Transferring a license — Kentucky Permit Test

A person moving into Kentucky must obtain a Kentucky driver's license within 30 days of establishing residence.

The clock starts the day someone moves in, not the day they get around to it.

Persons moving into Kentucky must obtain a Kentucky Driver's License within 30 days of establishing residence.

A driver whose out-of-state license is valid, or expired less than one year, is not required to test when transferring it to Kentucky.

A license that is still current transfers on paperwork alone, which is why the expiry date matters so much.

If your out-of-state license is valid or has been expired for less than one (1) year when you transfer to Kentucky, you will not be required to test.

If an out-of-state license has been expired more than one year, the driver must obtain a certified Driver History Record or clearance letter and take both the written and eye exams.

Past a year the state treats the driver as new, and the old record has to be fetched from the state that holds it.

However, if the license has been expired for more than one (1) year at the time of transfer, you will be required to obtain a full, certified Driver History Record (DHR) or clearance letter from the previous state and will be required to take both the written and eye exams before being issued a Kentucky operator's permit or license.

A driver must be at least 15 years of age to transfer a driving permit or license to Kentucky.

Kentucky's own minimum applies to a license earned elsewhere, so a younger driver waits.

You must be at least 15 years of age to transfer a driving permit or license to Kentucky.

An out-of-state permit holder must transfer the permit and be issued a Kentucky permit before applying for a Kentucky driver's license.

There is no jumping straight to the license. The permit has to exist in Kentucky first.

Out-of-State permit holders transferring to Kentucky must transfer their permit and be issued a Kentucky permit before applying for a Kentucky Driver's License.

A college student may drive on a valid out-of-state license without transferring it if they are a United States citizen, enrolled at a Kentucky college, and carry the student identification card.

All three conditions have to hold, and the student card has to be in the car, not in a dorm room.

They are enrolled as a full-time or part-time student at a university, college, or technical college located in Kentucky; and they must have a student identification card from the Section One:

How long does a new Kentucky resident have to obtain a Kentucky license?

30 days. The clock starts the day someone moves in, not the day they get around to it. Kentucky Driver Manual, p.13: “Persons moving into Kentucky must obtain a Kentucky Driver's License within 30 days of establishing residence.”