Washington graduated licensing: permit, intermediate license and limits

Under 18: you hold an instruction (learner) permit, then an intermediate license, which turns into a regular license automatically at 18. At 18 or older, you can get your first license by passing the knowledge test and the drive test, without a driver training course or a learner permit.

To get the intermediate license you must be at least 16, have held your permit for at least 6 months (time on an out-of-state permit counts), complete a driver training course, log 50 hours of supervised driving (10 of them at night) and pass the drive test. There is one drive test; the intermediate license converts to a regular license without a second test.

While you hold a permit, a licensed driver with at least 5 years of driving experience, or a qualified driving instructor, must sit beside you. The person who rides with you for those 50 hours must be at least 21 and have held a license for at least 3 years; the certification can be signed by a parent, guardian, employer or responsible adult (RCW 46.20.075(1)(e)). DOL's teen page says only "licensed for at least 3 years".

Intermediate license limits: for the first 6 months, no passengers under 20 except immediate family; after that, no more than 3 passengers under 20 who are not immediate family. No driving between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. unless you are with a licensed driver aged 25 or older. The limits end after 1 year of driving with no crash or violation, or at 18. RCW 46.20.075(3)(b) allows driving for school, religious or employment activities of the holder or an immediate family member; subsection (7) separately allows driving necessary for agricultural purposes. DOL's page mentions only agriculture.

Drivers under 21 face penalties for a blood alcohol level of 0.02% or more, and for any THC detected in the blood (RCW 46.61.503).

Young adults: first-time applicants under 25 must pass a free online work-zone and first-responder course (RCW 46.20.1191 says from 1 May 2026; DOL pages say from 1 November 2026). Driver education also becomes required for first licenses at age 18 from 1 January 2027, with the age rising in later years; holders of a license from a reciprocal jurisdiction are exempt.

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