How to Fill Out the North Carolina DL-101 Affidavit for Name Change

A North Carolina Driving Eligibility Certificate is a short form your school signs to confirm you are enrolled and making adequate academic progress, and every driver under 18 in the state must hand one to the DMV before getting a learner’s permit or provisional license. The certificate is valid for just 30 days from the date the school official signs it, so you need to time the school visit and the DMV visit close together. You cannot download it yourself; it has to come from an authorized school official.

Who Needs One

Any North Carolina resident under 18 applying for a Level 1 Limited Learner Permit, a Level 2 Limited Provisional License, or a Level 3 Full Provisional License must present a current Driving Eligibility Certificate.¹ The requirement reaches public school students, accredited private school students, home school students, community college Basic Skills and GED students, and North Carolina residents who attend a boarding or day school in another state.

Two groups are exempt. If you already hold a high school diploma or its equivalent, you’ve satisfied the educational requirement. And once you turn 18, the requirement drops away.

What You Have to Meet to Qualify

Two conditions have to be true at the same time: active enrollment and adequate academic progress.

On enrollment, you must be currently attending a recognized school or program. If a school cannot verify your enrollment for 30 consecutive days, you’re classified as a dropout under North Carolina’s dropout prevention rules and the school is required to notify the DMV.²

On academics, you must pass at least 70% of your maximum possible course load each semester and meet your district’s promotion standards. Schools check this at the end of every semester. Fall below the threshold and your parents get written notice and the certificate can be revoked.³

Nonpublic school students are measured a little differently. The chief administrator must confirm the student is making progress toward a diploma and showing exemplary behavior on school property and at school-related activities.⁴ A student who doesn’t meet the standard can still qualify if denying the certificate would create a substantial hardship for the student or family.

If you’re a minor enrolled in a community college Basic Skills or GED program, there’s an extra wait: you must be in the program at least six months before it can determine your academic eligibility and issue the certificate.²

How to Request the Certificate

Where you go for the form depends on where you go to school.

Public and Accredited Private Schools

Ask your principal or the principal’s designee, often a guidance counselor or registrar. The official reviews your enrollment and academic records, fills out the form, signs it, and dates it. That signature date starts the 30-day clock.²

Home Schools and Nonpublic Schools

The chief administrator logs into the portal through the North Carolina Division of Non-Public Education (DNPE) and downloads a school-specific version of the certificate.⁵ The system will only release the download if a child aged 14 to 17 is registered with the school, the school has a currently valid Notice of Intent to Operate on file with the DNPE, and the school has been in operation for at least four months.

For a home school student, the parent or guardian completes Section 1. Section 2, which includes the signature line and school name, must be completed by the chief administrator of the home school, and the school name has to appear exactly as it does in the DNPE database.⁶ In many home school families, the same parent fills out both sections.

Out-of-State Schools

If you live in North Carolina but attend a boarding school or day school in another state, the chief administrator of that out-of-state school fills out and signs the certificate. The same 30-day validity window applies.⁶

The 30-Day Clock and the DMV Visit

The certificate is valid for exactly 30 days from the date the school official signs it.² Show up on day 31 and you’ll be sent back to your school for a new one. Bring the original paper document, because the DMV keeps it as part of your driver file.

The certificate is one piece of a larger packet. For a Level 1 Limited Learner Permit, you’ll also need proof of age and identity (such as a certified birth certificate or valid passport), Social Security verification, a driver education certificate showing you’ve completed the 30 hours of classroom and 6 hours of behind-the-wheel instruction, and a parent or guardian present at the office.⁷ The permit fee is $25.50.⁸

Appointments can be booked up to seven days in advance through the NCDMV Driver Service Appointment Scheduler or by calling 919-715-7000. After you book online, confirm by text or email within 15 minutes or the appointment will be canceled.⁹

You Need a New One at Each Level

The statute requires a Driving Eligibility Certificate for every step in the graduated licensing system while you’re under 18: Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3.¹ Each DMV visit needs its own certificate dated within the past 30 days. The one your school signed when you got your permit won’t carry over to your provisional license application. Plan a trip back to the school office before each DMV appointment.

How You Can Lose Your Eligibility

If your grades drop below the 70% threshold or you drop out after you already have a permit or provisional license, the school notifies the DMV and your driving privileges are suspended. Parents receive written notice first and may submit a hardship request to the principal or the principal’s designee to keep driving eligibility in place.²

To get driving privileges back after an academic revocation, two things must happen. The DMV needs electronic confirmation from the school (or from the DNPE for home school students) that you’re back in compliance, and you need to bring a new paper Driving Eligibility Certificate to your local DMV office. The DMV may also charge a restoration fee.²

Conduct offenses carry a separate, mandatory penalty. North Carolina imposes a one-year revocation on students expelled, suspended for more than 10 days, or assigned to an alternative education setting for more than 10 days for any of the following, committed after age 14 or during or after 8th grade:

Possessing or selling alcohol or a controlled substance on school property or at a school-related activity
Bringing, possessing, or using a weapon or firearm on school property
Assaulting a teacher or other school employee on school property or at a school-related activity

If the offense happened at age 17, the one-year revocation can extend past your 18th birthday. The hardship exception that applies to academic shortfalls is not available for these conduct-based revocations; the one-year period is mandatory.⁵

1
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code 20-11 – Issuance of Limited Learner’s Permit and Provisional Drivers License to Person Who Is Less Than 18 Years Old
2
North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. Driver Eligibility
3
Legal Information Institute. 16 NC Admin Code 06E 0301 – Driver Training
4
North Carolina Office of Administrative Hearings. 01 NCAC 40 0303 – Issuance of Driving Eligibility Certificates
5
North Carolina Department of Administration. Student Driving Information
6
North Carolina Department of Administration. Driving Eligibility Certificate FAQs
7
North Carolina Department of Transportation. Get a Level 1 Limited Learner Permit
8
North Carolina Department of Transportation. Licenses and Fees
9
North Carolina Department of Transportation. Driver License Office Appointments