Louisiana Driver's License: Steps for Teens and Adults

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This guide is for Louisiana teens, their parents and adults getting a first license. It covers the full route under Louisiana’s graduated licensing law (the R.Y.A.N. Act): a Temporary Instructional Permit (TIP) at 14, a learner’s permit at 15, an intermediate license at 16 and a full Class E license at 17. It also summarizes the Louisiana rules in each chapter of the official Class D and E Driver’s Guide.

Key facts

Agency: Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles (OMV), part of the Department of Public Safety and Corrections.
Driver education is required for all first-time applicants: a 38-hour course (30 hours classroom plus 8 hours behind the wheel) for ages 14 years 9 months to 17, or a 14-hour pre-licensing course (6 plus 8) for adults 18 and older.
Knowledge test: 40 questions, 80% to pass. Vision: 20/40 in one or both eyes.
Road skills test: 80% to pass, at a driving school, another certified third party tester, or in some cases the OMV.
Practice: 50 supervised hours, 15 at night, before the intermediate license.
Fee: $32.25 basic Class E license fee, plus a field office service fee at some offices (as of November 2026).

How to get a driver’s license in Louisiana: the stages

Stage	Minimum age	What you need	Main limits
Temporary Instructional Permit (TIP)	14	ID, proof of residency, Social Security verification, parent signature	Drive only with a licensed driving school instructor
Learner’s permit	15	Driver ed course, vision test, knowledge test (80%)	Licensed adult 21+ or licensed sibling 18+ with you; no cell phone use, including hands-free
Intermediate license	16	Permit held 180 days, 50 hours practice (15 at night), road skills test (80%)	Curfew 11 p.m. to 5 a.m.; 1 passenger under 21 from 6 p.m. to 5 a.m.
Full Class E license	17	12 months with no at-fault crashes or moving violations	Drivers 17 and under still may not use a phone to talk or text

Every stage is explained in detail in these guides:

When you start matters

Permit at 15: hold it at least 180 days and until you turn 16.
Permit at 16: hold it at least 180 days, or until you turn 17, then apply for an intermediate or full license.
Age 17: you can get a learner’s permit or go straight to a full license after the vision, knowledge and road skills tests.
18 and older, never in the program: take the 38-hour course or the 14-hour pre-licensing course, then apply for a learner’s permit or a full license.
Moving in at 16: if you have held another state’s license or permit for at least 180 days, you may be able to skip the learner’s permit and get an intermediate license.

What to bring to the OMV

Louisiana accepts only original documents or certified copies. Photocopies are refused, notarized or not.

Minors: certified birth certificate, Social Security Number verification, proof of address, and the driver ed Certificate of Successful Completion when converting a TIP.
Adults: one primary document (such as a certified birth certificate or current passport), Social Security verification, one additional ID (such as a photo work ID, high school diploma or insurance card) and proof of address.
Under 18: a custodial parent or legal guardian must come, show ID and sign. In joint custody, only the domiciliary parent may sign. A guardian also brings guardianship papers.
REAL ID: you need proof of identity, lawful status, date of birth, Social Security number and at least 2 documents showing your home address. See REAL ID and your first driver’s license.

Male U.S. citizens aged 15 to 26 are registered with the Selective Service automatically when the OMV issues any credential.

Louisiana license fees (as of November 2026)

Item	Fee
Class E license (up to age 69), valid about 6 years	$32.25
Learner’s permit	$32.25
Converting a TIP to a learner’s permit or full license	No extra charge
Duplicate license	$17.00

Some field offices add a service fee. The OMV permits page says up to $6.00 and the new licenses page says up to $8.00, so check with your office. Driver ed course prices are set by each school.

What the Louisiana driver’s guide covers

The knowledge test questions come from the Class D and E Driver’s Guide. These are the Louisiana-specific points from each chapter that learners most often miss.

Chapter 1: Getting a license

New residents have 30 days to get a Louisiana license. Visitors with a valid license from another state can drive for 90 days.
Class E covers single vehicles under 10,001 pounds, and it is the license teens work toward through graduated licensing. Class D, the “chauffeur’s” license, is for driving for work: single vehicles of 10,001 to 26,000 pounds used in commerce, or carrying passengers for hire, below CDL level. You must be at least 17, it also covers Class E vehicles, and it costs $54.75 for 6 years (as of November 2026).
Update the address on your license within 10 days of moving.
Littering is illegal, even by accident. Under R.S. 30:2531, simple littering costs $150 or 8 hours of community service for a first offense and up to $900 or 20 hours for a second. The driver is liable for anything that leaves the car or truck bed, including a passenger’s trash, so cover and secure loads.
The OMV keeps traffic convictions and crashes on your record for 5 years, and DWI convictions for 10.
Drivers aged 15 to 17 can lose their license for dropping out of school or being habitually absent or tardy.

Chapters 2 and 3: The road system, signs and markings

Chapter 2 introduces the Highway Transportation System (people, vehicles and roadways). Chapter 3 covers sign shapes and colors, signals and lane markings. Louisiana’s move over law requires you to slow down and change lanes when you approach a roadside incident. National guides: US road signs by shape and color, traffic signals, pavement markings and move over laws.

Chapter 4: Seat belts and child seats

Everyone in the front and back seats of cars, vans and pickups must be buckled.
Under R.S. 32:295, children ride rear facing from birth to at least 2, forward facing from 2 to 4, and in a booster seat from 4 to 9. From 9 they use a lap and shoulder belt. Children under 13 ride in the back seat when one is available.
A child who fits more than one category uses the more protective one.

More: seat belt and child car seat laws.

Chapter 5: Safe driving habits

Keep at least a 3-second following distance, and 4 seconds in bad weather or on wet pavement.
Leave 4 to 5 seconds behind a large truck in good conditions.
Dim your high beams within 500 feet of an oncoming vehicle and within 200 feet of a vehicle you are following.

More: sharing the road with motorcycles, bicycles and trucks.

Chapter 6: Traffic laws

Stop at least 30 feet from a school bus that is loading or unloading children, whether you are meeting it or following it, and never pass it on either side while its red lights flash. Yellow lights come on 100 to 500 feet before the stop. Oncoming traffic need not stop when the road is split by a ditch, grassy median, barrier or similar obstacle, or on a four or five lane road divided by a two-way left turn lane. A four-lane road with no barrier, or a two-lane road with a center turn lane, is not divided, so everyone stops. See school bus stopping laws.
At a railroad crossing, stop between 15 and 50 feet from the nearest rail when required. See railroad crossings.
Turn on your low-beam headlights whenever you need your windshield wipers.
Do not follow an emergency vehicle answering a call within 500 feet.
Headphones in both ears are banned. One ear is allowed.
No more than 3 people in the front seat. No passengers under 12 in an open truck bed, and nobody in an open truck bed on an interstate.
Do not park within 15 feet of a fire hydrant or 20 feet of a crosswalk at an intersection. See parking rules.

Chapter 7: Interstates and rural roads

The maximum speed for any vehicle is 70 mph unless a different limit is posted (75 mph on posted portions of I-49), and 45 mph when you are towing another motor vehicle. Never back up on an interstate if you miss your exit. On rural roads, the slow-moving vehicle emblem marks vehicles traveling under 25 mph. More: freeway driving for new drivers and speed limits and the basic speed law.

Chapter 8: Hazards, phones and emergencies

All Louisiana drivers: no handheld wireless device use (hands-free only), no texting and no social media while driving (R.S. 32:59 lists the exceptions).
Drivers 17 and under: no wireless device use for calls or texts. Learner’s permit holders: no cell phone use, including hands-free.
If you break down, put flares at least 100 feet behind your car.

More: hands-free and texting laws and driving in snow, fog and rain.

Chapter 9: Alcohol and losing your license

Under 21, a BAC of 0.02% or more suspends your license for 180 days.
Aged 21 or over: 0.08% to 0.149% means a 180-day suspension, and 0.15% or more means 730 days.
Refusing a test means a 365-day suspension for a first offense and 730 days for a second.
Every conviction for driving while suspended adds one year to the suspension.

More: zero tolerance laws for drivers under 21, implied consent and DUI and drugged driving.

Chapter 11: Registration, title and insurance

You must keep your insurance card and registration certificate in the vehicle at all times.
After buying a used vehicle, you have 5 days to apply for a title. The title fee is $68.50 (as of November 2026).
Every vehicle needs a current inspection sticker. New Orleans, Kenner and Westwego run their own inspection programs.
If you cannot show proof of insurance when stopped, your plate is seized. You then have 3 calendar days, not counting weekends and holidays, to show proof at an OMV office.

More: Louisiana insurance rules and fraud warning signs and car insurance for new drivers.

Common questions

How old do you have to be to drive in Louisiana?

You can get a TIP at 14 and drive with a driving school instructor. You can get a learner’s permit at 15, an intermediate license at 16 and a full license at 17.

Is driver’s ed mandatory in Louisiana?

Yes, for every first-time applicant. Under 18, you take the 38-hour course. At 18 or older, you take either the 14-hour pre-licensing course or the 38-hour course. The OMV’s online advisor, DouxWe, on expresslane.la.gov can tell you which you need.

How many questions are on the Louisiana permit test?

The OMV permits page says 40 questions, with 80% needed to pass.

Can I drive alone at 16 in Louisiana?

Yes, once you have an intermediate license, but not between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. From 6 p.m. to 5 a.m. you can carry only 1 passenger under 21 who is not immediate family, unless a licensed adult 21 or older is with you.

I just moved to Louisiana. How long do I have to switch my license?

30 days from when you become a resident. You will take a vision test. See transferring your license to a new state.

How does Louisiana compare with other states?

See US graduated driver licensing compared, US permit tests by state, supervised driving hours by state and the national guide to learning to drive in the US.

Sources

Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles, “Class D & E Driver’s Guide” DPSMV2052 (R08/25) (public.powerdms.com/LADPSC)
Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles, “Permits” (expresslane.la.gov)
Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles, “New Licenses” (expresslane.la.gov)
Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles, “Louisiana Graduated Driver’s License Laws” (expresslane.la.gov)
Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles, “Student/Parent Information” (expresslane.la.gov)
Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles, “Upgrading to a Class E Intermediate License” (expresslane.la.gov)

How to Get a Driver’s License in Louisiana: Teen and Adult Guide