Washington written test: retake fees set locally

The Washington State Department of Licensing sets the knowledge test at 40 questions and requires 32 correct, which is 80 percent, leaving a margin of eight wrong answers. Washington then does something with that result few states do: a passing score stays valid for 2 years if you do not use it right away, so an applicant who passes the written stage early does not have to sit it again while the rest of the process catches up. The instruction permit itself comes at 15 for applicants enrolled in an approved driver training course, or 15 and a half without one.

DOL does not publish a fixed retake wait. It says only that there may be a waiting period before you can retest, without stating how long, and that you pay the test fee again. That fee is set by the testing location rather than by the state, so what a second attempt costs depends on where you sat the first one. The requirements around the test are firmer than the ones about it: the driver license cannot be issued before 18 unless an approved driver training course is finished, permit holders must hold the instruction permit at least 6 months, and they must complete 40 hours of daylight driving plus 10 hours at night with someone who has held a license for at least 3 years.