West Virginia Motorcycle Safety Course
Verified against West Virginia Motorcycle Safety 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 →
Whether West Virginia mandates a motorcycle safety course by age is not published by the state's own program. This page covers who runs the course, what it costs, how long it takes, and exactly which tests completing it can waive.
West Virginia's motorcycle safety course requirements — including a course fee of $100 and completion waiving the state skills test — are verified against West Virginia Motorcycle Safety Program (see West Virginia Division of Motor Vehicles — Motorcycle Safety Program Rider Courses), current as of 2026-07-28.
West Virginia Motorcycle Safety Course at a Glance
| Program | West Virginia Motorcycle Safety Program |
|---|---|
| Who runs it | West Virginia Division of Motor Vehicles, delivered through a single statewide vendor accredited by the Motorcycle Safety Foundation |
| Delivery model | One statewide contractorA single contractor holds the statewide training contract. |
| Typical cost | $100 |
| Course length | 17 hours |
| Mandatory under age | — |
| Waives the riding skills test | Yes |
| Waives the knowledge test | No |
West Virginia also offers a shorter Experienced Rider Course for licensed riders who already hold the endorsement, at the same $100 tuition. The Experienced Rider Course does not satisfy licensing requirements for a rider under 18, who must complete the Basic Rider Course to use the skills-test waiver.
The Rider Courses page names the Motorcycle Safety Foundation as the programme's sole vendor and states its Basic Rider Course and Experienced Rider Course are 'the only approved Rider Training course available in this state,' each running from multiple sites around West Virginia at the same $100 tuition. A rider must hold a valid motorcycle instruction permit to enrol in the Basic Rider Course, and must wear a DOT- or Snell-rated helmet, eye protection, over-the-ankle boots, long sleeves and full-fingered gloves during it. Completion produces a card presented to the DMV in place of the road test; the endorsement or Class F license is then issued.
What West Virginia’s course covers
West Virginia teaches the Basic Rider Course (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 West Virginia differs: West Virginia also offers a shorter Experienced Rider Course for licensed riders who already hold the endorsement, at the same $100 tuition. The Experienced Rider Course does not satisfy licensing requirements for a rider under 18, who must complete the Basic Rider Course to use the skills-test waiver.
Once you complete the course, see license requirements in West Virginia.
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.
- License classes, permits, fees and tests come from the West Virginia Code and the West Virginia Division of Motor Vehicles. Training facts come from the West Virginia Motorcycle Safety Program, the DMV's own rider-training program delivered through a Motorcycle Safety Foundation-accredited vendor. Helmet and eye-protection rules come from the West Virginia Code's motorcycle equipment section.
- West Virginia's motorcycle credential is either an 'F' endorsement added to an existing Class D or Class E driver's license, or a standalone Class F license for a rider who holds no other class — the fee differs between the two because each is priced per year of an eight-year cycle.
- West Virginia's helmet law applies to every operator and every passenger with no age exemption; the only exemption is for a rider operating a fully enclosed autocycle.
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: West Virginia Division of Motor Vehicles — Motorcycle Safety Program Rider Courses