Motorcycle License in Virginia
Verified against Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles ·
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 →
Virginia adds a Class M, M2 or M3 motorcycle classification to an existing driver's licence. Completing a Virginia Rider Training Program course exempts a rider from the motorcycle knowledge exam and road skills test for one year, though a rider under 18 must still hold a learner's permit for nine months regardless. Virginia requires a helmet of every operator and passenger, with no age exemption.
Virginia's motorcycle license requirements — including a minimum age of 18 and a training course completion that can waive the skills test if within 12 months — are verified against Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles (see Virginia DMV — Getting a Motorcycle License), current as of 2026-07-28.
Virginia Motorcycle License Requirements at a Glance
| Permit | Motorcycle Learner's Permit |
|---|---|
| Permit minimum age | — |
| Permit fee | $3 |
| Permit validity | — |
| Minimum age (unrestricted) | 18 |
| License fee | — |
| Renewal | — |
| Knowledge test | Required25 questions |
| Skills test | Required |
M covers both two- and three-wheeled motorcycles, M2 covers two-wheeled only, and M3 covers three-wheeled only; a licence carrying an M, M2 or M3 designation together with a '6' restriction authorises only motorcycle operation, not a motor vehicle. A separate, less common route is a driver's licence restricted to motorcycle operation only, which costs $6 per year and is normally valid for eight years; a driver's licence with a Class M/M2/M3 designation instead follows the ordinary licence's own renewal cycle. Virginia does not accept an out-of-state motorcycle safety course certificate on its own; an out-of-state licence holder without an existing motorcycle classification must pass the Virginia knowledge and road skills tests and hold a permit for the standard period.
Completing Virginia's motorcycle safety course waives the state's motorcycle skills test if within 12 months. See Virginia’s motorcycle safety course.
Virginia helmet law
Required for all riders
Every operator and any passenger on a motorcycle or autocycle must wear a protective helmet meeting Snell, ANSI or federal DOT standards, with no age exemption. Operators and passengers are excused only on a motorcycle with wheels eight inches or less in diameter, or on a three-wheeled motorcycle or autocycle with a nonremovable roof, windshield and enclosed body, and while riding at 15 mph or less as part of a Department of Transportation or locality-authorised, law-enforcement-escorted parade. Failure to wear the required gear does not constitute negligence per se in a civil proceeding. Transporting a child under five years old as a passenger on a motorcycle or motor-driven cycle is separately unlawful.
Code of Virginia § 46.2-910 · verified 2026-07-28
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.
- Licence classifications, permits, tests and fees come from the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles. Helmet and eye-protection rules come from the Code of Virginia.
- Virginia requires a helmet of every motorcycle operator and passenger, regardless of age. There is no adult exemption.
- Virginia does not run its own rider-training sites. Course providers are independent companies found through the Motorcycle Safety Foundation's national locator, and each sets its own price.
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: Virginia DMV — Getting a Motorcycle License