North Carolina Motorcycle Safety Course
Verified against North Carolina Motorcycle Safety Education Program ·
Compiled and verified against primary state DMV/DPS/BMV sources by GetMotorcycleLicense Research Team — cite-or-deny, with no invented figures. How we source & verify →
In North Carolina, riders under 18 must complete a motorcycle safety course before they can get the license. This page covers who runs the course, what it costs, how long it takes, and exactly which tests completing it can waive.
North Carolina's motorcycle safety course requirements — including course fees from $135 to $250 and completion waiving the state skills test if within 12 months — are verified against North Carolina Motorcycle Safety Education Program (see N.C. Gen. Stat. § 20-7(a1)-(a2) (motorcycle endorsement and learner's permit testing requirements)), current as of 2026-07-28.
North Carolina Motorcycle Safety Course at a Glance
| Program | North Carolina Motorcycle Safety Education Program |
|---|---|
| Who runs it | North Carolina Community Colleges System Office, delivered at individual community colleges that choose to offer the program, under the statewide Motorcycle Safety Instruction Program |
| Delivery model | Community collegesCommunity colleges and universities are the delivery channel. |
| Typical cost | $135–$250 |
| Course length | — |
| Mandatory under age | Yes, under 18 |
| Waives the riding skills test | Yes, if within 12 months |
| Waives the knowledge test | No |
The program also offers a Basic Rider Course 2 for riders with at least six months' experience, an Advanced RiderCourse, a 3-Wheel Basic Rider Course, and dirt-bike training.
N.C. Gen. Stat. § 20-7(a1)-(a2) makes the Basic Rider Course (or an approved equivalent) mandatory before a motorcycle learner's permit or endorsement can be issued to an applicant under 18; the program's own FAQ page states the course 'is not mandatory to get your motorcycle endorsement in North Carolina' for adult applicants, which describes the 18-and-older population only, for whom the course is one route to a skills-test waiver rather than a requirement. Course tuition is set locally: NCMSEP states prices run from about $135 to $250 depending on the college. Successful completion of the course itself requires passing a written test and a motorcycle skills test administered by the course, distinct from the DMV's own tests. G.S. 115D-72, formerly cited as the statutory basis for the Motorcycle Safety Instruction Program delivered through the Community Colleges System Office, was repealed effective 3 July 2025 by Session Laws 2025-56, which recodified the identical program as new G.S. 115D-10.50 in the same act; the program continues unchanged in substance under the Community Colleges System Office.
What North Carolina’s course covers
North Carolina teaches the Basic RiderCourse (BRC), developed by Motorcycle Safety Foundation. Full detail here.
The Motorcycle Safety Foundation's Basic RiderCourse is designed for beginning riders aged 16 and up, pairing about five hours of classroom or online learning with about ten hours of on-motorcycle training, and it ends in a written knowledge test and a rider skills test.
How North Carolina differs: The program also offers a Basic Rider Course 2 for riders with at least six months' experience, an Advanced RiderCourse, a 3-Wheel Basic Rider Course, and dirt-bike training.
Once you complete the course, see license requirements in North Carolina.
Source Notes
Where a source is stale, conflicting, or required a judgment call, we document it here rather than presenting a single confident-sounding number. See our methodology for how these calls are made.
- Endorsement rules, learner's permit rules and fees come from the North Carolina General Statutes (Chapter 20) and the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles. Training facts come from the North Carolina Motorcycle Safety Education Program, delivered through the North Carolina Community Colleges System Office. Helmet rules come from the North Carolina General Statutes.
- A rider under 18 must complete the Basic Rider Course before a motorcycle learner's permit is issued; a rider 18 or older may take the same course as an alternative to the DMV's own skills test, but it is not required at that age.
- North Carolina's motorcycle endorsement fee is set by statute as a per-year rate ($3.05 for each year of the license period) rather than a single flat amount, and rides on top of the underlying driver's license fee ($6.50 per year).
means no primary source publishes that figure — left blank on purpose rather than estimated or copied from an unverified aggregator.
Sources
Data last verified: 2026-07-28 (verified by: agent) | Source: N.C. Gen. Stat. § 20-7(a1)-(a2) (motorcycle endorsement and learner's permit testing requirements)