Arkansas Drivers Education

Since 2002, Arkansas has allowed potential drivers as young as the age of fourteen to apply for an instructional permit through their graduated licensing program.

The first step in the graduated program is known as the “Instruction Permit” stage allows you to learn to drive provided you have a licensed driver over the age of 21 in the car with you at all times and provided that each passenger in the vehicle has a seatbelt. This phase requires both a written test as well as a vision test.

The second step in the graduated program is the “Learners License” stage where a restricted license is offered to drivers between the ages of fourteen and sixteen and requires passing an additional written test, vision test as well as a driving skills test. This phase also requires that you have a licensed driver over the age of twenty-one with you in the vehicle.

The final step (prior to unrestricted licensing) is the “Intermediate License” stage which in essence states that you are no longer in need of a learner’s permit or instruction. There are fewer restrictions on this license, you must be between the ages of sixteen and eighteen, and you no longer are required to have a licensed driver traveling with you.

At age eighteen, you become eligible for an unrestricted Class D drivers license. If you are already eighteen, in order to be eligible for this you must have graduated through the licensing system that is in place in Arkansas and passed the Intermediate License level.

To apply for your first drivers license, you will be required to produce documentation verifying who you are and your residency status. The Office of Motor vehicles requires that you provide them with two forms of identification which may be:

• U.S. Visa
• U.S. Birth Certificate
• Social Security Card
• Military Identification
• Immigration and Naturalization Documents
• U.S. Passport
• Naturalization documents
  

Additionally, you will need to provide at least one other form of identification, a complete list of which can be found in the Arkansas Drivers License Test Study Guide. Depending on your age, there are also additional papers that might be required, including parent’s signatures or documentation from your school.

Reading the Arkansas Driver Handbook is an invaluable tool as well as a perfect opportunity for you to learn the rules of the road and everything you need to know to get your driver’s license. Don’t miss your opportunity to review this manual carefully before you take any written tests and you can help guide your own success!