Virginia Driver’s License Age: Permit, License, and Under-18 Rules

In Virginia, you can apply for a learner’s permit at 15 years and six months, and the earliest you can hold a full driver’s license is 16 years and three months.¹² The Virginia driver’s license age sits inside a graduated system, so hitting the minimum age is only part of it. Between the permit and the license you have to log supervised driving time, finish driver education, and pass the required tests. Restrictions on curfew, passengers, and alcohol continue after you’re licensed and don’t fully lift until you turn 18 (or 21 for the alcohol rule).

Learner’s Permit at 15 Years, 6 Months

The permit is the first stage. Once you reach 15 and a half, you can apply at the DMV.¹ You’ll need a vision screening and a two-part knowledge exam: 10 road-sign questions (all 10 must be correct) and 30 general knowledge questions (24 correct to pass).³ The permit itself is $3.

If you’re under 18, a parent or legal guardian has to sign the application. An emancipated minor can bring a court order instead. Every applicant needs one proof of identity, one proof of legal presence, and two proofs of Virginia residency.⁴

A permit never lets you drive alone. You must be accompanied by a licensed driver who is at least 21, or by a parent or legal guardian, or by a sibling (including half- and step-siblings) who is at least 18 and licensed. The supervising driver rides in the front passenger seat.¹

Driver’s License at 16 Years, 3 Months

The minimum licensing age is 16 years and three months.² Reaching that age isn’t enough on its own. Before the DMV will issue the license you have to:

Hold a learner’s permit for at least nine months.
Complete a state-approved driver education program with classroom and behind-the-wheel instruction. The program issues a Driver Education Certificate (DEC-1) that you submit to the DMV.
Log at least 45 hours of supervised driving, with at least 15 of those hours after sunset. A parent, foster parent, or legal guardian certifies the hours on a DMV form, and a false certification is a criminal offense.¹
Pass a road skills test.
Show proof of school attendance if you’re of compulsory school age. A parent provides written evidence that you’re meeting attendance requirements.²

The standard license fee is $32 for an eight-year license.⁵ In some jurisdictions the DMV mails the license to the local circuit court instead of the driver, and a judge presents it at a court licensing ceremony. Practice varies, so check with your local court clerk.⁶

Restrictions That Stay Until You Turn 18

Meeting the driver’s license age doesn’t give you an unrestricted license. Several rules follow you until 18.

Curfew

Drivers under 18 can’t drive between midnight and 4:00 a.m. The exceptions are commuting to or from work, traveling to or from a supervised activity sponsored by a school, religious organization, civic group, or public organization, driving with a licensed spouse who is 18 or older, or with a parent or other adult acting as guardian, in the front seat, and responding to an emergency (including volunteer firefighter or rescue squad calls).⁷

Passenger Limits

During your first year of licensure, you may carry only one passenger under 21, unless a licensed parent or other adult acting in a parent’s place is in the front passenger seat.⁷

After the first year, and still before you turn 18, you can carry up to three passengers under 21, but only when traveling to or from a school-sponsored activity, when a licensed adult 21 or older is in the front seat, or in an emergency. Any other time, the one-passenger limit still applies.⁷

Handheld Devices

Holding a cell phone or other wireless device while driving is illegal for every driver in Virginia, not just teens. Hands-free use through Bluetooth or a mount is allowed. Holding the phone to talk, text, or browse is not.⁸

Alcohol: Zero Tolerance to Age 21

The alcohol rule runs to 21, not 18. A driver under 21 with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.02% or higher after consuming alcohol commits a Class 1 misdemeanor, punishable by up to 12 months in jail and a $2,500 fine.⁹¹⁰ That threshold is well below the 0.08% adult limit.

Driving Before You’re Eligible

Driving without a valid license is a Class 2 misdemeanor in Virginia, carrying up to six months in jail and a fine of up to $1,000. A second or later offense becomes a Class 1 misdemeanor, with up to 12 months in jail and a $2,500 fine.¹¹¹⁰ A court can also suspend your driving privilege for up to 90 days on conviction. For a minor caught driving before reaching permit or license age, the DMV has discretion to postpone when the minor can apply, which can push the whole graduated timeline back by months.

Traffic Violations Hit Under-18 Drivers Harder

Under-18 drivers face rules other drivers don’t. A conviction for any demerit-point offense committed while under 18 requires you to attend an eight-hour driver improvement clinic, no matter how minor the offense. A seatbelt or child-restraint violation triggers the same requirement, and you don’t earn safe-driving points for attending. The clinic requirement also applies if the offense happened before you turned 18 but the conviction comes at 18 or 19.¹²

You have 90 days to finish the clinic. Miss that window and the DMV will suspend your license until you complete it.¹³ A second demerit-point conviction for conduct committed under 18 brings an automatic 90-day suspension on top of the clinic, and that suspension runs consecutively with any other suspension already in effect.¹²

1
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 46.2-335 – Learner’s Permits; Fees; Certification Required
2
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 46.2-334 – Conditions and Requirements for Licensure of Persons Under 18
3
Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles. The Knowledge Exam
4
Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles. Apply for a Learner’s Permit
5
Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles. Apply for a Driver’s License
6
Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles. Court Licensing Ceremony Requirements
7
Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles. Teen Driving Restrictions
8
Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles. Distracted Driving
9
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 18.2-266.1 – Persons Under Age 21 Driving After Illegally Consuming Alcohol; Penalty
10
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 18.2-11 – Punishment for Conviction of Misdemeanor
11
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 46.2-300 – Driving Without License Prohibited; Penalties
12
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 46.2-334.01 – Licenses Issued to Persons Less Than 18 Years Old Subject to Certain Restrictions
13
Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles. Driver Improvement