Illinois Permit Practice Hours: 50 Required, 10 at Night

Teens under 18 must complete 50 hours of supervised driving, including 10 hours at night. Adults 18 and over have no mandatory practice hour log.

Illinois GDL Practice Hours: 50 Total Required, 10 Must Be After Dark

The requirement is age-based and non-negotiable for teens. Adults have no mandatory logged hours but must still demonstrate competence at the road test.

• Teens (Ages 15-17): Minimum 50 supervised driving hours, at least 10 of which must be night driving completed between sunset and sunrise.
• Adults (Ages 18-20): No 50-hour log required. However, if you did not take drivers education in high school, you must complete a 6-hour Adult Driver Education Course through state-approved providers listed on ilsos.gov.
• Adults (Age 21+): No mandatory logged hours or education course. The state recommends 20-40 hours of practice to pass the road test.

How Do You Log Illinois Supervised Hours on the DSD X 152?

Use only the Illinois 50-Hour Practice Log (Form DSD X 152): it is the only document examiners accept. Apps can help track time, but hours must be transferred to the official form.

• Official Form: Form DSD X 152 is the only document examiners accept. Download the Illinois Driver Handbook (PDF) for full permit rules.
• Digital Tracking: Apps like RoadReady can help track time, but you must print and format the data to match the official form or transfer it by hand.
• What Counts: All practice with a supervising adult counts. Behind-the-wheel hours from a professional drivers ed course count toward your 50-hour total.
• What Does Not Count: Driving alone is illegal and does not count. Time spent driving outside your permit curfew (10 PM-6 AM Sun-Thu, 11 PM-6 AM Fri-Sat) is a violation and should not be logged.

How Do Illinois SOS Examiners Spot a Falsified DSD X 152 Log?

Examiners do check the log and flag unrealistic entries. A parent signature is a legal certification: falsifying it is perjury, a Class A Misdemeanor, and results in license revocation.

• Signature Rules: A parent or guardian must sign the log. If they cannot come to your test, their signature must be notarized.
• Do They Check? Yes. Examiners review logs for realism. A log showing 50 hours completed in two weeks or with perfectly round numbers can be rejected.
• Forgot to Log? You cannot officially estimate hours retroactively. Falsifying the log is perjury, a Class A Misdemeanor, and results in license revocation.

Failing for a suspicious log is more common than you think. An applicant in Springfield was denied a road test because every single entry was exactly 1.0 hour: the pattern raised immediate suspicion. An examiner at the Chicago West facility on a Tuesday morning turned away a teen because his mother signed the log at home without a notary present when she could not attend the test. Log each drive immediately after parking to avoid forgetting dates and times, which creates the kind of inaccurate round-number totals that get flagged.

What Practice Log Issues Get Your Illinois Road Test Cancelled on the Day?

Missing or incorrect paperwork, an under-9-month permit holding period, and vehicle defects are the three most common causes of same-day road test cancellation.

• A teen at the Joliet SOS failed the vehicle check because the rear license plate was obscured by a frame, causing a 3-week reschedule.
• Verify your 9-month holding period using your permit issued date before booking your road test to avoid automatic cancellation.
• Practice parallel parking and backing for at least 5 of your 50 hours: these are the most common instant-fail maneuvers in Rockford and other urban test routes.