Getting a Missouri Instruction Permit: What Families Need to Know

Before you go: who can apply

Missouri residents can apply from age 15. For a teen getting a first license, this permit is the opening stage of the Graduated Driver License system, and there is no other way to an intermediate license at 16. Adults may also hold the Class F permit to practice under supervision, and for them no minimum hold applies.

Separately, teens 15 and up who are enrolled in an approved drivers ed course can get a $1 student permit good for the length of that course. Because it is linked to the course, check with the school or program about which permit your teen should carry.

At the Patrol station: three tests

Testing is the Highway Patrol's job; the Department of Revenue only issues the permit afterward. The Patrol's Driver Examination Division lists every station and its testing days, and smaller stations may test just a few days a week or a few days a month. Check before you drive over.

The eye check measures how sharp and how wide your teen's vision is. The bar is 20/40 or better using one or both eyes, with side vision reaching 85 degrees in a single eye or 55 degrees in each. Miss it and you get a form for an eye doctor, and the written test may wait until new glasses arrive.

The sign quiz asks your teen to identify signs from their color, shape and symbol. The written test has 25 multiple choice questions, no book allowed, and 20 correct is a pass. Bringing out a phone, a camera, or anything that records or transmits during testing is treated as fraud. That is a Class A misdemeanor, and it can take away driving privileges for up to a year.

At the license office: documents

Expect to prove five things: lawful presence, identity (full legal name plus date of birth), the Social Security number, any change of name, and a Missouri address. Most teens cover the first two with a valid U.S. passport or a certified U.S. birth certificate bearing a raised or stamped seal. The souvenir certificate a hospital hands out will be refused.

For the Social Security number, the signed card works, and so do a pay stub, a W-2 or a 1099 showing it. Address proof can be a property tax receipt, a recent utility bill, or an official government letter from the last 90 days. Teens under 21 may prove the address with a parent's document.

• REAL ID permit: two address documents, and only one may be the parent's
• Non REAL ID permit: one address document
• The exam results (Form 100) the Patrol gave you
• A parent, stepparent, guardian or certified trainer present to sign

After the permit: who can ride along

Until 16, the person beside your teen has to be one of these: a parent or stepparent, a grandparent, a legal guardian, a qualified driving instructor, or another licensed driver who is at least 25, has been licensed three years or more, and holds written permission from the parent. That permission can be given on Form 5434, which is optional. If the parent, grandparent or guardian has a disability, Form 4737 lets them designate a maximum of two licensed adults aged 21 or more.

At 16 the rule loosens: any licensed driver who is 21 or older may supervise. Seat belts are required for everyone, and the permit card has to be with your teen. Ask at the license office for a free PERMIT DRIVER sign for the rear window.

After the permit: expiration and renewal

The permit lasts up to 12 months, depending on document verification status. It can be renewed as often as needed with no new written test, which helps if the 40 hours or a road test appointment take longer than expected.

Mind the one year limit on test results, though. If the vision, sign and written results are older than a year when your teen applies for the intermediate license, they must be retaken. The state will not mail a reminder when the permit is about to expire, so mark the date yourself.

Worked example: a permit issued on March 10 makes your teen eligible to move up 182 days later, in early September, if the 40 hours and the clean record are in place and your teen is 16 by then.

If your teen wants a motorcycle permit

Teens can apply for a motorcycle permit once they are 15 and a half, which state law pins down as 15 years plus 182 days. At that age, four things come first: finishing an approved rider training course, passing the Class F and Class M written tests, passing the vision and sign tests, and getting a parent's or guardian's written consent.

Riding on the early permit is limited: daylight only, no passengers, no farther than 50 miles from home, and no motorcycle above 250 cc. Once your teen turns 16, the training course is no longer a condition of the permit. As of October 2026, the motorcycle permit costs $12.75 for a 15 and a half year old and $10 from 16, and it is good for up to six months.