The Texas DL-90A form is the Classroom Instruction – Driver Education Affidavit a parent or other qualifying instructor signs to certify that a teen has completed the classroom phase of a Parent Taught Driver Education (PTDE) course. It comes inside the PTDE packet, and the student presents it at a DPS driver license office when applying for a Class C learner license.1Texas Department of Public Safety. Learner License Application Checklist A driver license specialist reviews it on the spot, so any missing or inaccurate field means the student leaves without a permit.
Who Can Sign the Affidavit
Only certain people can teach PTDE and sign DL-90A. The instructor must be the student’s parent, stepparent, foster parent, legal guardian, grandparent, or step-grandparent. Texas law also allows a designated person who is at least 25, has at least seven years of driving experience, and charges no fee, but that person has to be formally designated on a separate DPS form by the parent, legal guardian, or a judge.2Texas Public Law. Texas Education Code Section 1001.112 – Parent-Taught Driver Education
Beyond the relationship, the instructor must meet every one of the following:
- Held a valid driver license for the preceding three years, with no suspension, revocation, or forfeiture during that period.
- No conviction for criminally negligent homicide.
- No DWI conviction within the past seven years.
- No more than two moving violations resulting in a collision, and no more than two other moving violations, in the preceding three years.
The form restates these as checkboxes the instructor must affirm. Signing when even one does not apply carries criminal penalties under Texas Transportation Code Section 521.454.2Texas Public Law. Texas Education Code Section 1001.112 – Parent-Taught Driver Education
Enroll With TDLR Before Any Teaching Begins
Parent Taught Driver Education is administered by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR), not DPS. Before you teach a single lesson, you must register with TDLR and pay the $20 enrollment fee.3Texas Department of Public Safety. Parent Taught Driver Education Moves to TDLR Enrollment is where you choose a TDLR-approved course, and that course supplies both the curriculum and the course title and number you will later copy onto DL-90A. Save the confirmation.
The student must be between 15 and 17 to qualify for a learner license through this program.4Texas Public Law. Texas Transportation Code Section 521.222 – Learner License
What You Need Before Filling It Out
DL-90A is one page, but every field has to be right. Have this in front of you:
- Instructor’s full legal name exactly as it appears on their driver license.
- Instructor’s driver license number.
- Student’s full legal name.
- Student’s date of birth in MM-DD-YYYY format.
- Title of the TDLR-approved PTDE course used for classroom instruction.
- Course number assigned by TDLR.
- Date classroom instruction was completed.
You also need to know which track your student followed. The block program requires 32 hours of classroom instruction before behind-the-wheel work starts. The concurrent program requires 6 hours of classroom instruction before the student applies for a learner license, with the rest of the classroom work done alongside driving practice. DL-90A has a separate completion-date field for each track.
Filling Out Each Section
Instructor Information and Relationship
Print or type the instructor’s legal name and driver license number at the top of the form. All entries except the signature must be in black ink. Check the box describing the instructor’s relationship to the student: parent, legal guardian, stepparent, step-grandparent, foster parent, or grandparent. If none of those applies and you are teaching under the designated-person provision, the form’s own language tells you that you are not authorized to sign it.
Eligibility Certifications
The middle section lists the eligibility requirements and asks you to affirm each one. These are sworn certifications, not routine acknowledgments. The form specifically asks you to confirm that you enrolled with TDLR and paid the $20 fee before any instruction began, that you held a valid license for three years, and that your record is clear of the disqualifying offenses.
Student Information and Course Completion
Enter the student’s legal name and date of birth. Fill in the completion date under either the block program (32 hours) or the concurrent program (6 hours), whichever applies. Enter the exact title of the TDLR-approved course and its course number so DPS can verify the student’s record against TDLR’s.
How to Sign
DL-90A is a legal affidavit, and the signature has to be executed in one of two ways:
- In front of a driver license employee at the DPS office when you bring the student in to apply.
- In front of a notary public ahead of time, with the notarized affidavit then brought to the DPS office.
A signature added at the kitchen table without a notary makes the affidavit invalid. If more than one person taught the classroom portion, each instructor needs a separate DL-90A, and the form can be photocopied for that purpose. Every instructor who signed an affidavit has to come to the DPS appointment in person.
What to Bring to the DPS Office
DL-90A is not mailed or uploaded. The student hands it to a driver license specialist when applying for the learner license. Bring:
- Completed and signed DL-90A, one per instructor.
- Application for an Original Texas Driver License.
- Proof of U.S. citizenship or lawful presence.
- Proof of Texas residency.
- Proof of identity.
- Social Security number.
- Verification of Enrollment and Attendance (VOE) from the student’s school, or a diploma or GED.
- The $16 learner license fee.5Texas Department of Public Safety. Driver License Fees
The student also has to pass the written knowledge exam at the DPS office, or show proof of having passed it through a TDLR-approved course provider that administers it electronically.4Texas Public Law. Texas Transportation Code Section 521.222 – Learner License If anything on DL-90A is incomplete, unsigned, or improperly notarized, the specialist will reject it and no learner license will be issued that day.
Common Mistakes That Cause Rejection
Most DL-90A problems come down to a handful of errors. The instructor signs before arriving at DPS without having the form notarized. The course title or number on the form does not match TDLR’s records because it was written from memory instead of copied from the enrollment confirmation. The instructor’s name on the affidavit does not match the name on their driver license. The student shows up without the instructor, which DPS does not allow when the affidavit needs to be signed at the counter.
Avoid the wasted trip by filling in every field in advance, getting the form notarized if you would rather not sign at the counter, checking the course title and number against your TDLR paperwork, and making sure every instructor listed on an affidavit comes to the appointment.
DL-90A Versus DL-90B
DL-90A covers only the classroom portion. After the learner license is issued and the student completes behind-the-wheel training (seven hours of in-car observation and seven hours of driving instruction with the parent-instructor, plus additional supervised practice), the instructor fills out a separate affidavit, DL-90B, which handles the driving portion the same way.6Texas Department of Public Safety. Parent Taught Educational Provisional License Application Checklist Don’t mix the two forms up at the counter.