United States, New York

The New York DMV test, and how to pass it

Which NY test do you needNY

EExam simulatorFull New York DMV format: 20 questions, 14 to pass with at least 2 of the 4 road sign questions right, every answer keyed to a statute.1Warm up runA shorter 20 question run pulled from across the NY bank, for a first look before the full sitting.SSigns and lane markingsSigns, signals and lane markings on their own: 63 questions, the group that costs the most points.LState statute questionsThe 36 rules that belong to New York alone, each carrying the statute number it was drafted against.

Every New York paper, 9 in totalNo account needed

The New York written permit test is 20 multiple-choice questions and you need 14 correct to pass, but that is only half the rule: at least 2 of the 4 road sign questions must also be right, so a score of 14 or more can still fail. The New York State Department of Motor Vehicles publishes both conditions in Chapter 1 of the Driver's Manual, last checked in September 2026.

Source: New York State Driver's Manual (MV-21), Chapter 1: Driver Licenses, checked September 25, 2026. New York DMV.

What the format is, and who says so

Questions asked	20New York State Driver's Manual (MV-21), Chapter 1: Driver Licenses, checked September 25, 2026Four of the 20 are road sign questions, and at least 2 of those 4 have to be right as well, so a paper with 14 or more correct can still fail. The same format covers the Class DJ, M, MJ and E written tests. The Class D test is offered in 20 languages, on a touch screen or on paper, and DMV gives the motorcycle test in the same 20 languages.
Right answers needed	14New York State Driver's Manual (MV-21), Chapter 1: Driver Licenses, checked September 25, 2026Necessary but not enough on its own: 2 or more of the 4 road sign questions also have to be answered correctly.
Road sign questions	At least 2 of the 4 right, whatever the overall scoreNew York State Driver's Manual (MV-21), Chapter 1: Driver Licenses, checked September 25, 2026DMV's motorcycle permit page sets the same condition for the Class M written test.
Pass mark as a percentage	70%New York State Driver's Manual (MV-21), Chapter 1: Driver Licenses, checked September 25, 2026DMV states the rule as a count, not a percentage. 14 of 20 works out at 70 percent, but because of the separate road sign condition, 70 percent overall does not guarantee a pass.
Learner permit age	16, with a parent or guardian consenting at 16 and 17 unless a 17-year-old holds a driver education certificate (MV-285)Vehicle and Traffic Law s. 502(2); New York State DMV, Learner Permit page and form ID-44 (2/26), checked September 25, 2026The permit at 16 leads to a junior license (Class DJ). A full Class D license comes at 18, or at 17 with a driver education course approved by the State Education Department and the supervised hours certified.
Supervised hours	50 hours, of which at least 15 must be after sunsetVehicle and Traffic Law s. 502(2); New York State DMV, Complete Pre-Licensing Requirements and form MV-262 (3/25), checked September 25, 2026Required of junior (DJ and MJ) permit holders and of 17-year-olds using driver education to get Class D. A parent or guardian certifies them on form MV-262, which goes to the examiner at every road test, and hours with a driving school instructor or driver education teacher count toward the 50. DMV publishes no hour requirement for applicants 18 and over.
Retakes	Two knowledge test attempts per $10 application fee, then a new feeVehicle and Traffic Law s. 503(2)(a); New York State DMV, Prepare For and Take Your Permit Test, checked September 25, 2026DMV publishes no waiting period between written test attempts at an office. An applicant under 18 who passes the online permit test and goes to an office within 3 business days has to take it again there.

Where New York goes its own way

New York grades its written test on two conditions at once, the overall count and the road sign questions, and its graduated license rules change with geography. A junior license (Class DJ) cannot be used anywhere in the five boroughs of New York City, and a junior permit works there only from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m., with a parent, guardian or instructor, in a car with dual controls; the same law gives Long Island and upstate different hours and supervisors again. Every new driver, adults included, completes the 5-hour pre-licensing course or a 48-hour high school or college driver education program before a road test can be booked. New York City also reverses the statewide turn on red default under Vehicle and Traffic Law s. 1111: no turn on red there unless a sign allows it. A driver under 21 with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.02 to 0.07 faces a six month suspension under Zero Tolerance, and since February 16, 2026 passing a stopped school bus costs 8 points rather than 5, against a suspension threshold of 11 points in 24 months.

Pass rule	14 of 20, and at least 2 of the 4 road sign questions
Alcohol under 21	0.02 to 0.07 brings a six month suspension
Helmet	Required for every rider and passenger, no age or insurance exception
Turn on red	Not in New York City unless a sign allows it
Minimum insurance	$25,000/$50,000 injury, $50,000/$100,000 death, $10,000 property
Points	11 in 24 months can bring a suspension

The New York paper here carries 36 questions on rules of that kind, alongside 98 drawn from the material that reads the same in every state, federal sign shapes and right of way included.

How do you get from a New York learner permit to a full Class D license?

A driver who starts at 16 gets a Class DJ permit and can qualify for a Class D license at 17 with approved driver education and an MV-285, whether the road test was before or after turning 17. Otherwise the road test leads to a junior Class DJ license, which DMV upgrades by mail at 18. Starting at 18 skips the junior limits, the 6-month permit hold and the MV-262 hours certification, but not the course, road test or probation after it.

The New York path for a driver who starts at 16

16
Junior learner permit (Class DJ)
Form MV-44, 6 points of ID, the vision test, the 20-question written test, and a parent or guardian's consent (VAT 502(2)(d); form ID-44).
On the permit
Course certificate
The 5-hour pre-licensing course (MV-278), which cannot be started without the permit, or 48-hour driver education (MV-285).
Permit + 6 months
Road test can be booked
Time the permit spent suspended or revoked does not count (VAT 501-b(1)(d)). The signed MV-262 goes to the examiner at every attempt.
After a pass
Junior license (Class DJ)
Interim license online after 6 p.m. on test day and a photo card by mail in about 2 weeks. Junior license holders follow the separate DJ violation rules.
17
Class D with the MV-285
Handed to the examiner with the junior permit at the road test, the MV-285 brings a Class D automatically once you are eligible; if you kept it, take it and the DJ to a DMV office. Either way the junior limits end statewide (VAT 502(2)(c) and 507).
18
Class D by mail
A DJ holder who never upgraded is mailed a Class D, with no office visit (ID-44 page 4).

From Vehicle and Traffic Law sections 501-b, 502 and 507, form ID-44 (2/26), and DMV's road test and graduated license pages.

Which course clears the way to a road test: 5 hours or 48?

For classroom or driver education routes, the road test scheduler asks for the certificate number before it offers a date. For the online course, the provider reports completion to DMV before you can book. Only the 48-hour route lets a 17-year-old hold a Class D, and the two certificates expire at different speeds.

Course routes DMV accepts before a first road test

Route	Who can take it	Proof, and how long it lasts
Classroom pre-licensing course, about 5 hours	16 and over with a learner permit	MV-278, valid 1 year
Virtual classroom (distance learning), same course	16 and over with a learner permit	MV-278, valid 1 year
Online pre-licensing course (DMV pilot)	18 and over with a photo learner permit	No certificate; the provider reports completion, usually within 48 hours
48-hour driver education, high school or college	Students in a state-approved program	MV-285, valid 2 years; also allows a Class D at 17

DMV's Driver Pre-Licensing Course and Complete Pre-Licensing Requirements pages and form RT-3 (4/25).

The MV-278 or MV-285 must be valid on the day you book. Bring the original to the road test; the examiner keeps the MV-278. A lost certificate has to be replaced by the school that issued it before you book (RT-3). The 5-hour course includes no driving, and a Point and Insurance Reduction Program (defensive driving) course does not count in its place. DMV does not publish course prices.

How is the New York road test booked, and what happens on the day?

3 to 5 weeks

until the earliest date usually offered, up to 10 weeks in summer and school breaks

DMV road test page

road tests covered by the fees paid for the permit; $10 buys up to 2 more

VAT 503(2)(b)

14 days

minimum gap after a failed road test

DMV road test page

After 6 p.m.

results post online on test day

DMV road test page; RT-3

From booking to result

1
Book
At nyrtsscheduler.com or 518-402-2100, with your 9-digit permit ID, the MV-278 or MV-285 number (none after the online course), the ZIP code where you want to test, and at least 1 unused road test. There are no waiting lists.
2
Line up the car and one companion
Valid registration, inspection and insurance, working and clean, with 2 permanent plates; no in-transit permit. A rental needs the agreement plus written permission for the test. The companion must be over 18 if they drive the car there, over 21 if you do, with a physical license (no mobile ID). No other passengers.
3
Bring the paperwork
Photo learner permit (with a paper interim permit, also a New York photo license or non-driver ID), the original MV-278 or MV-285, glasses if your permit requires them, and the MV-262 for a junior permit. Arrive up to 15 minutes early; if you are late, the examiner may not test you and you rebook.
4
Drive, then check
The examiner photographs you, your documents and the car first. Weather or road work can cancel or move a test. Results post after 6 p.m.; a pass unlocks an interim license online, and a fail leaves the permit valid until it expires.

What DMV says about road-test maneuvers

The Driver's Manual says parallel parking is on every road test, ending with the wheels no more than 1 foot from the curb (Chapter 7), and that a three-point turn may be asked for (Chapter 5). Practice elsewhere: permit holders may not drive in DMV road test areas.

What limits apply to a junior driver, and which laws set them?

The rules depend on the region where you drive. DMV splits the state into New York City, Long Island (Nassau and Suffolk) and upstate, meaning any county north of the city. Junior permit limits are in VAT 501(5), junior license limits in VAT 501(3).

Junior limits by region

Region	Junior permit	Junior license
New York City	5 a.m. to 9 p.m., with a parent or instructor, in a dual-control car. Never at night.	No driving in the five boroughs
Long Island	5 a.m. to 9 p.m., with a parent, instructor or an adult the parent names in writing. Never at night.	Only with those supervisors, except straight between home and a job (form MV-58A), work-study, college, evening high school, farm work or driver education. At night the ordinary job exception drops out.
Upstate	By day, any licensed supervisor 21 or older; 9 p.m. to 5 a.m., a parent or instructor only.	Alone by day. 9 p.m. to 5 a.m., alone only directly between home and a job (MV-58A) or a qualifying school course, including state-licensed or approved instruction or U.S. Armed Forces training.

Supervisors must be 21 or older and licensed. "Parent" includes a guardian or person in loco parentis; "instructor" means a driver education teacher or driving school instructor. DMV's Learner Permit Restrictions and Graduated License Law pages.

Yellow school buses on 50th Street in Manhattan, New York City — Yellow school buses.Photo: Jakub Hałun, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Which rules apply to a junior driver anywhere in the state?

Junior permit: only the supervising driver in front (VAT 501-b(1)(a)).
Permit or license: no more than 1 passenger under 21 outside immediate family, unless a licensed parent or instructor is supervising, and everyone belted (VAT 501-b(1) and (2)).
Every permit holder, adults too: no streets inside New York City parks, no Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority bridges or tunnels, no Cross County, Hutchinson River, Saw Mill River or Taconic State parkways in Westchester, and no DMV road test areas.
Handheld phones and devices are illegal for all drivers (VAT 1225-c and 1225-d), 5 points. On a junior permit or license: 120-day suspension (VAT 510(2)(b)(xvii)), and a second conviction within 6 months of restoration means at least 1 year revoked.
1 serious violation (normally one carrying 3 points or more), or 2 others, on a junior permit or license: 60-day suspension, then a 60-day revocation for a repeat within 6 months of restoration (VAT 510-c).

A newly issued Class D license carries a 6-month probation under VAT 501(4). Under VAT 510-b, speeding, reckless driving, tailgating, a speed contest, DWAI (alcohol) or any 2 other traffic violations trigger a 60-day probation suspension, unless a longer mandatory penalty applies. A second probation follows; a repeat means at least 6 months revoked. VAT 501(4) and 510-b exclude Class DJ and MJ licenses; those holders answer to the 510-c rules above. A phone or texting conviction on probation brings a 120-day suspension rather than 60 days (VAT 510(2)(b)(xvi)), as Chapter 2 of the Driver's Manual and DMV's cell phone page also say, although DMV's New Driver Restrictions page still lists phone use among the 60-day offenses.

Worked example

Olivia, Rochester: junior permit at 16, Class D at 17

1Olivia turns 16 on February 2, 2026 in Monroe County, upstate and outside the MCTD. On March 10 she passes the vision test and the written test (16 of 20, 3 of 4 signs), her father consents, and she pays $80.00, the chart fee for ages 16 to 16 and a half.
2From March 16 to June 12 she completes 48-hour driver education at her high school. Her MV-285 is valid to June 12, 2028 and stands in for the 5-hour course.
3By September her MV-262 shows 50 hours, 16 after sunset. Her aunt, 28 and licensed, supervises daytime drives; after 9 p.m. only a parent or instructor can.
4The permit turns 6 months old on September 10. She books that day and is offered October 15.
5On October 15 her father, over 21, rides as she drives the family car to the site. The result posted that evening is a fail; her permit stays valid.
6After the 14-day wait she tests again on November 19, still within the two tests the fee covers, and passes, having given the examiner her MV-285 with her junior permit. The DJ card arrives about 2 weeks later.
7She drives alone by day. After a 9:30 p.m. grocery store shift she drives straight home with an MV-58A in the car. Two school friends aboard with no parent would break the passenger cap.
8Because the examiner has her MV-285, she needs no office visit: DMV issues her Class D automatically once she turns 17 on February 2, 2027. It is valid statewide, New York City included.

Outcome. Class D at 17, a year before the DJ would have converted by mail. DMV charged $80.00 at the permit visit, and neither road test cost extra; a third would have cost $10, covering a fourth too (VAT 503(2)(b)). Neither DMV's fee page nor form ID-44 gives a fee for the switch from DJ to Class D, so that cost is unpublished, and the school sets the driver education price, which DMV does not publish either.

Which handbook sections the exam draws on

These are the topic areas the New York questions here are grouped into, each written from the New York State Driver's Manual, form MV-21 (5/23) or the statute behind it.

Permits and junior licenses. Learner permit and junior license (DJ) rules, supervised hours, the pre-licensing course and regional limits.
Rules of the road. Turning on red, passing, speed and the New York specific traffic rules.
Signs, signals and markings. The New York sign and signal rules the written test checks separately.
Alcohol and drugs. DWI and DWAI limits, zero tolerance under 21 and chemical tests.
School buses and emergency vehicles. Stopping for school buses and the Move Over law.
Sharing the road. Pedestrians, cyclists, motorcycles and phones at the wheel.
Insurance and collisions. Required insurance, reporting a crash and what to carry.

New York DMV says the written test covers Chapters 4 through 11 of the Driver's Manual and its road sign chart, and that Part 1, Chapters 1 to 3 on getting a license, keeping it and owning a vehicle, is not on the test. Chapter 12, on crashes, is outside that list too. Questions here on permits, license penalties, insurance and crash reports cover the rules around the test rather than the test itself.

Source: New York State Driver's Manual, form MV-21 (5/23). Read the official handbook.

Common questions

How many questions does the New York permit test have?

The New York Class D knowledge exam runs to 20 questions, and 14 of them have to be right. Four of the 20 are road sign questions, and at least 2 of those 4 have to be right as well, so a paper with 14 or more correct can still fail. The same format covers the Class DJ, M, MJ and E written tests. The Class D test is offered in 20 languages, on a touch screen or on paper, and DMV gives the motorcycle test in the same 20 languages.

How old do you have to be to get a learner permit in New York?

16, with a parent or guardian consenting at 16 and 17 unless a 17-year-old holds a driver education certificate (MV-285).

How many supervised driving hours does New York require?

50 hours, of which at least 15 must be after sunset. Required of junior (DJ and MJ) permit holders and of 17-year-olds using driver education to get Class D. A parent or guardian certifies them on form MV-262, which goes to the examiner at every road test, and hours with a driving school instructor or driver education teacher count toward the 50. DMV publishes no hour requirement for applicants 18 and over.

How many times can you retake the New York permit test?

Two knowledge test attempts per $10 application fee, then a new fee. DMV publishes no waiting period between written test attempts at an office. An applicant under 18 who passes the online permit test and goes to an office within 3 business days has to take it again there.

Can a 16-year-old take New York's online pre-licensing course?

No. DMV limits the online pre-licensing course, a pilot run through approved providers, to applicants 18 and over who hold a New York photo learner permit. At 16 or 17 you take the 5-hour course in a classroom or a virtual classroom, both of which issue the MV-278, or you complete a 48-hour high school or college driver education program, which issues the MV-285. The 5-hour course, in either format, cannot be started until you hold a learner permit.

How long does a New York pre-licensing certificate last?

The MV-278 from the 5-hour course is valid for 1 year from the day it is issued, and the MV-285 from driver education for 2 years. Your certificate must be valid when you book the road test. Bring the original to the test; the examiner keeps the MV-278. The school that issued it replaces a lost one. The online course issues no certificate; the provider reports your completion to DMV.

Can a teen with a junior permit practice driving in New York City?

Only from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m., with a parent, guardian, person in loco parentis, driver education teacher or driving school instructor aged 21 or older, and only in a car with dual brakes. Night driving in the five boroughs is banned. After the road test it gets stricter: a junior license cannot be used in the city at all. For that reason DMV suggests that a teen who expects to drive often in the city put off the road test until 18 and keep practicing in a dual-control car.

How soon can someone 18 or older take the New York road test?

As soon as a test date is free. The 6-month wait after the permit applies only under 18. You still need a valid learner permit, at least 1 unused road test, and a course on record: an MV-278 from the 5-hour course, an MV-285 from driver education, or an online course completion, which the provider usually reports within 48 hours. DMV says the earliest date is usually 3 to 5 weeks out.

Can a junior driver upstate drive home from work after 9 p.m.?

Yes, if the trip goes directly between home and a job where you are paid to work on a regular schedule, and you carry a completed Certificate of Employment, form MV-58A. Driving as part of the job does not count. Upstate you may also drive directly between home and a qualifying school course at night, including state-licensed or approved instruction or U.S. Armed Forces training. Any other trip between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m. needs a parent, guardian, person in loco parentis, driver education teacher or driving school instructor (VAT 501(3)(b)).

Does a New York junior license turn into a full license automatically?

At 18, yes. DMV mails a Class D document to a DJ holder who turns 18, with no office visit needed. At 17 it can be too. If you gave the examiner your Student Certificate of Completion (MV-285) from an approved driver education course along with your junior permit at the road test, the Class D comes automatically once you are eligible. If you kept the certificate, take it and your junior license to a DMV office. Either way the Class D lifts the junior limits across the state, New York City included.

What else do people ask about the New York permit test?

Sources

Other states: all US permit practice tests.

Sources: New York State Department of Motor Vehicles; New York State Driver's Manual, form MV-21 (5/23). Checked September 25, 2026. Original practice questions, never the examination questions themselves. New York DMV does not run this site and does not endorse it.