Medical Conditions and Driving in California in 2026: How the DMV Evaluates a Driver and What It Can Decide

What the law lets the DMV do

The DMV's evaluation guidelines page lists its authority. Vehicle Code sections 12806 and 12809 let the DMV refuse to issue or renew a license to someone who cannot safely operate a motor vehicle for reasons relating to a physical or mental condition. Section 12814 permits certain tests and a reexamination at renewal; section 13800 allows an investigation and a reexamination of a driver at any time; section 12818 authorizes a priority reexamination for a physical or mental condition that impairs driving, and section 13953 permits an immediate suspension or revocation; section 13359 allows a suspension or revocation on any ground that would justify refusing a license; and Health and Safety Code section 103900 requires the DMV to develop guidelines for monitoring patients with the disorders described below. The DMV's medical conditions and driving page adds a driver skills self-assessment questionnaire for anyone deciding whether to have their own driving evaluated.

What the DMV weighs

The DMV says it uses several qualifications to decide whether a driver has the physical and mental skills to drive safely. Physical requirements: strength, coordination, stamina and mobility. Sensory functions: visual, auditory and tactile. Mental requirements: proper integration and interpretation of sensory input, focus of attention, proper associations of thought and appropriate judgment. Knowledge: the rules of the road, from written or oral test results. Physical limitations: operating the vehicle controls, steering, coordinating the pedals and the gearshift, and scanning left, right and over the shoulder and using the mirrors. On the condition itself the DMV asks what it is and whether there is a diagnosis, the specific symptoms, when it began, the date of the last episode, whether symptoms continue or recur, the cause, whether the account matches the DMV's records, the results of medical tests and the physician's evaluation and prognosis. It lists aggravating factors, alcohol or drug use or abuse, stress, sleep deprivation, poor diet, physical over-exertion and an inability or unwillingness to avoid them, and treatment, the medication with its effectiveness and side effects, any prescribed diet, sleep, exercise, avoidance of stress or of specific activities, follow-up examinations, supplementary oxygen, and compliance with the regimen. It then looks at the driving: the record and the circumstances of any accidents, mileage, the amount of traffic, a rural or urban residence, time spent driving, the time of day and its effect on vision and traffic, and access to food, sleep and medication. The DMV says it considers all of these independently and together, and that any action must rest on sufficient facts.

Compensating factors can show that a driver manages a condition that would otherwise impair driving. The DMV names equipment, the type of vehicle, an automatic transmission, a steering knob, hand controls, extra mirrors and power steering; physical habits, scanning techniques, following distance, choice of lane and brake usage; the driving environment, the hour of day, the amount of driving, avoiding certain weather, routes or intersections and combining destinations into single trips; and the driver's own understanding, being able to articulate the specifics of the condition, its regimen and its treatment and showing appropriate concern for its relation to traffic safety and personal responsibility.

The eight outcomes, and the hearing

The DMV says it may decide that no action against the driving privilege is appropriate, or that the condition warrants one of these: a reexamination on a specified date, which it calls a calendar reexamination; Medical Probation I, under which the driver must comply with the medical regimen and report any changes to the DMV; Medical Probation II, with annual medical reports submitted on specified dates; a limited term license, issued by the field office for one to two years and requiring the driver to return for reevaluation or testing; restrictions; suspension; or revocation. Under Vehicle Code section 14100 a driver has the right to request a hearing within 10 days of receiving the notice of suspension or revocation when the decision rests on a documented medical condition or disability; the request does not stop the DMV from acting against a condition that presents an immediate hazard, under section 13953. At the hearing the driver may dispute the DMV's evidence or present new medical evidence, the hearing officer weighs the medical evidence and any examination results against the requirements and driving factors above, and the DMV says the action is not ended until it receives sufficient evidence that the cause of the suspension or revocation no longer makes the driver incapable of driving safely. The hearing procedure, the deadlines for an in-person or mailed notice and the rights at the hearing are on the senior drivers guide.

Dementia

When the DMV receives a report about a driver with dementia it must send the driver for a driver medical evaluation, and the DMV's dementia page says it takes no action without information from the driver's doctor. The DMV describes dementia as a group of degenerative, generally progressive brain disorders affecting memory, language, reasoning and problem solving, and says a driver with moderate or severe dementia will not be able to drive safely because three abilities have deteriorated: consciousness, in the sense of responding rationally to what is seen; cognitive processing, remembering the destination, attending to pedestrians and oncoming traffic, and judgment in traffic; and strength and coordination, with weak muscle control and slow reflexes. For those drivers the DMV says the privilege will be revoked, and they are not eligible for reexamination.

A driver diagnosed with dementia must attend a reexamination and take a driver safety knowledge test; a pass may lead to a special driving test or a Supplemental Driver Performance Evaluation, and a satisfactory drive brings a reexamination within 6 to 12 months because, the DMV says, mild dementia can progress rapidly without the driver's awareness. The reexamination is for mild dementia only, in person and in an interview format, so the DMV can assess awareness and perception; when action has already been taken, the in-person interview and hearing ask general questions, name, address, type of insurance, and questions about health, treatment, driving record, the need to drive, the daily routine and the need for help with daily activities, which the DMV says can reveal deterioration in language processing. The knowledge test measures mental competency, cognitive and language skills, and the hearing officer must decide whether a poor score shows a lack of knowledge or difficulty reading and comprehending the questions, weighing how long the test took, how many questions were missed, whether the driver could answer them when they were restated aloud, and whether study of the handbook would help. A failure after the questions were restated that comes from a lack of knowledge brings a suspension under section 13953; an inability to answer the hearing officer coherently, or a failure after restatement with medical documentation of mild dementia, brings a revocation under the same section, with a hearing available on whether the driver's cognition and memory allow a special drive test. The Supplemental Driver Performance Evaluation, which assesses concentration, perception, attention and safe decisions, is given only to a driver with a diagnosis of mild dementia who passes the knowledge and vision tests and answers coherently; a satisfactory result sets a reexamination in 6 to 12 months, or in 6 months or less when the results are marginal and the dementia is not expected to progress quickly, and an unsatisfactory one brings a revocation, after which the hearing officer decides whether another evaluation is safe.

Diabetes

The DMV's diabetes and driving page describes the condition, type 1 in which the body no longer produces insulin and type 2 in which it produces insulin but cannot regulate it well, and the ways it can affect driving: secondary conditions such as blindness, nerve damage, kidney damage, heart disease and stroke, disorientation or loss of consciousness when blood glucose swings, and loss of feeling in the feet or hands. Whether a person with diabetes can be licensed depends, the DMV says, and it describes what happens when an applicant indicates diabetes on a license application or renewal. The field office representative reviews the application, asks for a brief explanation of the condition, decides whether review by the Driver Safety Branch is necessary, explains what a referral means, and if so sends the information to the nearest Driver Safety Branch; a referred applicant may take the vision and knowledge tests but may not take the driving test until cleared.

The Driver Safety Branch, which the DMV says is charged by law with identifying high-risk drivers whose conditions may affect safe driving, reviews the file and either sends a clearance letter that returns the applicant to the field office or asks for more with a Notice of Reexamination (DS 2011) or a Driver Medical Evaluation (DS 326), the medical portion of which the driver's doctor completes. The DS 326 must be returned within 24 days, or the driving privilege is suspended until it is. If the branch finds the condition does affect safe driving it may impose restrictions, impose medical probation with periodic medical reports on a schedule, or suspend or revoke under sections 12806 and 12809, with a notice explaining the right to appeal. Back at the field office with the clearance letter, the DMV issues a permit to a first-time applicant who still needs the driving test, a provisional license to an applicant under 18, or an interim license when all testing is complete and the card is in the mail.

Lapses of consciousness

A lapse of consciousness disorder, whatever its cause, can cost a driver control of the vehicle or vessel, and the DMV's lapse of consciousness page names the conditions behind one: epilepsy, which it calls the most common and which can begin at any age; seizures outside epilepsy from anything that impairs brain function, trauma, tumors, infections, genetics, stroke, injury or metabolic imbalances such as a diabetic coma; and sleep disorders such as narcolepsy. When the DMV receives a report of such a driver it must evaluate the driver and then act, and its guidelines set out four results: no action, medical probation, suspension or revocation. Depending on the facts, severity and type of condition, the hearing officer may impose probation instead of a suspension or revocation, with conditions that can include completing a DS 326 or another form, appearing for a reexamination with a hearing officer, reporting changes in health, and limiting driving by time or location. Under section 14251 the DMV can end or change the conditions whenever good cause exists; if the disorder appears to have become unstable, or the information reported is suspected to be fraudulent, the DMV asks the physician for a new DS 326 and, if necessary, schedules a reexamination or imposes an immediate suspension.

Vision

The DMV's screening standard, on its vision conditions page, is 20/40 with both eyes together, and 20/40 in one eye with at least 20/70 in the other, with or without corrective lenses. A driver who fails is referred to a vision specialist, who examines the driver and completes a Report of Vision Examination (DL 62) that the driver must submit; no limited term license, temporary license or extension is issued to a low-vision driver until the DL 62 has been reviewed and the condition found not to impair safe driving, and a person with visual acuity of 20/200 or worse may not be scheduled for a drive test. After the review the driver may be scheduled for a drive test or a Supplemental Driving Performance Evaluation to see whether the condition impairs driving or can be compensated for; a failed test with a severe condition that cannot be compensated for warrants a revocation, and the DMV can revoke under section 13953 when a low-vision driver performs dangerously poorly. Where the condition could improve, or the examiner believes skills could improve with training, the DMV can impose restrictions that limit exposure but allow practice, and issue a restricted license or instruction permit for as long as the driver needs. A hearing may be requested after the notice. The DMV also explains the vision functions it looks at: visual acuity, screened on a Snellen chart at 20/40, meaning the applicant reads at 20 feet what a young, healthy eye reads at 40; peripheral vision, used to detect hazards at the far left and right, an overhead signal, lane boundaries and the traffic in front while checking the mirror; night vision and the low-contrast pedestrian in dark clothes; glare resistance and glare recovery against the setting sun or oncoming headlights; judgment of distance at the limit line and in turns; eye movement and scanning; and visual perception, the ability to switch attention, separate foreground from background and place other vehicles, signs and pedestrians. The vision test at renewal is on the senior drivers guide.

Driver Safety offices and the forms

The DMV says many Driver Safety matters are handled through its online case management system, where a driver can receive notices, schedule hearings, upload documents and ask questions about a case or driving privilege. Its Driver Safety office page lists the El Segundo Driver Safety Office at 390 N. Pacific Coast Highway, Suite 2075, El Segundo, CA 90245-4470, reached at (833) 543-7703 or LADDSElSegundoOffice@dmv.ca.gov, open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday 8 am to 5 pm and Wednesday 9 am to 5 pm, and says that office provides no license or registration services. The DMV's people with disabilities page adds that every Driver Safety office listing now carries a map of accessible parking and building access. The forms named across the DMV's medical pages are the Driver Medical Evaluation (DS 326), the Notice of Reexamination (DS 2011) and the Report of Vision Examination (DL 62). A medical examination report for a commercial driver is a different form filed through the Virtual Office, on the commercial license guide; the online channels themselves are on the online services guide.

Questions about medical conditions and driving in California

Will the DMV take my license because a doctor reported a condition?

Not automatically. For dementia the DMV says it does not act without information from the driver's doctor and first sends the driver for a driver medical evaluation; for diabetes a field office may refer the application to the Driver Safety Branch, which can clear it with a letter; for a lapse of consciousness disorder the DMV evaluates and then chooses between no action, medical probation, suspension and revocation. The decision options the DMV lists are above, under the eight outcomes.

What is the DS 326?

The Driver Medical Evaluation, the form the DMV sends for the driver's doctor to complete. On the diabetes page the DMV says the completed DS 326 must be returned to Driver Safety within 24 days or the driving privilege is suspended until it arrives.

What is the vision standard?

Seeing 20/40 with both eyes together, and 20/40 in one eye with at least 20/70 in the other, with or without corrective lenses. A driver who fails the screening is sent to a vision specialist for a Report of Vision Examination (DL 62), and the DMV issues no limited-term or temporary license or extension until the DL 62 has been reviewed.

Can I drive with epilepsy?

It depends, in the DMV's words. A reported lapse of consciousness disorder triggers an evaluation, after which the DMV takes no action, imposes medical probation, suspends or revokes. Probation can mean a DS 326, a reexamination with a hearing officer, reporting changes in health, and limits on when or where you drive.

What does medical probation mean?

Medical Probation I requires the driver to comply with the medical regimen and report any changes to the DMV; Medical Probation II requires annual medical reports submitted on specified dates. The DMV can end or change the conditions whenever good cause exists, under Vehicle Code section 14251.

How long do I have to ask for a hearing?

10 days after receiving the notice of suspension or revocation, under Vehicle Code section 14100, when the decision rests on a documented medical condition or disability. Requesting a hearing does not stop the DMV from acting against a condition that presents an immediate hazard, under section 13953.

Will I be examined again?

Often. A driver with mild dementia who passes is scheduled for a reexamination in 6 to 12 months, or in 6 months or less when the results are marginal; a limited-term license runs one to two years and brings the driver back for reevaluation or testing; a calendar reexamination sets a date in advance.