Indiana permit test cheat sheet

Indiana-specific rules from our question bank, condensed to one line each with the handbook page. Read it the night before; don’t use it instead of practicing.

Study sheet for before your test. Notes aren’t allowed in the DMV test room. See the study sheets to print.

Test format
Not published
Passing score
80%
Permit and test fees
$9 total
Minimum age for a permit
15 years
Supervised driving
50 hours (10 at night)
Hold your permit
6 months minimum

Permits & licensing

  • Indiana lets you get a learner's permit at 15 only if you show a Certificate of Driver Education Enrollment from a BMV licensed behind-the-wheel training provider. p. 8
  • Teen permit holders may practice with a licensed driver who is at least 25 and related to them by blood, marriage or legal status, or with a licensed spouse who is at least 21. p. 9
  • Indiana requires you to hold a valid learner's permit for at least 180 days, which is about six months. p. 14
  • Indiana requires at least 50 hours of supervised practice before a teen can get a probationary license. p. 14
  • At least 10 of the 50 supervised hours must be at night unless the permit carries restriction G (daytime only). p. 14
  • Without driver education you must be at least 16 years and 270 days old to get a license. p. 14
  • For the first 180 days you may not carry passengers unless a licensed adult 25 or older, a spouse 21 or older, or a driving instructor is in the front seat. p. 15
  • New probationary drivers may not drive from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. during their first 180 days. p. 15
  • After 180 days, drivers under 18 may not drive after 11 p.m. p. 15
  • The exceptions are lawful employment, a school-sanctioned activity, a religious event, or riding with a licensed adult 25 or older (or a spouse 21 or older). p. 15
  • If you are licensed before age 21, your license is probationary until 21. p. 15
  • After a failed skills exam you must wait seven days to retest. p. 12
  • The manual lists automatic failures such as backing over a curb, speeding, disobeying a signal, failing to yield and not wearing a seat belt. p. 12
  • The BMV must suspend a juvenile's driving privileges when a school reports expulsion, a second suspension in one school year, habitual truancy, or withdrawal from school. p. 16

Laws, points & insurance

  • Indiana's minimum is $25,000 for injury or death of one person, $50,000 for two or more people, and $25,000 for property damage in one accident. p. 27
  • Indiana scales speeding points: 2 points for 1-15 mph over, 4 points for 16-25 mph over, and 6 points for 26 mph or more over. p. 26
  • Driving while suspended and a speed contest on the road are each 8 points, the highest on the manual's examples. p. 26
  • Points stay active for two years from the conviction date. p. 26
  • Completing a BMV-approved DSP gives a four-point credit, and each driver can get one such credit in a three-year period. p. 26
  • If you do not complete a required DSP within 90 days of the BMV's notice, your license is suspended until you finish the course and the BMV processes it. p. 26
  • Indiana charges $250 for a first no-insurance suspension, $500 for a second and $1,000 for a third or later. p. 28
  • Your insurer must electronically send a Certificate of Compliance that the BMV processes within 90 days of its request. p. 27
  • You must notify the BMV and apply for an amended credential within 30 days of changing your legal address. p. 25
  • Section C of the HTV law sets a five-year suspension for 10 or more violations in 10 years when one is a major offense. p. 31
  • Drivers 21 or older with six or more active points must take the knowledge exam to renew. p. 24
  • No-insurance suspensions effective on or after 12/31/2021 are indefinite. p. 28