In order to be a parent instructor, you must meet all of the following requirements:
- You are the student’s parent, step-parent, grandparent, step-grandparent, foster parent, legal guardian, or an individual designated by your parent/legal guardian/judge.
- If you use a designated individual as your instructor, there are a few extra requirements for them. They also need to be at least 25 years old; they cannot charge a fee for being your instructor; they need at least 7 years of driving experience, and they must meet the rest of the requirements below.
- You will also need to print out the Parent Taught Driver Education Instructor Designation Form, complete it, and bring with you to the DPS when getting your permit.
- You must have a valid Texas driver license for the preceding three years.*
- You don't have a conviction or probated sentence of driving while intoxicated in the past 7 years.
- You don’t have a conviction or probated sentence of criminally negligent homicide.
- You haven’t had your driving privileges suspended, revoked, or forfeited for traffic-related violations in the past three years.
- You don’t have six or more points assigned to your driver license.
*If the parent instructor has had a Texas license for less than the preceding three years, they are responsible for ordering a certified driver record from the state or country where they last had a license. The driver record should go back at least three years and the DPS will need to see the record when the student gets their permit. We recommend doing a quick Google search to find out from which government entity you order your driver record. Example: “Name of previous state or country where you last had a license + driver record.”
