Georgia DMV Vision Test: Requirements, Restrictions, and Bioptic Lenses

To pass the Georgia DMV vision test, you need corrected visual acuity of at least 20/60 in one eye and a horizontal field of vision of at least 140 degrees. The screening happens on a viewing machine at a Georgia Department of Driver Services (DDS) customer service center, takes only a few minutes, and glasses or contacts count toward meeting the standard.¹

Who Has to Take the Vision Test

Every first-time applicant for a Georgia driver’s license or learner’s permit is screened before anything is issued. That includes teenagers getting a first permit and adults moving to Georgia from another state.¹

Drivers 64 and older are screened at every renewal.² Younger drivers renewing a license are not automatically retested, but the DDS can require a screening at renewal if it has reason to believe your vision has changed.

Separate from renewals, the DDS can open a medical review at any time. When that happens, you’ll receive a Vision Report Form (DDS-MR-274) and be asked to see an eye doctor.³

What the Test Measures

Georgia’s vision standard for a regular (non-commercial) license under O.C.G.A. 40-5-27 has two parts:

Visual acuity of at least 20/60 in one eye, with or without corrective lenses. That means you can read at 20 feet what someone with standard vision reads at 60 feet.
A horizontal field of vision of at least 140 degrees with both eyes open. If you have usable vision in only one eye, you need at least 70 degrees temporally (toward your ear) and 50 degrees nasally (toward your nose).

The one-eye standard matters because losing sight in one eye doesn’t automatically disqualify you, as long as the remaining eye’s field is wide enough.⁴

What to Expect at the Counter

After you’ve handed over your identification and completed the required paperwork, the examiner will direct you to a vision testing machine. You look into the viewer and read letters or symbols of varying sizes while the examiner checks both your acuity and your peripheral range. It’s brief.

Bring your glasses or contacts and keep them on for the test. Georgia measures your vision as-corrected, and the result determines what’s printed on your license. If you meet the standard only with corrective lenses, your license will carry a “B” restriction, meaning you’re required to wear them whenever you drive.⁴ Getting stopped without your glasses while carrying that restriction is a traffic violation.

Restrictions Your License May Carry

Passing doesn’t always mean an unrestricted license. Depending on your eye doctor’s findings or the examiner’s assessment, one or more codes may be added:

B — Corrective lenses required.
G — Daylight hours only, used when you have difficulty in dim light or at night.
R — No expressways; surface streets only.
1 — Bioptic telescopic spectacles.

The restrictions appear on the license itself.⁴ Driving outside them (interstate travel with an “R” code, for instance) carries the same legal exposure as driving on an expired license.

If Your Vision Falls Below 20/60: Bioptic Lenses

Georgia has a specific pathway for drivers whose best-corrected acuity falls under 20/60 but stays better than 20/200. In that range, you can qualify for a license by using bioptic telescopic spectacles, small mounted telescopes attached to regular glasses that you glance through briefly to read signs or spot objects at distance.⁵

The requirements go well beyond the standard screening. You’ll need:

A prescription from a licensed optometrist or ophthalmologist.
Documentation that you’ve completed training in using the bioptic telescopes, certified by the prescribing doctor.
Completion of a standard driver’s education course while wearing the bioptics.
A successful on-the-road evaluation with a DDS examiner.

Once you’re licensed with bioptics, expect conditions. Georgia regulation allows the DDS or your prescribing doctor to impose daylight-only driving, required outside rearview mirrors, area limitations, no interstate driving, and yearly reevaluations by your eye specialist.⁵ If your vision later drops below 20/200 even with the bioptics, you no longer qualify.

If You Fail the Screening

A failed screening at the counter doesn’t close your case that day. The DDS mails you a Vision Report Form (DDS-MR-274) and asks that you get evaluated by a licensed optometrist or ophthalmologist.³ Your eye doctor completes the form with your acuity, field of vision, and their opinion on whether you can safely drive, with or without restrictions.

You have 30 days to submit the completed form. Miss that window and the DDS sends a revocation notice, giving you another 30 days before your driving privileges are revoked. That notice also tells you that you have 15 days to request a hearing.³ Both deadlines are firm. If you miss the 15-day hearing request, you waive your appeal.

If your eye doctor’s report shows you meet the 20/60 acuity and 140-degree field of vision standards, or that you qualify through the bioptic pathway, the DDS can clear you to drive, possibly with restrictions. If the DDS orders a retest and you don’t appear in time, your license is revoked. Even after a later clearance, the DDS may require you to retake both the knowledge and road tests before it reissues your license.³

Filing a Formal Appeal

If the DDS denies or revokes your license on vision grounds and you believe the decision was wrong, you can file a formal appeal using Form DDS-1206. Check “Medical” or “Denial/Cancelled/Revocation License Permit” as the reason, cite the legal authority you’re relying on, and explain how the DDS failed to follow the law.⁶

The completed form has to reach the DDS by mail or at a customer service center within the appeal period on your notice. Miss that window and the DDS rejects the request with no grace period. Attach a copy of the notice you received and any supporting documentation from your eye doctor, including a completed Vision Report Form if you have one. This route is most useful when your eye doctor’s findings conflict with the DDS screening, or when you’ve had corrective treatment (such as cataract surgery or a new prescription) since the original test.

Skipping the Office: Online Vision Submission at 64 and Over

Drivers 64 and older who need a vision screening at renewal don’t necessarily have to visit a DDS office. You can complete the renewal online if you submit an approved vision report first.²

Log into your DDS online account, go to “Online Licensing Services,” and select “Submit Vision Documents.” Upload a completed DDS-MR-274 or a vision exam from your optometrist or ophthalmologist. The form has to be dated within the last two years and include your visual acuity readings, horizontal perception degrees, and monocular field of vision measurements.²

You’ll get an email with one of three outcomes: approved (finish your renewal online), denied (visit a DDS customer service center in person), or incomplete (fix missing information and resubmit). You still need an in-person visit to an eye doctor; the online option just shifts where the screening happens. This process is not available for CDL renewals.

Commercial Licenses Are a Different Standard

If you’re applying for a commercial driver’s license, the vision test at the DDS applies stricter federal rules, not the 20/60 state standard. Under 49 CFR 391.41, CDL applicants need at least 20/40 acuity in each eye separately and together (with or without correction), at least 70 degrees of horizontal field in each eye, and the ability to distinguish red, green, and amber traffic signal colors.¹⁷ Color recognition doesn’t apply to regular license holders at all.

1
Georgia Department of Driver Services. Medical and Vision Information
2
Georgia Department of Driver Services. Drivers 64 and Over
3
Georgia Department of Driver Services. Medical Review Process
4
Georgia Department of Driver Services. Vision Report Form DDS-MR-274
5
Legal Information Institute. Georgia Comp. R. and Regs. R. 375-3-5-.08 – Vision
6
Georgia Department of Driver Services. DDS-1206 Appeal/Hearing Request
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eCFR. 49 CFR 391.41 – Physical Qualifications for Drivers