Texas Drivers License Restriction Codes
The state of Texas may place restrictions on your license to make sure the roads are safe for everyone – including you. Motor vehicles always have the potential to be dangerous, and if the DPS identifies you as posing a unique risk in the kind of driving you do, they may decide that your license should be restricted.
Not to worry, though – most restrictions codes in texas are temporary and can be lifted if you follow the appropriate steps. In addition, they often apply to only a narrow range of the driving a license holder does, so they don’t generally affect the average commuter. Many apply only to commercial drivers.
The most common type of license restriction in the state of Texas is aimed at young drivers. It’s part of the graduated licensing program designed to reduce teen driving fatalities – the leading cause of death in that age group. Given the danger, Texas law singles out young drivers for a class B restriction.
Provisional licenses have many of the same conditions as the class B, although they are lifted automatically after a year. This means that new drivers must observe a curfew (no driving between midnight and 5 a.m.), they can’t carry more than one passenger under the age of 21 unless it’s an immediate family member, and they cannot use cellphones in any capacity while driving.
Restriction Codes Are as Follows:
- A: With corrective lenses
- B: A licensed driver 21 years of age or older must be in the front seat
- C: Daytime only
- D: Not to exceed 45 MPH
- E: No expressway driving
- F: Must hold valid learners permit until (date)
- I M/C: Not to exceed 250 cc
- J: Licensed M/C Operator age 21 or over in sight
- K: Moped
- L: Vehicle w/o air breaks – applies to vehicles requiring CDL
- M: CDL Intrastate Commerce only
- N: Ignition interlock required
- O: Occupational license
- P: Stated on License
- Q: Licensed Operator in Front Seat (LOFS) 21 or over vehicle above Class B
- R: LOFS 21 or over vehicle above Class C
- S: Outside mirror or hearing aid
- T: Automatic transmission
- U: Applicable prosthetic devices
- V: Applicable vehicle devices
- W: Power steering
How to Remove Restrictions from Your Drivers License
Each category of restriction has its own set of conditions for removal. The youth condition can only be satisfied by the passage of time, and people with permanent disabilities will have to adjust to a restricted license. But others can satisfy the conditions with a little effort and some paperwork.
Restriction T, for example – which requires an automatic transmission – can be lifted if the driver passes the Texas drivers test with proper use of the clutch. Similarly, if older drivers are able to hone their skills with a drivers ed course, they may be able to remove restrictions such as D or E from their licenses by passing the test and becoming re-authorized by the DPS.
