Kansas Driver’s Permit: Requirements, Fees, and 50-Hour Log

To get a Kansas driver’s permit, you must be at least 14 years old, pass a vision screening and a 25-question written knowledge test, bring documents proving your identity, Social Security number, and Kansas residency, and pay a $10 fee at a driver’s license office. If you’re 14 or 15, a parent or legal guardian also has to sign a permission affidavit. Once issued, the permit lets you drive only with a licensed adult 21 or older in the front passenger seat.

Who Can Apply

Kansas has two permit tracks divided by age. Applicants 14 through 16 apply under K.S.A. 8-2,100.¹ Applicants 17 and older apply under K.S.A. 8-239.² The permit itself is the same; the paperwork around parental consent is what changes.

At 14 or 15, a parent or legal guardian has to sign Form DE-98, the Permission Affidavit, before the state will process the application. At 16, you can apply for the instruction permit without parental consent. At 17 and older, no parental approval is required at all.³

Every applicant takes a vision screening at the office. The standard is 20/40 or better in at least one eye, corrected or not. If you can’t meet that, the examiner gives you a referral form, and an optometrist or ophthalmologist can clear you if your corrected vision reaches 20/60 or better in at least one eye.⁴

Documents to Bring

Bring originals. Kansas doesn’t accept photocopies, faxes, or laminated versions of anything on this list.⁵

Proof of identity and date of birth: a certified birth certificate or a valid U.S. passport. If your current legal name differs from the one on that document, bring the marriage certificate, divorce decree, or court order that proves the change.
Proof of your Social Security number: the original Social Security card, a current W-2 or 1099, or a pay stub that shows the full number.
Two proofs of Kansas residency, each showing your name and current physical address. P.O. boxes don’t count. Utility bills, bank statements, lease agreements, insurance documents, and USPS change-of-address confirmations all work.⁶
Form DE-98, the Parental Permission Affidavit, for applicants 14 and 15. You can download it from the Kansas Department of Revenue website.⁷

If you are not a U.S. citizen, you’ll also need a lawful-presence document (such as a Permanent Resident Card, Employment Authorization Card, valid I-94, or unexpired foreign passport with a valid U.S. entry marking) and will be run through the federal SAVE verification system, which may not finish the same day.⁵

The Written Knowledge Test

The written test is 25 multiple-choice questions on Kansas traffic laws and road signs. You need 20 correct, or 80 percent, to pass.⁸ Everything on it comes from the Kansas Driving Handbook, which is a free download from the Department of Revenue. Expect right-of-way rules, speed limits, sign shapes and colors, and railroad crossing procedures.

There’s a way around the test. A certificate of completion from a state-approved driver education course substitutes for the written exam entirely.³ High schools and commercial driving schools both offer these courses, which combine classroom hours with behind-the-wheel training. Driver education is also required later if you’re under 16 and want to move from the permit to a restricted license, so most families in that age range take it anyway.⁹

What It Costs and What You Walk Out With

The permit costs $10: a $2 application fee plus an $8 photo fee.¹⁰ After you pass and pay, a staff member takes your photo and hands you a paper temporary permit on the spot. That paper is legally valid for driving under the permit’s restrictions. The plastic card is produced off-site and mailed, which can take up to 45 days.¹¹ If you’re planning a move, wait until the card arrives.

Walk-ins are accepted, but Kansas recommends scheduling an appointment, since appointments get priority at the office.⁶

What You Can and Can’t Do With the Permit

Any time you’re driving on an instruction permit, a licensed driver who is at least 21 years old must be in the front passenger seat. There are no exceptions. Driving without a qualifying supervisor puts your permit at risk of suspension.³

Wireless devices are off-limits while you’re driving on a permit. No calls, no texts, nothing on the phone. The only exception is a genuine emergency, like reporting a crime or calling for medical help.³ Violations can delay your move to the next licensing stage.

The One-Year Hold and the 50-Hour Log

You have to hold the instruction permit for a full year before you can advance. The clock starts the day the state issues the permit, and the permit cannot be upgraded early, however ready you feel.³

During that year you also need to log 50 hours of supervised practice driving with a licensed driver 21 or older, with at least 10 of those hours at night. A parent or guardian signs an affidavit certifying the hours.¹² If you’re 15 and applying for a restricted license, you need at least 25 hours logged by then, and the full 50 hours before you turn 16 and move to less restricted privileges.³ Start logging from your first drive. Trying to piece hours together from memory a year later is a predictable mess.

Farm Permits Are a Separate Track

If you live or work on a Kansas farm of at least 20 acres, there’s a separate farm permit for teens 14 to 16, with different rules on where and when you can drive. The parent or guardian signs an affidavit confirming the farm connection, and an off-farm employer signs a second one if the teen works somewhere other than where they live.¹³ The farm permit is more limited than a standard instruction permit in some ways and more flexible in others, so it’s worth looking at specifically if it might apply to you.

What Comes After the Permit

The instruction permit is the first tier of Kansas’s graduated system. After the one-year hold and the required driving hours, a 15-year-old who has finished driver education can move to a restricted license for trips to work, school, and religious activities. At 16, with the full 50-hour affidavit and a clean record, driving opens up between 5 a.m. and 9 p.m. with one non-sibling passenger under 18. At 17, you become eligible for a non-restricted license, and a driver education certificate can substitute for both the written and driving tests.³

1
Kansas State Legislature. Kansas Code 8-2,100 – Instruction Permits; Conditions, Restrictions and Requirements; Under 17 Years of Age
2
Kansas Office of Revisor of Statutes. Kansas Code 8-239 – Instruction Permits for Persons 17 Years of Age and Older; Conditions and Requirements
3
Kansas Department of Revenue. Graduated Driver License Requirements for Teen Drivers
4
Kansas State Legislature. Kansas Code 8-295 – Vision Standards for Drivers Licenses
5
Kansas Department of Revenue. Driver’s License Proof of Identity
6
Kansas Department of Revenue. Required Documents and Appointment Scheduling
7
Kansas Department of Revenue. Permission Affidavit for Kansas Credential
8
Kansas Department of Revenue. Kansas Driving Handbook
9
Justia. Kansas Code 8-2,101 – Restricted License
10
Kansas Department of Revenue. Kansas Credential Fee Chart
11
Kansas Department of Revenue. Driver’s License Frequently Asked Questions
12
Kansas Department of Revenue. Teen Driving Log
13
Kansas State Legislature. Kansas Code 8-296 – Farm Permit; Requirements; Procedure