Ohio · Handbook chapter 1 · 6 min read

How to get an Ohio temporary instruction permit (TIPIC): the 40-question knowledge test, vision screening, online testing, permit supervision rules, driver education, the 50-hour practice log and the probationary license limits.

Why this chapter matters

The Ohio knowledge test can ask about the permit process itself, and new drivers under 18 are often tested on the TIPIC and probationary license limits. Learn the key numbers: 15 years and 6 months, 40 questions, 75 percent, 60 days, 24 + 8 hours of driver education, 50 hours of practice with 10 at night, and the midnight to 6 a.m. curfew.

The steps, in order

1. Read the Digest of Ohio Motor Vehicle Laws (the Ohio Driver Manual), especially Sections 2 to 10, which the knowledge test is based on.
2. Gather identity documents from the BMV Acceptable Documents list.
3. Pass the vision screening and the knowledge test.
4. Buy your Temporary Instruction Permit Identification Card (TIPIC) at a deputy registrar license agency.
5. If you are under 21 (or a temporary resident 21 or older), finish driver education and your logged practice hours.
6. Pass the driving test: the maneuverability test and the on-road test.
7. Buy your driver license at a deputy registrar.

The knowledge test

• You may take it from age 15 years and 6 months.
• It has 40 multiple-choice questions on motor vehicle regulations and traffic signs. You need 75 percent correct, which is 30 of 40.
• Signs are not a separate part with their own pass mark; they are mixed into the 40 questions.
• It is offered in text and audio in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Haitian Creole, Japanese, Russian, Somali and Spanish, and in text and video in American Sign Language. For other languages, book a test at a driver exam station and bring your own interpreter.
• You must still be able to read traffic signs printed in English.

Where you can test

If you fail, you must wait at least 24 hours (the Digest says one day) before trying again.

Testing online

• Use a computer or laptop with a working webcam.
• Applicants from 15 and a half up to age 19 need a supervising adult present, who must pass identity checks.
• If you test online, your vision screening is done at the deputy registrar when you buy the TIPIC.
• Some people must test in person: for example, those with a suspended license, a medical flag on their license or an active out-of-state license, or those who need special help.

Vision screening

Bring your glasses or contacts if you wear them. If you pass the screening with corrective lenses, your license carries a vision restriction and you must always wear them to drive.

Buying the TIPIC

• Buy it at a deputy registrar license agency within 60 days of passing. Miss that window and you must take the vision screening and knowledge test again.
• Bring proof of your full legal name, date of birth, Social Security number (if assigned), Ohio residency and citizenship or legal presence.
• Under 18, a parent, guardian or other responsible person must come with you, show identification and co-sign.
• If you hold an Ohio ID card, it is cancelled when the TIPIC is issued. You may hold only one license or ID card at a time.

TIPIC rules

For every permit holder:

• Carry the TIPIC whenever you drive.
• The supervising adult must not be intoxicated.
• The driver and all passengers must wear safety belts, and you may not carry more people than there are safety belts.
• No mobile electronic devices while driving.

Driver education and practice (under 21)

• A driver education course at a licensed driver training school: 24 hours of teaching in class or online, plus 8 hours behind the wheel.
• 50 hours of logged practice with an eligible supervisor, at least 10 hours at night, recorded on the BMV 5791 Fifty-Hour Affidavit. The RoadReady Ohio app can help you log hours.
• Under 18, hold the TIPIC for at least six months before the driving test.
• Temporary residents 21 or older take the same course and 50 hours, but hold the TIPIC for at least 14 days.

Probationary license limits (under 18)

First 12 months:

• No driving from midnight to 6 a.m. unless you are with a parent, guardian or custodian (or a licensed driver 21 or older named on a notarized BMV 2438), or you are driving to or from work or a school or religious event with the right documentation (BMV 2825 or BMV 2826).
• No more than one non-family passenger unless a parent or guardian is with you.
• A traffic conviction in the first six months can mean a parent or guardian must ride with you for six months or until you turn 17.

After 12 months and until 18:

• No driving from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m., with the same exceptions.

At all times under 18: no mobile devices of any kind while driving, and everyone wears a safety belt.