Virginia Permit Test Cheat Sheet (2026)
The Virginia rules and numbers to know for the DMV knowledge test, on one page. Every line was checked against the official Virginia driver's handbook. It is a study sheet: you cannot use notes during the real test.
The Virginia test at a glance
- Questions on the test
- 40
- To pass
- at least 10 of 10 on Road Signs and at least 24 of 30 on General Knowledge
- Time limit
- We found no published time limit for the Virginia knowledge test.
- Minimum permit age
- 15½ years old
- Alcohol limit under 21
- 0.02% BAC
Virginia rules and numbers
From the official Virginia handbook; PDF page numbers in brackets.
Road signs
- Horse-drawn buggy sign: slow down, no horn, pass with at least 3 feet. [p.10]
- Virginia: a U-turn counts as two left turns; banned where No Left Turn is posted. [p.9]
- Pink-and-black signs: incident areas. Orange-and-black: construction. [p.8]
- Slow Moving Vehicle sign: required on vehicles going 25 mph or less. [p.13]
Rules of the road
- Virginia: driving 20+ mph over the limit is reckless driving. [p.16]
- Virginia: driving over 85 mph is reckless driving regardless of the limit. [p.16]
- Virginia: 25 mph default in business, residential, and school areas. [p.17]
- Virginia: 35 mph default speed limit on unpaved roads. [p.17]
- Virginia: enter a bike lane only to turn; never park or pass in it. [p.14]
- Virginia: travel no more than 150 feet in a center left-turn lane. [p.14]
- Virginia: pass bicyclists with at least 3 feet of clearance. [p.22]
- Stopped trash truck: if you can't move over, slow 10 mph under the limit, pass 2+ ft left. [p.18]
- Virginia: never follow an emergency vehicle with flashing lights closer than 500 feet. [p.18]
- Virginia: no parking within 500 feet of fire trucks answering an alarm. [p.24]
- Virginia: no parking within 50 feet of a railroad crossing. [p.24]
- Virginia: park no more than 1 foot from the curb. [p.24]
- Virginia: wipers on because of weather means headlights on. [p.24]
- Yellow X lane signal: move out of the lane as soon as safely possible. [p.8]
- Dark traffic signal: treat the intersection as an all-way stop. [p.8]
- Virginia: no turning on a red arrow unless a sign allows it. [p.7]
- Virginia: speeding in a highway work zone - fine up to $500. [p.12]
- School bus across a median: opposite-direction traffic need not stop. [p.17]
- Virginia permit: supervising driver usually must be 21+ in the front seat. [p.33]
- New Virginia resident: get a Virginia driver's license within 60 days. [p.35]
Safe driving & emergencies
- Virginia: holding a handheld phone while driving is illegal. [p.26]
- Virginia: 2 seconds under 35 mph, 3 seconds at 35-45 mph, 4 seconds at 46-70 mph. [p.21]
- Virginia: add 1 extra second of following distance behind a motorcycle. [p.22]
- Virginia: headlights required when bad weather cuts visibility to 500 feet. [p.24]
- Virginia: use low beams within 200 feet of the vehicle ahead. [p.25]
- Stalled on tracks: get out and run diagonally toward the oncoming train. [p.12]
- Unavoidable deer crash: don't swerve - brake firmly and stay in your lane. [p.27]
- Antilock brakes: never pump them. [p.17]
Rules learners miss most
The rules behind the most-missed questions on our practice tests. Some details, such as parking distances, can differ by state - your handbook has the final word.
- At 60 mph a car travels about 88 feet per second.
- Measure following distance in seconds, counted from a fixed roadside object.
- Most states: no parking within 20 feet of a crosswalk at an intersection.
- A yellow curb signals a stopping or parking limit - check signs and local rules.
- Uncontrolled T-intersection: the terminating road yields to the through road.
- Uphill with a curb: turn wheels away from the curb; downhill: toward it.
- Most states: no parking within 15 feet of a fire hydrant (a few use 10 feet).
- KEEP RIGHT: pass to the right of the island, median or obstruction.
- Point of no return: past it you cannot stop safely on yellow, so proceed.
- Zipper merge: use both lanes up to the merge point, then alternate.
- In heavy rain use low beams, slow down and increase following distance.
- Parallel park close to and parallel with the curb, within your state's limit.
- Yellow pennant on the left side of the road: a no-passing zone begins.
- Car with skid marks: the road is slippery when wet.
- Diamond-shaped signs are warning signs.
- 4-way stop tie: the driver on the left yields to the driver on the right.
- ABS keeps wheels from locking in hard braking so you can still steer.
- A round yellow sign warns of a railroad crossing ahead.
- Merging onto a highway: yield to traffic already on the highway.
- An upward-pointing pentagon marks a school zone or school crossing.
- Steady yellow: the light is about to turn red - stop if you can do so safely.
- Basic speed law: never drive faster than is safe for conditions, even under the limit.
- Use high beams on open roads; dim them for oncoming or followed vehicles.
- Arrows pointing up and down warn of two-way traffic ahead.
- Orange diamond signs warn of construction and work zones.
- Adult (21+) BAC limit is 0.08% in most states.
- Implied consent: by driving you agree to chemical tests if arrested for DUI.
Now test yourself
Reading rules is a start; answering questions is what makes them stick.