When applying for a Connecticut driving permit with Department of Motor Vehicles, it is important to know the permit requirements. Make sure you meet the DMV requirements and that you have assembled the necessary documents.
Unlike many states where a student can get a learner's permit at 15, Connecticut does not grant a learner's permit until age 16. Laws also include tougher penalties for teens who violate driving laws. A recent report http://www.ct.gov/dmv/cwp/view.asp?Q=538750&A=807 found that the tougher requirements have resulted in an 84 percent decrease in teen driver deaths over the last 10 years.
To obtain your Connecticut learner's permit, you will need to first make an appointment at the appropriate DMV office by clicking here. https://www.dmvteen.ct.gov/dmv/do-it-online To get your learner's permit, you will need an appointment at one of these DMV offices: Bridgeport, Cheshire, Danbury, Hamden, Norwalk, Waterbury, Wethersfield or Willimantic.
Connecticut Permit Required Documentation
Plan on bringing your parent or guardian with you so that they can sign your application stating that they are taking responsibility for your safe driving. If not, your parent must sign a Certificate of Consent http://www.ct.gov/dmv/LIB/dmv/20/29/2-D.pdf and get it notarized.
At your appointment you will need to bring these valid, unexpired documents. Photocopies, even notarized ones, are not acceptable. You should bring the following:
- Two primary IDs or one primary/one secondary ID – To meet this requirement you must supply an official U.S. birth certificate or U.S. Passport, and a certified school transcript (school ID is not accepted) or Social Security card.
- Proof of your Social Security number – Bring a U.S. Government issue Social Security card.
- Proof of you or your parent's Connecticut residency - To verify your CT address, you may use two items from this list:
Parent's CT driver's license, CT Voter ID Card
Parent's bank statement, utility bill, credit card bill
Parent's pay stub, property tax bill, pension statement, loan contract
Your official CT school records
Connecticut Permit Test
To get a learner's permit, students must pass a 25-question, multiple choice test. The knowledge test concerns rules of the road, road signs and other driving laws. You will need to correctly answer 20 questions, or 80% to pass. Applicants who fail the knowledge test must wait a week in order to study, and pay the exam fee again in order to retake the test.
Connecticut Learner's Permit
Once you get your permit, you are allowed to drive with a parent, legal guardian or certified instructor. Older siblings or other licensed drivers must be at least 20 years old and have been licensed for at least 4 years to qualify as supervisors. You may not carry any other passengers in the vehicle. All drivers age 18 or younger are forbidden to use regular or hands-free cellphones, or other handheld devices.
With the permit, new drivers can begin to log the required 40 hours of practice driving under supervision. Additionally permit holders must complete a driver education course, and their supervising parent must complete a 2 hour class on how to enforce safe teen driving.
Connecticut Restricted License
After holding the permit for 4 months, and with driver education and practice hours prerequisites completed, you can take the road test to earn a restricted license. Until the driver turns 18, there is a strict curfew from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. For the first six months, only passengers is over the age of 20 are allowed. For the second six months, passengers may include immediate family. These restrictions are lifted upon turning 18.
