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Montana · Permit test

The Montana learner’s permit

The Motor Vehicle Division (MVD) calls it a Non-Commercial Learner Permit (NCLP), and you get it by passing the written and vision tests. With a Montana learner’s permit you drive with a licensed driver beside you, and under 18 it’s the first of three steps to a full license.

  • 1 yearHow long a learner permit lasts
  • 50 hoursSupervised driving to log, under 18
  • 6 months and 1 dayLeast time on the permit, under 18
See the MVD’s teen stepsFree practice test

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

How do you get a Montana learner’s permit?

Under 18, the MVD’s steps are:

  1. Study the Montana Driver Manual for the written test
  2. Book an appointment at an MVD driver exam station for the written exam
  3. At the appointment, bring consent from a parent, guardian or responsible adult, show your documents and pay the fee
  4. Pass the written test and the vision test

Signing the consent means your parent, guardian or responsible adult accepts financial responsibility for any damage your driving causes. At 18 or older you take the same written and vision tests, with no consent form.

The documents to bring →How to book →

Montana learner’s permit rules

State law and the MVD set these rules while you hold the permit:

  • A licensed driver sits in the seat beside you whenever you drive
  • Under 18, that driver is a parent or legal guardian, or, with their permission, a licensed driver 18 or older
  • Carry the permit with you when you drive
  • Under 18, everyone in the car wears a seatbelt
  • The permit doesn’t cover a motorcycle, which has its own learner license

The MVD’s page puts the supervisor rule as a licensed parent, guardian or responsible adult, and the manual adds a licensed adult driver whom the parent, guardian or responsible adult authorizes.

Motorcycle learner license →

The 50-hour log, under 18

Before you can apply for a first-year restricted license, you need:

  • At least 6 months and 1 day on the permit
  • At least 50 hours of supervised driving with an adult, 10 of them at night
  • A log of those hours, kept by your parent, legal guardian or responsible adult
  • No traffic violations and no alcohol or drug offenses in the six months before you move up

The MVD offers a Teen Driving Log, and its page also names RoadReady, a driving log app on the App Store. If your parent can’t certify a clean six months, state law lets the MVD extend the permit by a year or until you turn 18, whichever comes first. After an alternative traffic education course, the law asks for 75 hours instead; the where-to-learn page explains.

Driver’s ed and the 75 hours →The road test →

At 18 or older

The six-month wait and the driving log are part of the program for drivers under 18. With a permit at 18 or older, state law asks that a licensed driver sit beside you and that you carry the permit. You bring it to your road test.

Sources: Montana Motor Vehicle Division · Montana Legislature and 3 more. Checked November 2026.

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

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