Starting Wednesday, Hawaiʻi residents needing to take a written test to obtain a driver's license or learner's permit can do so online at any time.
The pilot project is launching due to a large number of licenses set to expire over the next two years. According to the Honolulu DMV, more than 106,000 licenses will expire in 2025 — a 30% increase. Officials are bracing for an additional 30% jump in 2026 as well.
DMVs on Oʻahu are averaging an estimated 500 to 600 appointments weekly for in-person written tests. The new project aims to cut down wait times and provide another permit test-taking option to the public.
At this time, the online test can only be completed on a computer with a webcam. Cellphones and tablets will not work. Just like the in-person paper test, 30 questions must be answered within 60 minutes.
Kim Hashiro, the new head of the Honolulu Customer Services Department, said the test has sophisticated security.
"At the start of the test, the system will take some baseline photos. It'll ask you to look straight ahead, and it'll take different angles, and it'll also instruct the applicant that they must continue to look straight at the screen at all times so they can't look down or away," she told HPR. "After two warnings, it'll fail them on the test."
She said that once the baseline photos are taken, the security system should prevent anyone from cheating.
Once someone passes the test, they would need to print out a certificate of completion and take it to a DMV office.
"That appointment time now goes from 60 minutes down to 15 or less for reviewing of documents, photo, fingerprinting and actually issuing of the permit. So it's saving a lot of time," Hashiro added.
For more information, click here. The fee for the online test varies by your county of residence:
| Oʻahu | Hawaiʻi Island | Kauaʻi | Maui |
| $12 | $11 | $20 | $25 |
This interview aired on The Conversation on Dec. 11, 2024. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. on HPR-1.
