Illinois permit test
Test requirements, handbook sources, and practice for Illinois.
Test and permit facts
Read the scope and exceptions alongside each fact. Requirements still awaiting review are omitted; their absence does not mean the agency has no rule.
| Fact | Illinois | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Agency | Illinois Secretary of State | |
| Test name | written exam | Official source · PDF page 17 |
| Test format details | The adopted Class D rule specifies at least 35 questions and an 80% passing score. It does not establish an exact question total or an exact number of correct answers. | Official source · PDF page 211 |
| Passing percentage | 80 | Official source · PDF page 211 |
| Images used in the test | signs | Official source · PDF page 17 |
| Minimum permit age | 15 | |
| Permit fee | $20 for an original Class D instruction permit; renewal is $10. | |
| Permit validity | An instruction permit lasts two years for an applicant under 18 and one year for an applicant age 18 or older. Under-18 applicants must hold it for at least nine months before licensing. | |
| Driver’s education | Ages 15–17 generally need enrollment or a start within 30 days in an approved course; applicants at least 17 years and 3 months can apply without it. | Official source 2 · PDF page 19 |
| Retest rules | The application fee covers three tries at each required exam within one year of payment. A cheating finding causes failure and a 30-day hold before another attempt. The ordinary-failure waiting interval remains unknown. | Official source · PDF page 16 |
| Test languages | Albanian, Arabic, Dari (Afghanistan, Persia), English, French, German, Greek, Hakka Chin (Burma-Myanmar, India), Hindi, Italian, Karen, S’gaw (Burma, Thailand), Korean, Mandarin, Pashto, Pasto (Afghanistan), Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Serbo-Croatian, Spanish (Central America, Mexico), Ukrainian, Urdu (Southeast Asia, Pakistan, India), Vietnamese, Swahili | |
| Handbook | Illinois Rules of the Road | |
| Handbook edition | 2026 | Official source · PDF page 1 |
| Requirements for applicants under 18 | At age 15, the permit phase requires parent or guardian consent, approved driver-education enrollment and successful vision and written tests. From age 17 years and three months, the instruction-permit page permits application without taking driver education; that exception does not remove other application requirements. | |
| Documents to bring | A permit application requires acceptable identification and a Secretary of State application. For applications through driver education, the application needs the certified instructor’s signature. Applicants ages 15–17 need provider proof of course enrollment or a start within 30 days; the education exception begins at age 17 years and 3 months. | Official source 2 · PDF page 19 |
| Agency offices and appointments | Use the Secretary of State facility directory or Facility Finder to choose a DMV. Check the location’s entry: some require driver-services appointments, and some locations serve seniors only. |
Start with the handbook
Official source · PDF page 1
Study the federal road-sign catalog.
Free permit practice
Try 20 independently checked questions with explanations and handbook citations. This practice set does not reproduce the official exam format.
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- Illinois permit offices and appointments
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