Guiding a Georgia Teen Through Joshua's Law to a Class D License

Before you enroll: what Joshua's Law covers

Joshua's Law began as Senate Bill 226. It kicks in for any applicant aged 16 or 17 seeking a Class D or a motorcycle permit. Families once dodged it by waiting until 17. That loophole closed on July 1, 2021, and 17-year-olds now meet identical requirements.

DDS recognizes four combinations. All of them pair 30 hours of instruction with some form of in-car training, and every one also requires 40 hours behind the wheel with a parent or guardian watching, 6 of them after sunset.

• Option 1: 30 classroom hours, 6 in-car hours with a certified school, 40 supervised hours
• Option 2: 30 classroom hours with a certified school, 40 parent-taught hours from the Parent/Teen Driving Guide
• Option 3: 30 online hours with a certified virtual program, 6 in-car hours with a certified school, 40 supervised hours
• Option 4: 30 online hours with a certified virtual program, 40 parent-taught hours from the Parent/Teen Driving Guide

Before you enroll: online classes, parent teaching and cost

The 30-hour portion can be done online as long as the provider is a DDS-certified virtual program. DDS says online versions usually cost less than classroom ones, which it puts at around $250 and up as of October 2026.

If you choose parent teaching, you swap the 6 school hours for 40 hours of structured lessons from DDS's free Parent/Teen Driving Guide. No in-car training of any kind can start until your teen has a learner's permit, so the permit comes first.

Here is how it can look in practice. A teen who gets the permit on her 15th birthday in May could do the online 30 hours over the summer, work through the Parent/Teen Driving Guide with you during the school year, and be eligible to test the day after her permit's first anniversary, once she is 16.

Before you enroll: checking a school is certified

Only DDS-certified providers count. High schools and private driving schools can both be certified. To check one, search the certified school list on the DDS Driver Education Programs page.

A class from an uncertified school will not be accepted for licensing. Look the school up on the DDS list before paying, and ask whether its online offering is a certified virtual program or just a practice course.

Before the permit visit: proving school enrollment

Under 18, your teen proves school enrollment at both the permit and the Class D stage. Acceptable proof includes the DDS-1 Certificate of School Enrollment (notarized), a transcript or the newest report card or progress report, or a school ID that is still current. For home study, bring either the state education department's enrollment certificate or the Declaration of Intent you filed. A teen who has finished school shows the diploma, the GED or a certificate of completion.

You may hear that 10 unexcused absences cost a teen the permit. That rule is gone. According to the Georgia Department of Education, SB 100 did away with license suspensions for attendance or discipline as of July 1, 2015. Schools now vouch only that a student is enrolled and not expelled. In 2026 a Senate bill numbered SB 513 sought to bring back limits tied to attendance; we could not confirm it became law, so ask your school if in doubt.

On permit test day: two short tests, not one

Georgia's knowledge exam is split into Road Rules and Road Signs, 20 questions each. Your teen needs 15 right on each, so acing the rules does not rescue a poor signs score. You can walk in without an appointment, but arrive early: testing has to begin no later than half an hour before closing time.

As of October 2026, DDS gives both tests in 26 languages (Spanish, Korean, Vietnamese, Haitian Creole and Arabic are among them), and applicants with reading disabilities can ask for an oral test. After a failure, wait 1 day; after a second failure, 7 days. The $10 fee is due before every attempt and is not refunded.

During the permit year: ADAP and the 40 hours

Every Georgia teen under 18 completes the Alcohol and Drug Awareness Program before a Class D. Most do it at school. A home-schooled teen, or one who missed the school session, can take eADAP, DDS's online version, at any hour. The ADAP certificate is on the DDS road test checklist for under-18 applicants.

On a permit, your teen drives only with an adult in the next seat who is at least 21, licensed for Class C and ready to take control. Spread the 40 hours across the year, and leave room for the 6 night hours.

On road test day: in person or virtual

Book the road skills test online once the License/ID/Permit Form is in. On a standard test an examiner rides along and your teen needs 75 percent. DDS also offers a Virtual Road Test, run remotely through a dual-facing camera and a hands-free device while a licensed adult aged 21-plus rides along.

Your teen will parallel park within 18 inches of the curb, back up about 50 feet, turn the car around in two, three or five moves, and handle signs, signals, yielding, turns, passing and following distance. Fail once and the wait is a day; fail twice and it is a week; fail with a crash or a traffic violation during the test and it is 30 days.

Pack the permit, the car's insurance card, registration and current tag, school enrollment proof, and both certificates (ADAP and driver education). You, or another responsible adult of 21 or over, attend in person to sign the affidavit for the 40 hours. As of October 2026, the permit test is $10 per attempt and the license for an under-18 road test applicant is $10.

After the Class D: curfew, passengers and the move to Class C

Georgia's graduated system comes from TADRA, the Teenage and Adult Driver Responsibility Act, and has three steps between 15 and 18: the Class CP permit, the Class D provisional license at 16 or 17, and the full Class C at 18 for a driver with no major traffic convictions in the past 12 months. Upgrading from D to C needs no office visit; use the website or the DDS 2 GO mobile app.

A Class D holder cannot drive from midnight to 5 a.m., and DDS says there are no exceptions. The limits attach to the license class rather than the birthday, so an 18-year-old still holding a Class D is still bound by them. Passenger limits relax during the first year. The count includes only riders younger than 21 from outside the immediate family.

• Months 1 to 6: immediate family only
• Months 7 to 12: one non-family passenger under 21
• After 12 months: no more than three non-family passengers under 21

If something goes wrong: suspensions aimed at young drivers

A Georgia resident younger than 18 is suspended at 4 points or more inside any 12 months. Anyone under 21 is suspended for a reckless driving conviction. Georgia residents under 21 are also suspended for aggressive driving, for overtaking on a hill or curve or around a stopped school bus, and for driving 24 mph or more over the limit.

These sit on top of the adult threshold of 15 points. Do the math for a 16-year-old: going 24 to 33 over earns 4 points in one ticket, and 4 points is the under-18 trigger.

• Under 18: 4 points or more in 12 months
• Under 21: any reckless driving conviction
• Under 21 and a Georgia resident: aggressive driving, 24 mph or more over, school bus passing, or passing on a hill or curve

If you are paying for it: insurance and the scholarship

DDS notes that Georgia law lets insurers offer lower premiums to people who complete driver education and suggests asking your agent. Whether you get a discount is up to the insurer, so get a quote before the course and after.

If cost is the obstacle, look at the Georgia Driver's Education Grant Scholarship Program, which DDS operates together with the Governor's Office of Highway Safety. DDS links to it, and the page lists who currently qualifies.

If you are moving to Georgia with a teen

A teen who did drivers ed in another state usually still needs a program from a Georgia-certified school. The exception is military families. If a parent is on active duty, a certificate from the old state works when its date falls within 9 months of the teen turning 16.

An out-of-state learner's permit has to be transferred, and permit time in the old state and in Georgia is added together toward the year and a day. One more special case: a 17-year-old who has joined the military may go straight for a Class C, skipping the permit stage, with form DS-517.