Florida graduated driver licence stages

By the end of this topic you can

• You can name Florida's licensing stages and the minimum age for each.
• You can explain who may supervise a learner and when a learner may drive.
• You can state the curfew hours for 16 and 17 year old license holders and the two exceptions.
• You can describe the six-point rule for drivers aged 15 to 17.

What you need to know and understand

• A learner's license is available from age 15 after an approved driver education course, the knowledge exam and the vision and hearing exams.
• A learner must always have a licensed driver aged 21 or older in the front passenger seat.
• Learners drive in daylight only for the first 3 months, then until 10 p.m.
• Under 18, you must hold the learner's license for at least 12 months with no moving traffic convictions before getting a Class E license.
• A 16 year old license holder may not drive from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m., and a 17 year old from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m., unless with a licensed driver 21 or older or driving directly to or from work.
• Florida's license restriction law sets no passenger limit for teen drivers, which is unusual among states.

Florida's route from 15 to 18

Florida law does not use the words intermediate or provisional license. Instead, a 16 or 17 year old holds an ordinary Class E license, but the law attaches curfews to it until the driver turns 18.

• Learner's license (age 15 and up): complete an FLHSMV-approved driver education course, pass the knowledge exam and the vision and hearing exams, and have a parent or guardian sign consent.
• Class E license at 16 or 17: hold the learner's license for 12 months with no moving convictions, have 50 hours (10 at night) certified, and pass the driving skills test.
• From 18: the curfews end and the 12-month and 50-hour rules no longer apply to new applicants.

Learner limits: who rides with you and when

Your supervisor must hold a valid license for the vehicle, be at least 21 and sit in the seat closest to your right. It does not have to be a parent. For the first 3 months you may drive only in daylight; after that you may drive until 10 p.m. Breaking either rule carries the civil penalty for a moving violation.

A moving conviction during the learner period can delay your Class E license. The law lets you still qualify if you elect traffic school and the court withholds adjudication.

Curfews and points at 16 and 17

Curfews are tied to age, not to how long you have been licensed. Driving during curfew is charged as a moving violation. Separately, if a Class E licensee aged 15 to 17 builds up six or more points in 12 months (parking excluded), FLHSMV restricts the license to business purposes only for at least a year, with 90 more days for each extra point. The restriction is lifted after a clean year or on your 18th birthday if there are no other grounds.

Minors must also be enrolled in school and meet attendance rules, or be exempt, to get and keep a license. Our separate guides to the learner's license rules and the teen curfew go deeper.

Common mistakes

• Booking the road test before 12 months have passed since the learner's license was issued. Count from the issue date.
• Driving after dark in the first 3 months. Learners are limited to daylight until the 3-month mark.
• Treating a 20 year old sibling as a legal supervisor. The supervisor must be at least 21.
• Stopping off on the way home from work during curfew. The exception covers driving directly to or from work only.

Test yourself: Florida graduated driver licence stages

Answer each question, then read the explanation. Questions come in a random order each time.

Go deeper

• Florida Permit Test
• Florida Disabled Parking Permit
• Florida Learner’s Permit Rules