North Dakota Driver's License Guide 2026

Everything below is taken from the North Dakota DOT’s own pages. Where the DOT does not publish a figure, this guide says so rather than inventing one.

What it costs

North Dakota charges $5.00 for the written test and $5.00 for the road test. A non-commercial permit or license is $15.00. A duplicate license or permit is $8.00, or $3.00 if you are only changing a name or address.

Ages, and a rule that catches visitors

The minimum driving age in North Dakota is sixteen. You may not drive in North Dakota if you are under sixteen even if you are licensed in another state - a restriction worth knowing before a family trip. A North Dakota resident can obtain a restricted license at fifteen. A parent or legal guardian must sign for anyone under eighteen to be issued a permit or license. From age fourteen you may sign the donor identification block on the application form.

Appointments, renewals and the one-year rule

An appointment is needed for all driver licensing services in North Dakota. You may renew your license up to ten months before it expires without losing any of the time remaining on the current one. But if your license has been expired for more than one year, you must retest.

When you count as a resident

Anyone other than a non-resident student, a tourist or a non-resident member of the Armed Forces who has lived in the state for ninety consecutive days is deemed a North Dakota resident for driver licensing. You may use a non-commercial license from another state for sixty days after becoming a resident, or thirty days for a commercial one.

Practising before you go

Our free North Dakota practice questions cover the same topics as the North Dakota Driver License Manual, and every question shows the correct answer. They are practice questions written to those topics - they are not the DOT’s own test questions.

• North Dakota practice tests
• North Dakota car practice test