Indiana graduated driver licence stages

By the end of this topic you can

• You can name Indiana's three license stages in order.
• You can work out the earliest age you can get a permit and a license, with and without driver education.
• You can explain the 180-day permit holding period and the 50-hour practice log.
• You can describe the main limits on a probationary license.
• You can say when a probationary license becomes unrestricted.

What you need to know and understand

• You can get a learner's permit at 15 if you are enrolled in a BMV-licensed driver education course, or at 16 without one.
• You must hold your permit for at least 180 days before you can get a license.
• With completed driver education the minimum license age is 16. Without it, you must be at least 16 years and 270 days old.
• First-time applicants, teens and adults alike, must log at least 50 hours of supervised practice, including 10 at night, before getting a license.
• A license issued before age 21 is probationary and stays valid until you are 21 years and 30 days old.
• Probationary drivers may not use a phone or other telecommunications device at all while driving, except to call 911.

Stage 1: the learner's permit

The permit lets you practice with a qualified supervisor in the front passenger seat. To get one you prove your identity, Social Security number, lawful status and Indiana residency, then pass a vision screening and the knowledge exam. A permit is valid for two years.

If you are under 18, an adult must sign to accept financial liability for your driving, and you must name an emergency contact who is at least 18.

Stage 2: the probationary license

Once you meet the age rule, have held your permit for 180 days and have your 50-hour log signed, you can take the driving skills exam. Pass it and you receive a probationary license. The limits are tightest in the first 180 days and ease as you gain experience.

• First 180 days: no passengers unless a licensed driver aged 25 or older, a licensed spouse aged 21 or older, or a driving instructor sits in the front seat. Your own child, stepchild, sibling (including step and half siblings), spouse, parent or legal guardian, or grandparent may ride with you.
• First 180 days: no driving between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m.
• After 180 days and while under 18: no driving after 11 p.m. Sunday to Thursday, before 5 a.m. Monday to Friday, or between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday.
• The manual lists exceptions to the driving-hour limits for work, school-sanctioned activities, religious events, or when a licensed adult aged 25 or older (or a spouse aged 21 or older) rides with you.
• No use of any telecommunications device while driving, even hands-free, except for a 911 call.

Stage 3: the unrestricted license

You cannot renew a probationary license until the day after your 21st birthday. When you renew, the probationary limits drop away and you receive a standard license. You have 30 days after turning 21 to renew before an administrative penalty applies.

Even fully licensed drivers must follow Indiana's hands-free law and seat belt law, so good habits from the earlier stages still matter. Our separate guides on the permit test and on probationary curfew rules go into more detail.

Common mistakes

• Assuming limits end at 18. In Indiana the license stays probationary until 21, and the phone ban applies the whole time.
• Counting supervised hours with the wrong person. Under 18, a non-instructor supervisor must be at least 25 and related to you by blood, marriage or legal status, or be your spouse aged 21 or older.
• Forgetting the night hours. Ten of the 50 logged hours must be at night unless your permit carries a daytime-only restriction.
• Letting your permit expire for more than 180 days, which means taking the knowledge exam again.

Test yourself: Indiana graduated driver licence stages

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

Go deeper

• Indiana Permit Test
• Indiana Permit Practice Test
• Indiana Probationary License Restrictions and Curfew