State service guide

Maryland teen license: provisional-first rules, 9-month permit hold, and 151-day passenger limits

Maryland's teen license is a provisional license, not a full unrestricted card. For most under-18 drivers, the practical Maryland thresholds are the age-16-years-6-months minimum, a 9-month learner's-permit hold, 60 supervised practice hours including 10 at night, completed Maryland driver education, and a clean enough record to reach the skills test. After issuance, the teen still drives under Rookie Driver restrictions, including the first-151-day passenger limit, the midnight-to-5 a.m. rule, the hands-free phone ban, and the 18-month clean-record clock for automatic conversion to a full license.

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Minimum age 16 years and 6 months for a provisional license
Permit hold Under-18 drivers generally must hold the learner's permit for at least 9 months
Practice requirement 60 supervised hours, including 10 hours at night, for the under-18 teen path
Early provisional rule For the first 151 days, no passengers under 18 unless they are immediate family members or a qualified supervising driver is in the car

Overview

What this page helps you verify

A good Maryland teen-license page should not talk as if a 16-year-old gets a full driver's license after one road test. Maryland's teen path is the Rookie Driver sequence: learner's permit first, then provisional licensing with active restrictions, then automatic conversion to full status only after the teen stays conviction-free long enough. The most useful way to explain the process is road-test eligibility first, then the provisional restrictions that control daily driving afterward.

Last reviewed: 2026-05-17. This page was manually upgraded against service-specific official sources, but requirements can still change quickly.

Usually needed

Documents and information to prepare

  • An unexpired Maryland learner's permit
  • The completed certification page from the Rookie Driver Practice Guide, signed by a qualified supervising driver
  • Completed Maryland-certified driver education, which includes 30 classroom hours and 6 hours behind the wheel
  • Parent, guardian, or co-signer approval if the driver is under 18

Typical flow

What the process often looks like

  1. Stay in the learner's-permit stage long enough to satisfy Maryland's under-18 timing and practice rules, including the 9-month hold and 60 supervised hours with 10 at night.
  2. Complete the Maryland-certified driver education course and avoid any moving-violation conviction or probation before judgment during the period that controls teen eligibility.
  3. Bring the unexpired learner's permit and the completed Rookie Driver Practice Guide certification page to the Maryland skills-test appointment, then pass the behind-the-wheel test.
  4. After issuance, treat the new license as a restricted provisional license and keep the record clean for 18 months so the MVA can convert it automatically to full status.

License stage

Maryland's teen license is the provisional stage, not the full-license finish line

That distinction is the main thing a generic teen page tends to flatten.

  • Maryland says the minimum age for a provisional license is 16 years and 6 months.
  • The teen must pass the Maryland driver skills test before the provisional license can be issued.
  • The full license comes later because Maryland requires 18 conviction-free months on the provisional license before automatic conversion.

Road-test eligibility

For under-18 drivers, the real gate is the permit history, not just the birthday

Maryland's teen path is built on time, supervised practice, and a clean record during the permit stage.

  • The learner's-permit page says drivers age 18 or under without a high school diploma or equivalent must hold the permit for at least 9 months before the provisional license can be issued.
  • That same under-18 chart requires 60 supervised practice hours, including 10 hours at night, with a qualified supervising driver.
  • Maryland also requires completion of a standardized driver education course with 30 classroom hours and 6 hours behind the wheel.
  • If a learner's-permit holder is convicted of, or granted probation before judgment for, a moving violation, Maryland says the permit must then be held for at least 9 months from that conviction or PBJ date before the teen can move on.

Restrictions after issuance

Passing the test still leaves Maryland teens in a tightly restricted provisional period

The practical teen-license rules start after the card is issued, not after they disappear.

  • For the first 151 days, provisional drivers under 18 may not carry passengers under 18 unless those passengers are immediate family members or a qualified supervising driver is with them.
  • Drivers under 18 may not drive between midnight and 5 a.m. unless a licensed, experienced driver age 21 or older with at least 3 years of driving experience is with them, or they are driving to or from a job, official school activity, organized volunteer program, or athletic event or related training session.
  • Drivers under 18 may not use any wireless communication device, including a hands-free device, while driving.
  • All provisional drivers under 21 may not drive with any measurable alcohol in their systems.

Sanctions and resets

Maryland can reset the teen timeline long after the road test if the driver slips up early

This matters because the state ties both eligibility and promotion to a clean record.

  • Any conviction or probation before judgment while holding the provisional license restarts the 18-month period required before full-license conversion.
  • Maryland says a first provisional-license offense requires the driver improvement program.
  • For drivers under 18, a second offense brings a 30-day suspension plus a 90-day work-and-school restriction after the suspension, a third offense brings a 180-day suspension plus the young driver improvement program, and a fourth or later offense leads to revocation.
  • Maryland separately says violating the passenger or nighttime provisional restrictions results in a one-year suspension.

Accuracy notes

Where people get tripped up

  • Maryland teen-license content should describe the first teen credential as a provisional license, not as immediate full driving privileges.
  • The most important gating rules for the standard under-18 path are the 9-month permit hold, 60 supervised hours with 10 at night, and the clean-record requirement tied to moving violations and probation before judgment.
  • The first-151-day passenger rule is more precise than saying 'five months,' even though Maryland's brochure uses both formulations for the same restriction window.
  • The alcohol restriction applies to provisional drivers under 21, while the passenger, curfew, and wireless-device restrictions highlighted here are the teen-specific under-18 rules.

FAQ

Common questions

  • Can I get a Maryland teen license as soon as I turn 16?

    No. Maryland sets the provisional-license minimum age at 16 years and 6 months, and under-18 applicants also have to satisfy the learner's-permit holding period, practice-hour, driver-education, and clean-record requirements.

  • Can a Maryland teen drive friends right after getting a provisional license?

    Not generally. For the first 151 days, Maryland says a provisional driver under 18 may not carry passengers under 18 unless they are immediate family members or a qualified supervising driver is in the car.

  • When can a Maryland teen drive after midnight?

    Maryland says drivers under 18 may drive between midnight and 5 a.m. only if a qualified licensed driver age 21 or older with at least 3 years of driving experience is with them, or if the trip is to or from a job, official school activity, organized volunteer program, or athletic event or related training.

  • How does a Maryland teen get a full driver's license after the provisional stage?

    The MVA says it automatically converts the provisional license to full status after 18 conviction-free months. Any conviction or probation before judgment during that time restarts the 18-month clock.

Sources

Official references used for this page

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