Wyoming · Handbook chapter 1 · 6 min read

Who needs a Wyoming license, the instruction permit, hardship restricted licenses, the intermediate license, full privileges at 17, tests, documents, fees and renewals.

Why this chapter matters

Wyoming's licensing steps depend on your age, and the intermediate license comes with hour and passenger limits that the written test can ask about.

Who needs a license

To drive in Wyoming you need a valid license, instruction permit, intermediate license or restricted license. Federal employees in government vehicles, military members stationed here (and their dependents) with a home-state license, full-time out-of-state students at Wyoming colleges and licensed drivers from Driver License Compact states are exempt, though a Compact-state license must be surrendered within one year of becoming a resident.

The steps for young drivers

Instruction permit

You apply in person at a driver exam office, where you are photographed and take the written test and vision screening, though you can start the application online through oneWYO. Under 18, a parent or guardian signs the application. Whenever you drive, a person 18 or older who holds a valid license for that type of vehicle must sit in the front passenger seat to supervise.

The permit is valid for one year and can be renewed as often as you need. You must hold it for at least 10 days before you apply for an intermediate permit or full privileges. It is usually issued at 15 or 16, but older beginners can get one too.

Intermediate license

• Be at least 16, have held an instruction permit for at least 10 days, and complete 50 hours of driving, 10 at night, certified by a parent or guardian (or have held a restricted hardship license).
• Hold the intermediate permit for at least six months or until you turn 17.
• Pass a vision screening and a driving skills test (approved driver education can replace the skills test).
• No driving 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. unless you carry a signed exception form for work, school or a school activity, organized youth sports, a religious activity, or a medical need. Each form covers one event, such as one away game. In a true medical emergency you may drive to the hospital without a form.
• No more than one passenger under 18 who is not immediate family, and everyone must be buckled.
• WYDOT says these limits do not apply when the person in the front passenger seat is 18 or older and holds a full license.
• A violation brings a 30-day suspension. The license expires 30 days after your 17th birthday.

Hardship licenses

For 14- and 15-year-olds. WYDOT lists these reasons: home is more than 5 miles from school; a regular job of at least 10 hours a week more than 5 miles from home; a need to drive for a parent's business; or another extreme inconvenience the Wyoming Highway Patrol accepts. You mail the application packet to the Highway Patrol, and approval can take up to six weeks.

If approved, you pass the written test and vision screening for a 60-day restricted permit, which you must hold for at least 10 days, driving only with a licensed adult 18 or older. You can then apply for the restricted "RC" license, limited to 5 a.m. to 8 p.m. and a 50-mile radius of home. A moving violation, or driving outside those hours or that radius, brings a suspension. The manual adds that the license expires 30 days after the 16th birthday.

The tests

• Vision: 20/40 with both eyes and a 120-degree field. Between 20/40 and 20/100 you must also take a skills test.
• Written test: required if you have never been licensed or your license expired two or more years ago. It is automated and English only, and the manuals are printed only in English, though an interpreter may be used for non-commercial tests. It covers sign shapes, colors and symbols, signals, markings, seat belt use and multiple-choice questions on traffic laws and safety. If reading is hard for you, you can choose to hear the questions through a phone system when you set up the test at the station. You may take it twice in one day, and the manual adds that missing 13 or more questions means a three-day wait. The manual does not give the number of questions or the passing score.
• Skills test: required for first-time drivers. An approved driver education card (30 hours classroom, 6 hours driving, honored for two years) can waive it. Bring your own licensed, registered and insured vehicle with front seat belts and working lights, signals, brakes, horn, mirrors, wipers and tires. Many stations need an appointment, which you can book on oneWYO or by calling the office. If you fail, the examiner can make you wait days or weeks before retesting.

Documents, fees and renewals

Bring a certified birth certificate, passport or immigration documents, proof of your Social Security number and two proofs of Wyoming residency showing a street address. A permit or original license costs $40, an intermediate license $30, plus a $5 technology fee. Report a new address in writing within 10 days. Drivers over 21 may renew within 120 days of expiry; under 21, within 90 days.