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Arkansas driver's license

Get your first license in Arkansas after moving to the US.

How it goes

  1. 1
    You arriveYou have moved to Arkansas and you want to drive here.
  2. 2
    Your permitYou practice on the road with a learner permit.
  3. 3
    The written testYou take the written test.
  4. 4
    Behind the wheelYou take the drive test behind the wheel.
  5. Your licenseYou pass the tests, and the license is yours.

If you just arrived in the US

Foreign documents with no expiry date

Arkansas puts no expiry condition on a foreign licence. Licence holders from Manitoba (Canada), Germany, France, Taiwan, and South Korea are not required to test under reciprocal agreements and can be issued an Arkansas licence through the Department of Finance and Administration.

Your Social Security Number

Giving your number, and who may see it

Arkansas's published materials mention your Social Security Number but do not state how it is used or who sees it.

Tests you take

Eye test

If a vision referral form is required, an Arkansas optometrist must fill it out; forms from out-of-state or virtual optometrists are not accepted.

  • Every applicant passes a vision test before a licence or instruction permit is issued: at least 20/40 uncorrected, or 20/70 corrected with lenses then required while driving, with a standard of 140 for two functional eyes and 105 for one. The ASP-90 form must be completed by an Arkansas optometrist; out-of-state and virtual optometrists are not accepted.

Drive test

Yes

Tries you get on the written test

There is no limit on the number of tries. Each written exam costs $5, added to the cost of your licence and collected by the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration.

Practice questions for the written test

The Arkansas Driver License Test Study Guide is at media.ark.org/dps/Arkansas-DL-Manual-English-1.pdf.

Practising with your permit

Who can sit with you while you practise

A licensed driver aged 21 or older must be in the car with you.

  • You can drive only when accompanied by a licensed driver aged 21 or older.

  • A licensed driver aged 21 or older must sit in the seat beside you.

What to bring to the drive test

Who comes with you

A licensed driver must come with you and show the examiner a hard-copy licence that is valid and not expired, suspended, or revoked. If you are the one driving, that driver must be at least 21 years old.

  • A licensed driver must come with you and show the examiner a hard-copy licence that is valid and not expired, suspended, or revoked. That driver must be at least 21 years old if you do the driving; if someone else drives you to the test center, an unrestricted Class D driver aged 16 or older is enough.

  • With an instruction permit, you can drive only when a licensed driver aged 21 or older is in the seat beside you.

  • If you drive yourself to the skills test, the licensed driver with you must be 21 or older. If someone else drives you there, an unrestricted Class D driver aged 16 or older is enough.

The car and its insurance

The car must have valid registration and current proof of insurance; a paper or electronic insurance card is accepted.

  • The car must be clean and in good mechanical condition, with no cameras or recording devices. It will be denied if the front window tint is darker than 25%, the back tint is darker than 10%, the front windshield has any tint, or a windshield brow measures more than 5 inches from the center of the windshield.

  • The car needs current proof of insurance (a paper or electronic card), valid registration, a clean and mechanically sound condition, front window tint no darker than 25%, back tint no darker than 10%, no tint on the front windshield, a windshield brow within 5 inches of the center, and no cameras or recording devices. Skills tests run only in weather safe for testing; the Troop Commander decides whether to cancel.

Where to go

Who gives the tests

The Arkansas State Police handle driver examinations; their page is at dps.arkansas.gov/law-enforcement/arkansas-state-police/services-programs/driver-examination.

  • The Arkansas State Police.

Booking an appointment

You can book an appointment through Arkansas MyDMV at airsdsmvpub.dfa.arkansas.gov/mydmv/?link=ScheduleAppointment.

  • You can schedule an appointment at airsdsmvpub.dfa.arkansas.gov/mydmv/?link=ScheduleAppointment.

  • You can find your appointment at airsdsmvpub.dfa.arkansas.gov/mydmv/?link=FindAppointment.

  • You can schedule the driving skills test at telegov.egov.com/aspdlskills.

  • All driver licence testing statewide is scheduled at telegov.egov.com/aspdlskills.

Office locations

Arkansas revenue offices are listed at www.dfa.arkansas.gov/all-county-offices/?_sft_office-location-category=revenue-office.

Other states

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Every source, quoted25 sources

Every fact on this page is quoted from the page that publishes it, in the words it uses.

Applying for a driver's license in Arkansas?

Answer a few questions and see the steps that apply to you.

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