Louisiana Department of Public Safety - Policy 12.00 Road Skills Tests - Section 1 - Issuance of Driver’s License

Sep 18, 2026

Uploaded by Miles

Louisiana Department of Public Safety Office of Motor Vehicles Policy 12.00 establishes requirements for road skills tests used to issue driver’s licenses. Section 1 explains issuance-related rules, including eligibility prerequisites, retesting after failure, and administration by OMV or approved third-party testers. It defines skills-test purposes, license types and situations requiring exams, waiver provisions for qualified military CDL applicants and motorcycle courses, scoring standards, permissible testing circumstances, and listed maneuvers required to demonstrate safe operation.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages5

Reading Time13 min

AccessFree to download

Policy 12.00 Road Skills Tests

Section 1: Issuance of Driver’s License

Definitions and Eligibility

License Types Requiring Skills Exams

Road Skills Test Waivers

Administration and Scoring Requirements

Maneuvers Included in the Test

Louisiana Department of Public Safety Office of Motor Vehicles Policy 12.00 Road Skills Tests Section: 1. Issuance of Driver’s License Effective Date: 05/01/1986 Revised Date: 12/30/2024 Authority: R.S. 32:408 R.S. 32:402 .3 Louisiana Administrative Code, Title 55 To view Louisiana Statutes: [http://www.legis.state.la.us/](http://www.legis.state.la.us/) Definitions: • Road Skills Test – An examination designed to test the driver’s ability to safely operate and maneuver a vehicle. Eligibility: • To take a road skills test, you must meet all prerequisite requirements prior to the test. • If you fail the road skills test, you will be given a return date to retest. You will not be eligible to retake the road skills test until that date. o Retest dates may vary from one (1) day to thirty (30) days, depending on the cause for the failure. General: • The Office of Motor Vehicles or an approved third party tester (TPT) may administer the personal driver’s license (Class E) or motorcycle endorsement road skills test. o Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) road skills tests are only administered by approved TPT. | License Type | Situations Requiring Skills Exam | Notes | | --- | --- | --- | | Personal
Driver’s
License | Applying for a personal driver’s license (Class E) for the first time (for those 17 years of age or older at the time of application and have passed the knowledge test) .
Removing learner’s permit restrictions, if the permit was held for the applicable amount of time.
Applying for a chauffer’s license (Class D) and:
• Never held a personal driver’s license (Class E) license at the time of application
• Passed the knowledge test | If administered by OMV:
• Driver may need to schedule the skills test
• Driver must furnish vehicle with insurance. The applicant cannot be listed as an excluded driver on the insurance.
If administered by TPT:
• TPT may provide vehicles for administration of the road skills test. Rental fees may apply.
• All private driving school providers are required to administer the road skills test.
• Public school driver education providers are not required to provide the road skills test. If not provided, you must coordinate a road skills test by either an OMV field office or another TPT.
• You must submit a sealed envelope containing the road skills test certificate to OMV upon application. OMV will not accept this unless it is presented in a sealed envelope.
• TPT may test an applicant up to thirty (30) calendar days before their eligibility date. Be sure to check that the skills test date is within thirty (30) days of the applicant’s eligibility date.
Road skills tests will not be administered by OMV or TPT if the:
• Vehicle does not pass safety inspection (an alternate vehicle may be used)
• Vehicle is not currently licensed, inspected, and insured
Road skills tests will not be administered by OMV if the:
• Area is experiencing inclement weather or unsafe driving conditions
• Heat index is above 100 degrees and vehicle is not equipped with working air conditioning | | Commercial Driver’s License (Class A, B, or C) | Applying for CDL for the first time Up-grading class of CDL Adding certain endorsements Removing certain restrictions | • A commercial learner’s permit (CLP) is a prerequisite to taking a road skills test
• ELDT may be required before a skills test is administered | | Motorcycle | Applying for a motorcycle endorsement for the first time
Reapplying for the motorcycle endorsement and evidence of the previously issued license with the motorcycle endorsement cannot be found in OMV records. | • Requires that the driver wear a motorcycle helmet. | • Road Skills Test Waivers o Military CDL Road Skills Test Waiver –This waiver allows a qualified service member to apply for a CDL without a road skills test. ▪ The CDL road skills test may be waived for a commercial motor vehicle (CMV) driv

FAQs

What is the purpose of the Road Skills Test?

The Road Skills Test examines a driver’s ability to safely operate and maneuver a vehicle.

What happens if an applicant fails the Road Skills Test?

A return date to retest is provided, and the applicant cannot retake the test until that date. Retest timing may vary from one to thirty days depending on the failure cause.

Who can administer the road skills test, and are there restrictions?

The Office of Motor Vehicles or an approved third-party tester may administer personal driver’s license or motorcycle endorsement skills tests. Road skills tests are not administered if the vehicle fails safety inspection or lacks current licensing, inspection, and insurance; OMV may also deny testing due to inclement weather or unsafe driving conditions.

Sep 18, 2026

Uploaded by Miles