Connecticut driving lesson · Getting Your Connecticut License
Adult applicants, the road test and your license
A 4-minute lesson from the Connecticut course. Read the rules and examples, follow the handbook page references, and check your understanding before you move on.
Once you've held your permit long enough and finished your training, you book a road test. You bring your own safe, registered, insured car and the right papers, show you can handle the vehicle and traffic, then pay for your license.
Know the rule
A person 18 or older must hold a learner's permit for at least 90 days before taking a road test.
An 18+ permit holder must drive with a commercial driving school instructor, a secondary school instructor, or a qualified trainer: someone 20 or older who has held a license, not suspended, for four or more consecutive years.
Applicants 18 or older who have never held a Connecticut license and don't hold a valid out-of-state license must take the 8-hour safe driving practices course and show a certificate.
Bring a vehicle appropriate for the license class that is mechanically safe, with valid registration and proof of insurance. A non-licensed operator cannot drive to the test location alone.
A long-term leased vehicle may be used only if properly insured with proof identifying the vehicle and the lease company. Without a valid license you cannot test in a rented vehicle. An unsafe vehicle means no test; you reschedule for no fee.
DMV branches accept cash, money orders, personal checks, debit and credit cards, and bank checks; make checks payable to DMV. You get a temporary paper card at the office, and the permanent card arrives by mail within 20 days.
You're 19 and have never been licensed. You take the 8-hour course, hold your permit for at least 90 days while practicing with a qualified trainer, then arrive for the road test with your permit, CS-1 and an insured, registered car — driven there by a licensed driver, not by you alone.
Check your understanding
Read the question, decide on an answer, then open it to check the explanation. These are Roadwise study questions based on the source handbook.
An 18-year-old first-time applicant must hold a learner's permit for how long before taking the road test?
At least 60 days
At least 30 days
At least 120 days
At least 90 days
Answer: At least 90 days
A person 18 or older must hold a learner's permit for at least 90 days prior to taking a road test.
Which of these is NOT part of what the Connecticut road test evaluates?
Response to traffic signs and signals
Checking the engine oil and fluid levels
Proper adjustment of seat, mirrors, and seat belts
Backing and/or parking the vehicle
Answer: Checking the engine oil and fluid levels
The road test evaluates adjusting seat, mirrors and belts, operating equipment, response to signs and signals, backing/parking, basic skills and warning lights; checking engine fluids is not listed.