Section 8. Application for a license to operate motor vehicles may be made by any person except a person who has been licensed and whose license is not in force because of revocation or suspension or whose right to operate is suspended by the registrar; provided, however, that no such license shall be issued to a person whose junior operator’s license has been suspended or revoked or whose right to operate has been suspended while so operating under a junior operator’s license until the full term of such suspension or revocation has been served without regard to the age of such person. Before a license is granted pursuant to this section, the applicant shall pass such examination as to his qualifications as the registrar, without discriminating as to age, shall require; and no license shall be issued until the registrar or his authorized agent is satisfied that the applicant is a proper person to receive it and, if applicable, has surrendered his junior operator’s license or operator’s license issued by another state; and, except as hereinafter provided, no such license shall be issued to any person under eighteen years of age. Each applicant shall submit with his application a birth, baptismal or school certificate or such other satisfactory evidence of his age as the registrar may require. If the registrar has reasonable cause to suspect that any document presented by an applicant as proof of identity or age is altered, false or otherwise invalid, the registrar shall refuse to grant the license until the registrar is satisfied as to the applicant’s true identity or age. Each applicant shall state his military status in such application, and the registrar shall record such status in the central computer system of the registry.

A junior operator’s license may, under the rules and regulations established by the registrar, be issued to a minor under 18 years of age who has:

(a) held a valid learner’s permit issued pursuant to section 8B or a similar law of another state for a period of not less than six months immediately preceding the date of application for a junior operator’s license under this section and, during such period, has maintained a driving record free of any surchargeable incidents, as described in section 113B of chapter 175 or a similar law of another state and has not had such permit suspended under section 24P or a similar law of another state and has not been convicted of violating any alcohol-related or drug-related law of the commonwealth or a similar alcohol-related or drug-related law of any other state. For the purposes of this section, an alternative disposition of a violation including, but not limited to, having such violation continued without a finding or placed on file shall be deemed to be a conviction. Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect any penalty, fine, suspension, revocation or requirement that may be imposed under any other law of the commonwealth;

(b) attained the age of 16 and one-half years;

(c) successfully completed a driver education and training course approved by the registrar and presented a certified statement from a parent or guardian or designee over the age of 21 that the applicant has completed not less than 12 hours of supervised driving in addition to the requirements of said driver education and training course;

(d) successfully completed such examination and driving test as the registrar may require; and

(e) submitted an application on a form furnished by the registrar, signed by both the applicant and a parent or guardian, along with the fee provided in section 33.

No person holding a junior operator’s license shall operate a motor vehicle during the first six months of licensure while a person under 18 years of age, other than the operator or an immediate family member of the operator, is present in such vehicle unless also accompanied by an operator, duly licensed by his state of residence, who is 21 years of age or over, who has had at least one year of driving experience and who is occupying a seat beside the driver and any such junior operator who violates the passenger restriction provided herein shall have such junior operator’s license suspended for a period of 30 days for a first offense, for a period of 60 days for a second offense and for a period of 90 days for a third or subsequent offense; provided, however, that such suspension shall be imposed in addition to any other penalty, fine, suspension, revocation or requirement that may be imposed for such violation. The six-month passenger restriction provided herein shall be tolled during any suspension or revocation of a person’s junior operator’s license.

No person holding a junior operator’s license shall operate a motor vehicle between the hours of 12:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m. unless accompanied by a parent or legal guardian. The holder of a junior operator’s license shall have such license in his possession at all times when operating a motor vehicle and any such operator who violates the time restriction provided herein shall be deemed to be operating a motor vehicle without being duly licensed under this chapter; provided, however, that for such operation between the hours of 12:00 a.m. and 1:00 a.m. and between 4:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m., the provisions of this paragraph shall be enforced by law enforcement agencies only when a junior operator of a motor vehicle has been lawfully stopped for a violation of the motor vehicle laws or some other offense.

No person holding a junior operator’s license shall operate a vehicle requiring a commercial driver’s license issued under chapter 90F.

The registrar may exempt a person licensed under the provisions of the preceding paragraph regarding time of operation if such person is a fire fighter as defined in section seven of chapter four while such person is in the act of responding to or returning from a request for initial or mutual aid assistance from a fire department or any related matter or if the person is an emergency medical technician certified under the provisions of section six of chapter one hundred and eleven C while such person is in the act of responding to or returning from a request for medical assistance or any related matter. No such exemption shall be given until application has been made to the registrar accompanied by the approval of the chief of the fire department or head of the emergency medical services agency, the approval of the chief of police of the city or town wherein such services are to be performed and the approval of the parents or legal guardian of such person. Upon receipt of such application and approvals, the registrar shall issue a written exemption to said licensee which shall contain no additional terms or conditions and which shall be valid upon receipt. Upon termination of such licensee’s services, the fire chief or agency head shall notify the registrar who shall forthwith revoke said exemption. Said exemption may be unilaterally revoked by any person whose approval was required. Said revocation shall be reported forthwith to the other approving parties and to the registrar with a written reason. Said revocation shall not be appealed. Said exemption may be reissued upon submission of a new application with required approvals.

If for any reason the registrar or his agents are unable to examine an applicant for a license promptly, the applicant may be issued a receipt for the fee paid, provided that the applicant shows that he is duly licensed in a state or country which state or country the registrar has finally determined prescribes and enforces standards of fitness for operators of motor vehicles substantially as high as those prescribed and enforced by this commonwealth. Said receipt shall be carried in lieu of the license, and for a period of sixty days from the date of its issue said receipt shall have the same force and effect given to the license by this chapter.

To each licensee shall be assigned some distinguishing number or mark, and the licenses issued shall be in such form as the registrar shall determine. They may contain special restrictions and limitations. They shall contain a photograph of the licensee, the distinguishing number or mark assigned to the licensee, his name, his place of residence and address, a brief description of him for purposes of identification, and such other information as the registrar shall deem necessary.

The photographs of licensees appearing on all operator’s licenses shall be a straightforward looking view of the licensee with a distinctive license for persons under the age at which they can purchase alcoholic beverages as defined by section thirty-four of chapter one hundred and thirty-eight.

A person to whom a license has been issued under this section shall not operate motor vehicles other than those for which such license has been made valid by the registrar. All operators of motor vehicles and trailers which are regarded as registered under a general distinguishing number or mark as provided in section five and motor vehicles and trailers owned and operated by the commonwealth or any of its political subdivisions shall be subject to the rules and regulations establishing classifications for operator’s licenses. In absence of a registered gross weight for such vehicle or trailer, the gross vehicle weight rating as established by the original manufacturer of the chassis shall be used to determine the class of license required to operate the aforementioned motor vehicles and trailers.

Every person licensed to operate motor vehicles as aforesaid shall endorse his name in full in a legible manner on the margin of the license, in the space provided for the purpose, immediately upon receipt of said license, and such license shall not be valid until so endorsed.

Every person licensed to operate motor vehicles as aforesaid shall report to the registrar every change in his military status, and the registrar shall record such change in status in the central computer system of the registry.

A license or any renewal thereof issued to an operator shall expire on an anniversary of the operator’s date of birth occurring more than twelve months but not more than sixty months after the effective date of such license. The license issued to an operator born on February twenty-ninth shall, for the purpose of this section, expire on March first.

Applications for licenses shall be in such form as may be prescribed by the registrar. Every application for an original license filed under this section shall be sworn to by the applicant before a justice of the peace or notary public and, if the applicant is under age eighteen, be accompanied by the written consent, in such form as the registrar shall determine, of a parent or guardian or other person standing in the place of a parent of the applicant.

An applicant for a license under this section shall be required to answer questions on the examination to determine the applicant’s knowledge of the laws regarding operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcoholic beverages, including the relevant sections of this chapter and chapter one hundred and thirty-eight. The registrar shall determine the nature and number of such questions.

Last modified: April 5, 2006