expiration
What Changes at Age 70
Drivers under 70 can choose a three-year or six-year renewal cycle. At 70, the six-year option goes away. You renew every three years, and you have to do it in person. Online renewal is limited to applicants between 21 and 49, so anyone 70 or older must appear at a license office.2Missouri Department of Revenue. Driver Licensing Checklist
The fee depends on your license class. A Class F basic license, which most Missourians carry, costs $16.50 for a three-year renewal. A Class E license, used for for-hire driving like taxis, costs $24 for three years.3Missouri Department of Revenue. Permit/Driver License/Nondriver ID Fees
One paperwork break helps older applicants. If you are 65 or older and previously held a Missouri license, you are exempt from providing proof of Missouri residency at renewal.4Missouri Revisor of Statutes. RSMo 302.171 – License Issuance, Content, and Requirements You still need identity and Social Security documentation, but the two residency documents are waived.
What the Tests at Renewal Actually Are
Every Missouri renewal, at every age, includes a basic vision screening. A score of 20/40 or better in either eye or both eyes together passes without any vision-related restriction on the license.5Missouri Department of Revenue. 12 CSR 10-24.090 Missouri Driver License or Permit Vision Test Guidelines If your corrected vision falls between 20/40 and 20/160, with at least 70 degrees of combined peripheral vision, you can still be licensed with restrictions such as corrective lenses, daylight-only driving, a 45 mph speed cap, or outside mirrors. Worse than those thresholds, and Missouri will not issue the license.
Drivers 70 and older also take a road sign recognition test at each renewal. This is a sit-down check that you can identify standard traffic signs on sight. It is not a driving test. You will not get behind the wheel during a routine renewal visit, no matter your age.
When the Department of Revenue Can Require a Full Driving Test
The authority to pull a driver in for a skills test or medical evaluation comes from Missouri statute 302.291, which lets the director act whenever there is good cause to believe a driver may be unsafe.6Missouri Revisor of Statutes. RSMo 302.291 – Incompetent or Unqualified Operators, Examination and Reporting Age is not among the triggers. A report is.
Missouri law authorizes a broad list of people to file those reports: physicians, chiropractors, registered nurses, psychologists, social workers, professional counselors, optometrists, physical or occupational therapists, and emergency medical technicians. Immediate family members can report as well, defined to include a spouse, parent, child, grandparent, sibling, grandchild, great-grandparent, aunt, uncle, niece, nephew, or great-grandchild. In-laws are excluded.7Missouri Department of Revenue. How to Report an Unsafe Driver in Missouri FAQs The director can also act on information from other sources, such as a letter from a neighbor, if it is credible.
Once a report comes in, the Driver Review unit decides whether to require a medical examination, a driving skills exam, or both. When a medical exam is ordered, the driver has 30 days to complete it, with extensions available for good cause. If a physician’s report shows a medical condition has made the driver unsafe, the director notifies the driver that the license will be revoked after ten days unless the driver submits medical evidence of a change in condition.8Missouri Department of Revenue. Physician Reporting of Unsafe Drivers FAQs Restrictions, such as daylight-only driving or a limited radius from home, can be imposed instead of a full revocation.
The One Age-Based Skills Test: School Bus Drivers at 75
There is a single narrow spot where age does trigger a behind-the-wheel exam. Drivers 75 or older who hold an “S” endorsement for operating school buses must pass a skills test every two years to keep that endorsement. It applies only to the school bus endorsement, not a standard passenger license, and the renewal fee is $9.1Missouri Department of Revenue. Driver License and Nondriver ID Expiration
How a Lapsed License Can Force a Full Exam
One situation does land older drivers in a full driving test, and it has nothing to do with a birthday. If your Missouri license expires and you wait more than 184 days to renew, state regulations treat you like a new applicant. You retake the written knowledge test, the vision screening, the road sign recognition test, and the behind-the-wheel driving exam.9Cornell Law School. 12 CSR 10-24.190 – Driver License Retesting Requirements After a License Expires
This catches some seniors who stop driving during an illness and assume they can resume when they feel better. The 184-day clock starts on the printed expiration date, not the last day you drove. If there is any chance you will want to drive again within the next year or two, renewing on time avoids a full re-examination later.