Michigan Secretary of State Eye Chart: Numbers and Restrictions

To get an unrestricted Michigan driver’s license, the Secretary of State vision standards require 20/40 visual acuity and a peripheral field of at least 140 degrees, measured with or without corrective lenses. Fall short of either number and you may still drive, but on a restricted license tied to how much vision you have. Below certain thresholds, the department has to deny or suspend the license outright.

The Numbers for an Unrestricted License

Two measurements decide the question: acuity and peripheral field. You need 20/40 acuity and 140 degrees of peripheral vision, and glasses or contacts count toward meeting either one.¹

If your acuity lands between 20/40 and 20/50, or your peripheral field measures between 110 and 140 degrees, you can still qualify — but only if you submit a statement of examination signed by an ophthalmologist or optometrist on a form the department accepts.¹ The peripheral requirement carries real weight. A 140-degree field is what lets you register a car, cyclist, or pedestrian arriving from the side without turning your head.

How the Vision Screening Works at the Office

Every applicant has to pass a vision test administered or authorized by the Michigan Department of State before being licensed.² At a Secretary of State branch, the screening is usually done on a machine you look into rather than a wall chart across the room. The device checks both acuity and peripheral field in one sitting.

If you don’t pass, the department refers you to an ophthalmologist or optometrist for a full exam. The specialist completes a form that includes their credentials, the full results, and your identifying information and signature.² The department uses that form to decide between an unrestricted license, a restricted license, or no license.

A comprehensive eye exam without insurance runs roughly $150 to $300 at a private practice, and less at retail vision chains. If you already know your vision is borderline, getting the exam done before your appointment saves a return trip.

Restricted Licenses if You Fall Short

Missing the unrestricted numbers doesn’t end the matter. Michigan issues several categories of restricted licenses stepped to how far your vision deviates from 20/40 and 140 degrees.

Corrective Lenses Required

If you need glasses or contacts to meet any of the vision standards, your license carries a corrective-lenses restriction that requires you to wear them every time you drive.³ This is by far the most common restriction, coded on the face of the license. Driving without your corrective lenses when this restriction applies is a misdemeanor.⁴

Daylight Driving Only

If corrected acuity is below 20/50 but no worse than 20/70 (without progressive eye disease), or below 20/50 but no worse than 20/60 (with a progressive condition), you may qualify for a daylight-only restricted license. Your eye doctor has to confirm in writing that your acuity falls within these ranges.³

Reduced Peripheral Field

Drivers with unaided peripheral vision between 90 and 110 degrees can get a restricted license with conditions tailored to their situation. The department may require a driving test to check whether you can handle the road with a narrower field.³

Bioptic Telescopic Lenses

Drivers with at least 20/50 acuity in one eye may qualify for a restricted license authorizing bioptic telescopic lenses, which are small telescopes mounted on regular eyeglasses that the wearer glances through briefly to read signs or spot distant objects. Behind-the-wheel training in the bioptic system from a qualified individual approved by the department is mandatory, along with any driving test the department requires.⁵

When the License Must Be Denied or Suspended

Below certain thresholds the Secretary of State has no discretion. A license must be denied or suspended if any of the following applies:

Acuity below 20/60 with a progressive condition affecting your vision
Acuity below 20/70 without a progressive condition
Acuity of 20/100 or worse in one eye combined with less than 20/50 in the other
Peripheral field below 90 degrees

These are hard cutoffs.⁶ If your vision drops to any of these levels years after you first got the license, the department has to act once it learns of the change. Progressive conditions such as macular degeneration or glaucoma are worth watching closely, because the difference between a daylight-only restriction and a mandatory suspension can be a line or two on the chart.

Renewal and When You’ll Be Screened Again

Michigan driver’s licenses expire every four years. You have to visit a Secretary of State office in person every 12 years to take a new photo and complete a vision screening.⁷ Between those in-person visits, renewals can be done online or by mail, and no vision test is required for a remote renewal.⁸

Age doesn’t change any of this. Michigan does not impose more frequent screenings, shorter renewal cycles, or automatic retesting for older drivers. Every licensee is on the same four-year renewal and 12-year in-person schedule regardless of age.

If Your License Is Denied or Suspended for Vision

You can request a hearing through the Michigan Department of State’s Office of Hearings and Administrative Oversight. The department processes hearing requests through an online system called DAIS (Driver Appeals Integrated System).⁹

Vision-related denials fall under the medical application category. Before the hearing, get a current medical report and any relevant forms from your ophthalmologist or optometrist together, so you can present updated exam results or documentation showing that your vision has improved or stabilized enough for safe driving under some set of conditions.⁹ A successful appeal often produces a restricted license matched to your current vision rather than a full unrestricted restoration.⁴

Commercial Licenses Are a Different Standard

If you hold or want a commercial driver’s license for interstate trucking, federal rules apply on top of Michigan’s. Commercial drivers must have at least 20/40 distant acuity in each eye individually, 20/40 binocular acuity, a horizontal field of vision of at least 70 degrees in each eye, and the ability to recognize standard red, green, and amber traffic signals.¹⁰ The key difference from the standard Michigan license is that each eye has to meet the thresholds independently, not just the better eye.

Drivers who cannot meet the standard in their worse eye, including those with monocular vision, may still qualify under an alternative vision standard that took effect in March 2022 and replaced the previous federal vision exemption program.¹¹ Under that alternative, the better eye must still reach 20/40 acuity and 70 degrees of field, the vision deficiency has to be stable, and enough time must have passed since it stabilized for you to adapt. A medical examiner on the National Registry decides whether you qualify.

1
Legal Information Institute. Michigan Admin Code R 257.2 – Unrestricted Drivers Licenses
2
Legal Information Institute. Michigan Admin Code R 257.1 – Vision Examinations
3
Legal Information Institute. Michigan Admin Code R 257.3 – Restricted Drivers Licenses
4
Michigan Legislature. MCL 257.312 – Restricted Operators or Chauffeurs License
5
Michigan Department of State. Michigan Admin Code R 257.1 to R 257.5 – Visual Standards
6
Michigan Legislature. Visual Standards for Motor Vehicle Drivers Licenses
7
Michigan Department of State. License and ID Information
8
Michigan Department of State. License or ID Renewal
9
Michigan Department of State / Secretary of State. Office of Hearings and Administrative Oversight – License Restoration Hearings and Interlock
10
eCFR. 49 CFR 391.41 – Physical Qualifications for Drivers
11
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). General Vision Exemption Package