Driving Tests

Washington Intermediate License Rules: Passengers, Night Limit, Phones

informational·how to guide·Published July 19, 2026

What are the Washington intermediate license rules?

A Washington intermediate license holder may carry no passenger under 20 who is not immediate family for the first six months, then up to three. Driving from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. is banned unless a licensed driver aged 25 or older is with you, or the trip is for school, religious, employment or agricultural purposes. Phone use is banned, even hands-free. Every limit ends by age 18.

Where these rules come from

Washington sets the intermediate license rules in RCW 46.20.075. The Washington State Department of Licensing (DOL) explains them on its driver license page for ages 16 and 17 and in the Washington Driver Guide (2025). This guide uses the texts as of 2026. When a DOL page words a rule more briefly than the law, this guide follows the law. Confirm the rules with the Washington State Department of Licensing (dol.wa.gov) before you drive.

Who has an intermediate license in Washington

DOL issues an intermediate license to every driver under 18, and the rules last until the holder turns 18. Among the steps to get the license, you must be at least 16, have held an instruction permit for at least six months, and have no traffic violation in the six months before you apply. You also need at least 50 hours of supervised driving, 10 of them at night, with a supervisor who is at least 21 and has held a license for at least three years. The full steps are in the guide to the Washington driver's license at 16 and 17.

How many passengers can an intermediate license holder carry?

In the first six months after the license is issued (or until you turn 18, if that comes first), you may not drive with any passenger under 20 who is not a member of your immediate family. After the first six months, you may carry up to three passengers under 20 who are not immediate family. Passengers aged 20 or older and family members never count. The question about what a 16-year-old with a two-month-old license may do on a school day tests this rule.

Passenger limits by time since the license was issued

Passenger limits by time since the license was issued
Time since issue	Passengers under 20 who are not immediate family
First 6 months (or until 18)	None
After 6 months	Up to 3
After 12 months with a clean record	No passenger limit (see the clean-year rule below)

Who counts as immediate family

Your spouse or domestic partner, your child, stepchild or grandchild.
Your parent, stepparent or grandparent.
Your brother, half-brother, sister or half-sister, including foster children who live in your household.
The spouse or domestic partner of any of these people.
The same relatives of your own spouse or domestic partner, such as in-laws.

Can an intermediate license holder drive from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m.?

Only when an exception applies, or after a clean first year. The law bans driving between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. for an intermediate license holder. A parent in the passenger seat does not lift the limit just by being a parent: the person beside you must be a licensed driver who is at least 25. Until you finish a clean first year, a trip home from a friend's house at 1:30 a.m. with no one beside you breaks the limit.

When the 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. limit does not apply

A licensed driver who is at least 25 years old is with you

You may drive. A parent who is 25 or older and licensed qualifies. A friend who is 24 does not.

You are driving for school, religious or employment activities

You may drive. The activity can be yours or one of an immediate family member.

The trip is necessary for agricultural purposes

You may drive at any hour, with any number of passengers.

You are driving home from a party or a friend's house, alone

You may not drive, unless you finished a clean first year. Ask a licensed driver who is 25 or older to ride with you, or wait until 5 a.m.

Can an intermediate license holder use a phone?

No. An intermediate license holder may not use a wireless communications device while the vehicle is moving, even a hands-free one. The only exceptions are to report illegal activity, to summon medical or other emergency help, or to prevent injury to a person or property. The question about a hands-free call with an intermediate license tests this rule. The instruction permit has the same limit.

Phone rules: intermediate license holder and adult driver

Phone rules: intermediate license holder and adult driver
Driver	What the law allows
Intermediate license or instruction permit holder	No wireless device at all, not even hands-free. Exceptions: report illegal activity, call for emergency help, prevent injury.
Driver 18 or older	No holding a device in a hand and no watching video. Hands-free use is permitted. A call to emergency services is an exception.

When do the intermediate license limits end?

All the rules end when you turn 18. The license converts to a regular license automatically, and you do not need to apply. The passenger limit and the 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. limit can end earlier. They end when you have driven 12 months from the issue date with a clean record. The phone limit does not end early: it stays until you are 18.

What a clean 12 months means

No accident that involved only one motor vehicle.
No accident in which you were cited or were found to have caused it.
No accident in which no one was cited and no one was found to have caused it.
No conviction or finding for a traffic offense under chapter 46.61 RCW.
No breach of the intermediate license restrictions.

What happens if you break a limit

Breaking an intermediate license restriction is a traffic infraction. Police can enforce the passenger and night limits only after a stop for another offense, but the phone limit alone is a reason for a stop. For the penalties, DOL counts more than broken limits: a ticket for any rule of the road and some crashes count too. After a first violation, DOL sends a warning letter, and the passenger and night limits stay until 18. A second violation brings a suspension of six months or until 18, whichever comes first, and a third brings a suspension until 18. The teen driver penalties guide has the details.

Key takeaways

First 6 months: no passenger under 20 unless immediate family. After that: up to 3.
No driving from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. unless a licensed driver aged 25 or older is with you, or the trip is for school, religious, employment or agricultural purposes.
No phone use at all, even hands-free, except to report illegal activity, get emergency help or prevent injury. This limit lasts until 18.
The passenger and night limits end after 12 clean months. Every rule ends at 18.
Next step: practice the rules on the free Washington personal driver practice test. Our practice tests are free and in English only.

Washington intermediate license: common questions

Can I drive my 14-year-old brother with an intermediate license?

Yes. Your brother is immediate family under the law, so he does not count toward the passenger limit, even in the first six months. The same is true for sisters, half-siblings, parents, grandparents and foster children who live with you. A friend's younger brother is not your family, so he counts.

Can I drive to work at 2 a.m. with an intermediate license?

Yes, if the trip is for your job. Employment activities are an exception to the 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. limit, and so are school and religious activities. The activity can also belong to a member of your immediate family, for example a drive to take a parent to an early work shift.

Does a friend who is 20 count as a passenger under the limit?

No. The limit covers only passengers under 20, so a friend who is 20 or older can always ride with you. A friend who is 19 counts. After the first six months, you may carry up to three passengers under 20 who are not immediate family.

Can police stop me only because I have friends in the car?

No. Police can enforce the passenger and night limits only as a secondary action. An officer must first stop you for another suspected offense, and can then also cite you for too many passengers or for a drive between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. The phone limit is different: an officer can stop you for it alone.

I moved to Washington at 17 with a license from another state. Do these rules apply to me?

Yes. A driver under 18 with a valid out-of-state license who becomes a Washington resident must get a Washington intermediate license. After that, the passenger, night and phone limits apply to you as to every other intermediate license holder, until you turn 18.

Does a ticket in my first year keep the passenger and night limits?

Yes. The limits end early only after 12 months from the issue date with no traffic offense under chapter 46.61 RCW and no breach of the restrictions. DOL also counts a ticket for any rule of the road as a violation. After a first violation, the passenger and night limits stay until 18.