Guiding Your Teen Through Michigan's Graduated Licensing

Before you enroll: is the course required?

Yes, for every Michigan driver under 18. The Department of State runs the GDL system but does not teach the classes itself. Independently owned businesses certified by the state do the teaching.

Do not buy an online-only course for this. The state says such courses may help as study material but cannot satisfy the instruction, testing, in-car training and practice requirements. A school missing from the state's search tool cannot issue a certificate that GDL will accept.

Before you enroll: a sample timeline

Take a teen born on June 1. They turn 14 years and 8 months on February 1 and start Segment 1 that week. Classes run through late February and early March, the state exam is passed in mid March, and the Level 1 license is issued at the start of April, once the teen is past 14 years and 9 months.

Three months later, in early July, with 30 hours logged, they take Segment 2 over a few summer days. Six months on Level 1 lands in early October. If the log has 50 hours by then, the teen can test, but the Level 2 card still waits until the 16th birthday the following June. Starting later in the year simply shifts every date.

Choosing a provider and paying for it

Segment 1 may be offered by your school district, a nearby district or a private driving school, provided the business and each instructor hold Department of State certification. Pricing is up to the provider. There is no state rebate: the driver education fund was closed by Public Act 71 of 2004, and families have paid the full tuition ever since.

The Department of State's FAQ gives roughly $200 to $400 as a typical fee. That number is old, so ask for current quotes in writing. Find out whether Segment 2, materials, a replacement certificate, makeup or extra drives, and home pickup are included, and read the attendance, dismissal and refund terms before signing.

If you cannot settle a problem with the owner (or, for a school program, the principal or superintendent), file a written complaint with the state on form DES-P11, Statement of Complaint. A teen with a disability may be owed free accommodations, at public and private schools alike, under federal disability law (the ADA) and the Michigan Persons with Disabilities Civil Rights Act.

• Search the state tool and confirm the provider is listed
• Ask whether the quote covers Segment 2
• Ask what missed or extra drives cost
• Get refund and attendance terms on paper

During Segment 1: how the course is paced

Classroom time totals 24 hours or more, capped at two hours a day and spread across at least three weeks. Your teen needs four classroom hours before they drive at all. Driving time totals at least 6 hours, no more than one a day, with three of them done while classes are still running.

There are also at least 4 hours riding along while other students drive. Any driving hours left when the classes end must be finished within three weeks of the last session. Depending on the school and how busy it is, the whole segment can take anywhere from a month or two up to several months, and some schools give more than the minimum.

• Classroom: 24 hours, 2 a day at most, 3 weeks or more
• Driving: 6 hours, 1 a day at most
• Observation: 4 hours
• State exam: pass with 70%

During Segment 1: the optional Parent Driving Permit

With your authorization, a Segment 1 provider can hand a currently enrolled, attending student a Parent Driving Permit. It allows practice with a licensed parent or guardian, and nobody else, before the Level 1 card exists.

Families who want an early head start like it. Keep in mind that the 50 required hours are logged on Level 1, so ask your provider how it treats permit-stage practice before you count on it.

On Level 1: the license, the log and the phone rule

After Segment 1, the two of you visit a Secretary of State office. Your teen takes a vision test, proves their identity, Michigan address, legal presence and Social Security number, has a photo taken, and you pay $25. The teen gets a hard card and must have it on every drive.

On Level 1, the person beside your teen must be you, a guardian, or a designated adult who is 21 or older and carries your signed authorization letter. Kelsey's Law adds a device ban for Level 1 and Level 2: no phones or other electronics at the wheel unless it is an emergency.

Midway: Segment 2

Segment 2 is a minimum of 6 classroom hours, two a day at most, so most classes take about three days. Your teen can sign up after holding Level 1 for three months with 30 supervised hours logged, at least 2 of them at night. The state exam again needs 70%.

On test day: the driving skills test

Testing is done by independent businesses, and the state does not set their prices, so find out what a retest, a refund or a missed appointment will cost before you commit. Your teen qualifies at 15 or older with Segment 2 done, six months on Level 1, a 50 hour log (10 after dark), and a spotless last 90 days: no convictions, civil infractions, suspensions or at-fault crashes.

You, or a guardian, must be there. The examiner starts by checking the car and its Michigan No-Fault insurance, registration and current plate tab. A missing mirror or a dead taillight ends things before they start. The test itself has three parts (inspection, basic control skills, on-road driving) and usually takes between three quarters of an hour and 90 minutes.

Self-parking, automated steering and similar driver-activated features cannot be used, and neither can phones or notes. Fail any part and the test stops; only one skills test is allowed per 24 hours. Pack three papers: the Level 1 card, proof of Segment 2, and the 50 hour log with your signature.

After the test: Level 2 and its limits

Level 2 means driving alone, with conditions. No driving from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m., and no more than one passenger under 21 unless they are immediate family. Neither limit applies on the way to or from a job, or to or from an authorized school or after-school activity, or when a licensed driver of 21 or older rides along.

Phones and texting remain banned. Everyone in the front and any passenger under 16 must wear a belt. Level 3, with no GDL limits at all, comes at 17 once your teen has spent six months on Level 2 and gone a full year without a violation or at-fault crash. Until 18, you also hold a veto: you may keep your teen on Level 1 or 2 longer, or have the license canceled.

If something goes wrong: a Level 2 violation

A curfew or passenger violation on Level 2 is a civil infraction carrying 2 points. The Department of State notifies you, adds 12 months to the time your teen must stay on Level 2, and orders a driver reexamination, which can end in a suspension or extra restrictions.

What counts as an authorized activity? Organized sports, clubs and school events, vocational classes, religious events, and getting someone to emergency care.

At 18, and for families moving in or out

GDL has an end date: the 18th birthday. A teen still on Level 1 that day sees the license expire and must switch to the adult route. Teens on Level 2 or Level 3 get a vertical Under 21 license in the mail shortly before 18.

On top of GDL, any new Michigan driver starts a probation of three years or more. If the final 10 months include a suspension, a traffic conviction, or a crash that was at fault or where the driver had been drinking, probation runs longer.

New residents under 18 are pointed to the GDL program. Driver education from another state may be credited; before you sign up anywhere, phone 1-888-SOS-MICH (1-888-767-6424). The state will ask for paperwork by mail to its Central Office or a branch visit, and training it rejects means starting at Segment 1. Heading the other way? Other states need not honor a Michigan certificate, and whether another state lets a Level 1 holder practice there is up to that state, so ask that state's licensing agency.

Insurance at every level

The car used for the skills test needs a valid Michigan No-Fault certificate. Before the Level 1 card is issued, call your agent to confirm your teen is covered while practicing, and ask about discounts for good grades or finished training. Adding a driver usually raises the premium, and we found no state rule requiring a driver education discount.