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Maine · Permit test

The Maine driver’s permit, or learner’s permit

The learner’s permit is the first step to a license, and you get it once you pass the Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) written test and vision screening. With a Maine driver’s permit you drive with a qualified licensed driver beside you. How long you keep it before the road test depends on your age.

  • 15Youngest age to apply for a permit
  • 2 yearsHow long a permit lasts
  • 70 hoursSupervised practice if you’re under 21
Read the BMV’s permit stepsFree practice test

Updated November 2026 · Written from official sources, listed at the bottom of this page

How do you get a Maine driver’s permit?

Under 18, you finish an approved driver education course before you apply. Then:

  1. Fill in the learner’s permit application form. Under 18, a parent or legal guardian signs it
  2. Take it to a BMV branch office with your documents and the exam fee, or mail them to: Bureau of Motor Vehicles, Driver License Services Division, Examination Section, 29 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333‑0029
  3. Take the vision screening and the written test on the date the BMV gives you

State law also lets a driver education provider collect the permit application and fee and issue the permit, and lets the Secretary of State waive the permit exam on receiving a course completion certificate. Under 18, ask your driving school whether it handles this for you.

The documents to send →

Maine learner’s permit rules

At any age, state law and the manual set these rules for the permit:

  • Drive only with a licensed driver who is at least 20, has held a valid license for at least two years, sits in the seat beside you and is licensed for the class of vehicle you’re driving
  • Carry the permit whenever you drive
  • Don’t use a handheld phone or other handheld electronic device while you drive, even when you’re stopped in traffic or at a light. You may use one once you’ve pulled off or to the side of the road and stopped where the car can safely stay

Your supervising driver must also follow any restrictions on their own license. Under state law, it’s a Class E crime to act as the supervisor while impaired by alcohol or drugs.

The Maine driving log

Under 21, you need at least six months on the permit, counted from the date it was issued, and a driving log of at least 70 hours before you can ask for the road test. For the log:

  • Count only driving done after the permit was issued
  • Include at least 10 of the 70 hours after dark
  • Have a parent, stepparent or guardian certify it on the BMV’s form. In some cases, a spouse or employer can certify it instead

If the person certifying the log wasn’t the driver beside you, they add the name and address of the driver who rode with you for most of the hours. You then mail the log to the BMV to ask for your road test.

How the road test is booked →

At 21 or older

You don’t have to wait six months before the road test, and you don’t send in a driving log. The supervising driver rule and the phone rule apply to you all the same.

When your permit expires

A permit can’t be renewed. Once it expires, you file a fresh application and take the vision screening and the written exam again. The driving hours you logged carry over to the later permit, and there’s no extra wait before you can ask for the road test.

Sources: Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles · Maine Legislature, Office of the Revisor of Statutes and 4 more. Checked November 2026.

Rules and fees can change, so check the official site before your test.

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