Photo: Tristan Loper, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
To get a driver’s license in Indiana you get a learner’s permit (at 15 with driver education, or 16 without), hold it for 180 days, log 50 hours of supervised driving, and pass the BMV driving skills test. Your first license is probationary until you are 21. This guide walks through each step with the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) rules and links to a detailed guide for each one.
Key facts (as of November 2026)
- Learner’s permit: from 15 if enrolled in BMV-licensed driver education; from 16 without it.
- Permit valid for 2 years. Hold it 180 days before applying for a license.
- 50 hours of supervised driving, 10 at night, logged on State Form 54706. The July 2026 Driver’s Manual applies this at every age, adults included.
- Probationary license: from 16 with completed driver education, or 16 years 270 days without it.
- License stays probationary until 21, with night, passenger and phone limits.
Indiana license steps at a glance
| Step | With driver education | Without driver education |
|---|---|---|
| Learner’s permit | 15, enrolled in a BMV-licensed course | 16, after a vision screening and knowledge exam |
| Supervised practice | 50 hours, 10 at night | 50 hours, 10 at night |
| Minimum permit time | 180 days | 180 days |
| Probationary license | 16, after both parts of driver ed | 16 years 270 days |
| Unrestricted license | Renew after your 21st birthday | Renew after your 21st birthday |
Step 1: Get your Indiana learner’s permit
At 15 you can get a permit if you are enrolled in an approved behind-the-wheel driver education course. At 16 or older you can get one without driver education by passing a vision screening and a knowledge exam. Bring your identity and residency documents; the BMV publishes a learner’s permit document list.
The knowledge exam is multiple choice, in two sections (road signs and traffic rules), and you need 80% on each. Full details: Indiana BMV permit test guide.
Who can supervise you
If you are under 18 and not driving with an instructor, your supervisor must sit in the front passenger seat and be either:
- a licensed driver with valid privileges, at least 25, and related to you by blood, marriage or legal status, or
- your spouse, licensed with valid privileges and at least 21.
At 18 or older you can practice with any licensed driver aged 25 or over, or a licensed spouse aged 21 or over.
Step 2: Driver education (optional, but it saves time)
Driver education is not required. It does let you start at 15 and get licensed earlier. To qualify for a license at 16 you need both parts: 30 hours of classroom or online instruction and 6 hours of behind-the-wheel training with a BMV-licensed school. An online class alone is not enough. See Indiana driver education and the 50-hour practice log.
Step 3: Log 50 hours of practice
Every new driver must complete the 50-hour supervised driving log (State Form 54706), with at least 10 hours at night, even after driver education. The July 2026 Driver’s Manual sets this for applicants under 18 and for applicants 18 or older. A parent or legal guardian signs the log if you are under 18. If your permit carries a daytime-only restriction, you still log 50 hours, but the night hours are not required. You hand in the completed log when you apply for your license.
Step 4: Pass the driving skills test
You book the skills test through your myBMV account or by calling the BMV on 888-692-6841, at least 48 hours and no more than 3 weeks ahead. Some licensed driver education schools can also give the test. You bring your own legally equipped, insured car. There is no BMV charge for a skills exam given at a branch. If you fail, you wait 7 days to retest; after a third failed exam on the same permit, the wait is two months. Details: Indiana road skills test explained.
Step 5: Drive on a probationary license
Any license issued before 21 is probationary. The main limits:
- No passengers for the first 180 days unless a licensed instructor, a licensed driver aged 25 or over, or a spouse aged 21 or over is in the front seat. Your child, stepchild, sibling, step or half sibling, or spouse may ride with you without that adult.
- No driving from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. for the first 180 days.
- After that, until 18, later night limits apply, with exceptions for work, school-sanctioned activities and religious events.
- Under 21, no telecommunications device use while driving except to call 911.
Under 18, the BMV must also suspend your driving privileges if your school reports an expulsion, a second suspension in one school year, habitual truancy or withdrawal from school.
Full rules: Indiana probationary license rules and curfew.
Keeping your Indiana license
Tickets add points to your driving record. Points stay active for 24 months, and higher totals lead to warnings and then suspension. Drivers under 21 convicted of two or more traffic offenses can be required to complete a BMV-approved driver safety program within 90 days, or face suspension. See Indiana BMV points and license suspension.
The BMV can also ask for proof of insurance (a Certificate of Compliance filed by your insurer) after a crash, after a third pointable moving violation within a year, or after a serious traffic violation. See car insurance for new drivers.
What the Indiana Driver’s Manual covers
Study the current Indiana Driver’s Manual for the knowledge exam. Its main topics and where to go deeper:
- Signs, signals and pavement markings. The sign questions on the exam come from the manual. See US road signs by shape and color, traffic signals and pavement markings.
- Rules of the road. Right-of-way, turns, speed and parking. See four-way stops, speed limits and parking rules.
- Safe driving. See freeway driving and driving in snow, fog and rain.
- Sharing the road. See motorcycles, bicycles and trucks, school buses and railroad crossings.
- Alcohol, drugs and OWI. Indiana calls impaired driving operating while intoxicated (OWI). Under implied consent, refusing a chemical test brings a one-year suspension, or two years with a prior OWI conviction. See zero tolerance under 21 and implied consent and DUI.
- Emergencies and crashes. See what to do after a crash and move over laws.
Indiana road rules worth memorizing
The knowledge exam asks about Indiana figures, not just national habits. From the July 2026 Driver’s Manual:
- Speed limits unless posted otherwise: 70 mph on rural interstates (65 for heavy trucks), 60 mph on rural divided state highways, 55 mph on urban interstates, undivided state highways and county roads, 30 mph in most urban residential areas and 15 mph in alleys.
- Work zones: the limit is always at least 10 mph below the normal maximum for the road.
- Following distance: at least two to three seconds behind the vehicle ahead in good conditions.
- Headlights: on from sunset to sunrise and whenever you cannot see 500 feet ahead. Dip to low beams within 500 feet of an oncoming vehicle and within 200 feet when following.
- Move over: for a stopped emergency vehicle with flashing lights, or a stopped amber-light or disabled vehicle, change lanes away from it. If you cannot, slow to 10 mph under the posted limit.
- School buses: stop for flashing red lights and the stop arm. On a road divided by a barrier or unimproved median, only traffic going the same way as the bus must stop.
- Seat belts: required for the driver and every passenger.
- Parking: never within 15 feet of a fire hydrant.
- Theft: lock the car, take the keys and keep valuables out of sight, even for a short stop.
See speed limits, move over laws and school bus laws for the wider picture.
Phones: the rule for every Indiana driver
Since July 1, 2020, Indiana’s hands-free law bans holding or using a phone or other telecommunications device while driving a moving vehicle, apart from hands-free or voice-operated use and 911 emergency calls. A violation is a Class C infraction. Drivers under 21 have the stricter rule above: no use at all except 911. See hands-free laws by state.
Moving to Indiana or from abroad
New Indiana residents have 60 days to get an Indiana license, and must surrender any other state’s card. At 18 or older with an out-of-state license, you bring that license, your driving record or a verification letter. You take a knowledge exam if your license expired less than five years ago or you held it for under a year, and a knowledge exam plus a driving skills test if it expired more than five years ago. Under 18, you need 16 years 180 days of age and 180 days on your previous license, plus a knowledge exam and vision screening. If you were never licensed elsewhere, you hold an Indiana permit for 180 days. Drivers from other countries take the skills test. See moving to a new state, driving in the US on a foreign license, REAL ID and your first license and using your permit in another state.
Common questions
Can I get my Indiana permit at 15 without driver’s ed?
No. At 15 you must be enrolled in a BMV-licensed behind-the-wheel course. Without driver education, the earliest permit age is 16.
How old do you have to be to get a license in Indiana?
16 if you completed both parts of driver education, or 16 years and 270 days without it. You also need 180 days on your permit and the 50-hour log. One BMV quick-reference sheet still lists 16 years and 90 days for the driver education route, so confirm your exact date with the BMV before booking.
How long is an Indiana learner’s permit valid?
Two years. If it has been expired for more than 180 days when you renew it, you retake the knowledge exam. Only time on a valid permit counts toward your 180 days.
Do I still need 50 hours if I take driver’s ed?
Yes. Every new driver must complete the 50-hour log, including 10 hours at night, with or without driver education and at any age.
When does an Indiana probationary license end?
It cannot be renewed until your 21st birthday. When you renew after 21, you get an unrestricted license.
Where do I take the Indiana driving test?
At a BMV branch by appointment, or with a participating BMV-licensed driver education school.
What does an Indiana permit or license cost?
Check the current fee on the Indiana BMV fee pages before you visit; fees can change.
Country overview: learning to drive in the USA. Compare states: GDL by state, permit tests by state, supervised hours by state.
Sources
- Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles, “Learner’s Permit” (in.gov/bmv)
- Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles, “Probationary Driver’s License” (in.gov/bmv)
- Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles, “Indiana Driver’s Manual” (in.gov/bmv)
- Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles, “Learner’s Permit Requirements” document list (in.gov/bmv)
- Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles, “Driving (Skills) Test” (in.gov/bmv)
- State of Indiana FAQs, BMV answers on driver education, permits and skills exams (faqs.in.gov)
- Indiana Department of Transportation, “Hands-Free Indiana” (in.gov/indot)
- Indiana General Assembly, “IC 9-30-6 Implied Consent” (iga.in.gov)