Getting Ready for the Arizona Permit Test

Before you study: who takes this test

According to ADOT, a person who has never been licensed anywhere in the U.S. has to pass this test before a road test can be booked, whatever their age. So adults take it too, not only 15 and a half year olds after a class G permit.

Drivers moving in with another state's license generally do not take it. Valid Canadian and German licenses also earn a waiver of both the written and road tests, as do South Korean and Taiwanese licenses for applicants who are 18 or older.

While you study: what the manual covers

The March 2026 manual is 74 pages. Its opening pages, before the numbered sections, explain license classes, the graduated license and the instruction permit, and questions can come from there as well.

The heaviest study belongs in Sections 2 and 3: right of way, speed, signs, signals, road markings and safe driving habits. Section 4, about other road users, contains a common question on giving cyclists at least 3 feet when you pass.

A worked two week plan: days 1 and 2 on the front pages and Section 1; days 3 to 7 on Sections 2 and 3; day 8 on Section 4; days 9 and 10 on Sections 5 to 7; then four days of ADOT practice tests, rereading only the topics you miss.

• Section 1 covers preparing to drive
• Section 2 covers safe driving habits
• Section 3 covers the roadway and your vehicle
• Section 4 covers trucks, bikes and other road users
• Section 5 covers crash avoidance
• Section 6 covers emergencies
• Section 7 covers being pulled over by police

Testing option one: at home, or at a driving school

If your teen is under 18, you as parent or legal guardian can host the test from your personal AZ MVD Now account. You sign in, verify your identity, enter your teen's information, pay the $7 application fee and supervise.

A participating Arizona professional driving school can also give the test. This works well if you cannot pass the online identity checks, or if your teen is enrolled in that school anyway.

A home pass does not produce a permit. Your teen still goes to MVD with the application, documents and your signature (or a notarized application if you cannot come), and the six month holding period only starts when the office issues the permit.

Testing option two: an MVD office

Each MVD office gives the test on a touch screen computer, with an audio version available at the station. Hours are weekdays from 7:30 in the morning to 4:45 in the afternoon. Offices do not test on state holidays or on the second Wednesday of each month.

You do not need an appointment for the written test. Arrive well before closing so you can finish, and if your documents are with you, stay for the eye check and photo.

If English is hard: languages and the verbal test

ADOT gives the written test in English, Spanish, Mandarin, Vietnamese, Arabic, Korean, Tagalog, Russian, German, Italian and French. Not listed? Ask about testing verbally.

A verbal exam is possible for applicants who report that they cannot read or have weak reading skills, after many missed questions or a second or third failure, or when the applicant reads only a language without a written version. Verbal testing is by appointment at an MVD location.

If you fail: fees and the next attempt

In October 2026 the regular permit costs $7. Students in approved driver training who take the restricted permit pay $3. The manual's fee table also shows $2 for a replacement permit.

ADOT's permit test page lists no waiting period between attempts. It does say MVD may switch to a verbal test once someone has failed twice or three times, so after two misses ask whether a verbal or different language version would help, and check in AZ MVD Now when the next home attempt can happen.

After you pass: getting the permit moving

Applicants must be at least 15 years and 6 months old, and the class G permit lasts a year. Your teen keeps it six months (or until turning 18) before the graduated license application.

Do not let a pass go stale. Take the completed application and original identity documents to MVD soon after, so the permit and its six month clock start right away.