How to Get Your Oklahoma Driver's License

Getting your driver license is a big privilege. Not only are you responsible for keeping yourself and your passengers safe-you also need to respect the safety of everyone else on the road. While an adult only has to pass a written and behind-the-wheel test, teens in Oklahoma have to take a few extra steps to prove themselves before they are handed a license. But the process isn't complicated, and if you start by the time you're 15, you could be driving within a year.

The Oklahoma Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL) Program

The GDL program is an effort to keep everyone safe. New drivers just need more time on the road to learn. Studies say that 25% of 16-year-old drivers are either involved in a traffic accident or receive a traffic violation within their first year of driving. The GDL program requires teens to meet certain milestones before obtaining their Class D driver license, which allows unrestricted driving at any time.

The first step is to get your Oklahoma learner's permit, which allows you to legally drive under the supervision of another adult, licensed driver. Refer to our permit page, to learn all about the steps needed to get your Oklahoma learner's permit. Once you're 16 years old and have had your learner's permit for at least 6 months, you can qualify an intermediate license, which allows you to drive with some restrictions:

• You can drive without supervision between 5:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.
• You can't drive with more than 1 passenger who doesn't live in your home

You'll need to take the state-required Work Zone Safe course and a behind-the-wheel driving test to obtain your intermediate license. You should have completed at least 50 hours of driving training on the road, with 10 hours of completed at night, so passing your test should be no problem. You'll be asked to do things like signal changes, parallel park, drive the legal speed in a school zone, and so on.

Contact your local licensing office to make a road test appointment. Arrive at the driving test with your legal parent or guardian and bring along your:

• Learner's permit
• Affidavit of driver training form, which documents your driving hours
• Birth certificate
• Social security card
• Proof of enrollment in a secondary or vocational-technical school, or diploma or GED
• $38.50 to cover the license fee
• $4 for the application fee (there is no fee to take the actual driving test)
• Registration and proof of insurance for the vehicle you'll be using for the test (the DMV doesn't provide vehicles for behind-the-wheel driving tests)

You'll also be given a vision test, along with the above requirements.

Unrestricted Class D license

If you've held your intermediate license for at least 6 months and haven't had any moving violations during that time, you're eligible to apply for full driving privileges in the form of a Class D driver license. Contact your local DMV to apply for your full Class D license.

Until you are 18 years old, your driver license is considered probationary, even a Class D license. This means that Service Oklahoma may cancel or suspend your license for any unlawful act, negligence, or misconduct while driving. So be safe and follow the rules of the road.

Obtaining your full driver's license is a big responsibility. Take it seriously and have some patience as you work through each step of the GDL program. You'll get there in no time!