Get a Drivers License in Nebraska

A) Ensure You Are Eligible to Apply

In addition to meeting the requirements listed on this page, you must also fulfill the requirements specific to the type of permit you wish to attain:

School Permit (Type SCP)

• Must be at least 14 years and two months old

• Must have held your LPE or LPD for at least two months

• Successfully complete an NE DMV-approved driver safety course* OR

• Complete 50 hours of driving practice and a 50-Hour Certification form

*The written and drive tests may be waived if you can present the Nebraska Driver Licensing staff with a waiver form signed by your driver safety course instructor. If you’ve been issued a School Learner’s Permit (LPE) or Learner’s Permit (LPD) that is valid or expired for no more than one year, then you may only have the written test waived.

Provisional Operator’s Permit (POP)

• Be at least 16; you can apply 60 days before your 16th birthday, but the state will not issue you a permit until you turn 16

• Have held your learner’s permit for at least six months

• Have not accumulated three or more points on your driving record (during the six-month period prior to your POP application date)

• Successfully complete an NE DMV-approved driver safety course OR

• Complete 50 hours of driving practice and a 50-Hour Certification form

Operator’s License (Class O)

If you are 18 or older, never held a POP and are applying for a first-time license, you’ll apply for this type of license. You must pass a vision, written and drive test. If you are between 18 and 21 and have held a POP, all you need to pass is a vision test to earn your Operator’s License.

B) Ask About Road Test Appointments at the NE DMV

Contact your nearby Nebraska DMV driver licensing office about making a drive test appointment. You definitely want to avoid peak hours which include:

• After 3 p.m. on work days

• The day before and after a holiday

• When school is not in session

C) Gather Required Documents and Nebraska License Fees

When applying for your driver’s license, you must submit the following to the Nebraska DMV:

• Documentation of your identity (with name and date of birth) and principal address in Nebraska (see the state’s identification, address and Social Security verification requirements)

• Proper fees; check with the County Treasurer for acceptable methods of payment)

• A completed 50-Hour Certification form (if you opted out of taking a DMV-approved driver safety course)

• Proof of current registration and insurance for your drive test vehicle*

*You must also provide a drive test vehicle representative of the type of license you are applying for. It must also be clean and in good mechanical condition.

D) Take the Road Test

With your required documents and fees in hand, head to a Nebraska DMV office to take the vision and driving tests. You must be accompanied by a licensed driver.

Road Test Retakes

If you fail the road test, you’ll receive an Examiner Refusal Certificate. This will indicate how long you must wait before becoming eligible to retake the test. When you return to the driver licensing office to retest, bring the certificate with you.

E) Get Your Nebraska Driver's License

School Permit (Type SCP)

You’ll receive School Permit if you live 1.5 miles or more from school and either reside outside a city of 5,000-plus people or attend a school outside a city of 5,000 or more. With an SCP you may drive:

• Unsupervised to and from school and between schools of enrollment over the most direct and accessible route by the nearest highway from your home to transport yourself or any family member who resides with you to attend duly scheduled courses of instruction and extracurricular or school-related activities

• Anytime when accompanied by a licensed driver who is at least 21 years old

• You may not use any type of interactive wireless communication device while driving; this includes cell phones, text messaging devices, a personal digital assistant that sends or receives messages, an audio-visual player that sends or receives messages or a laptop computer

Your SCP will expire when you turn 16 years and three months old.

Provisional Operator’s Permit (POP)

With a POP you may drive:

• Unsupervised between 6 a.m. and midnight

• Unsupervised between midnight and 6 a.m. if you are driving to or from home, work or a school activity

• Anytime if you are accompanied by a parent, guardian or licensed driver who is at least 21 years old

• You may not use any type of interactive wireless communication device while driving; this includes cell phones, text messaging devices, a personal digital assistant that sends or receives messages, an audio-visual player that sends or receives messages or a laptop computer

Your POP will expire when you turn 18 years old. You can graduate to an Operator’s License (Class O) once you:

• Have held your POP for at least 12 months

• Are at least 17 years old

• Have not accumulated three or more points on your driving record for the previous 12-month period

You will just need to retake the vision test.

Operator’s License (Class O)

Applicants 18 and older who have never held a POP will receive their Operator’s License after passing the vision, written and drive tests.

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