DMV Written Test in Chinese: Which States Offer It and How to Pass

Life in the USOct 18, 2026 · 7 min read

For many new arrivals, the written test (officially the knowledge test) is the first real hurdle to a US driver's license. The rules of the road are not hard, but reading 30 questions of legal English under time pressure is. The good news is that many states let you take the test in Chinese. The catch is that each state runs its own DMV, so the answer depends entirely on where you live. Below is what the official DMV sites say for the 10 states covered by our free DMV Practice Test in Chinese, checked against each agency's pages as of October 2026.

State by state: Chinese test, length and passing score

Where the table says "commonly", the DMV publishes the passing percentage but not the exact number of questions on its current pages. The common figure is what most test-takers report, so treat it as a guide rather than a guarantee.

Mandarin or Cantonese?

Most states just say "Chinese" for the written test and do not say whether there is spoken audio. A few are specific: Massachusetts labels its Chinese versions Mandarin and offers audio exams in every listed language (Cantonese is not listed). Pennsylvania offers the test in written or audio Mandarin on request. New Jersey's audio test is only in English and Spanish. If you need to hear the questions read aloud in Cantonese, ask your DMV office before you book.

If your state does not offer Chinese

• Texas: DPS says it can only give the knowledge test in English or Spanish, and a translator may not help you during the test (one can help you talk to staff before and after). Plan to study in English.
• Illinois: the administrative rule says the test is in English and may be offered in other languages based on demand. The handbook says applicants with a language barrier can request an oral exam Monday to Thursday at any driver's license facility. Call your local facility first.
• North Carolina: NCDMV says the written test is offered in different languages and oral tests are available on request, but it does not list them. Call NCDMV at 919-715-7000 or your local office to ask about Chinese.

Handbooks in Chinese

Every question on the test comes from your state's driver handbook, so this is the one document worth reading cover to cover. These states publish an official Chinese edition: California, Washington (Simplified; Traditional also available), New Jersey, Massachusetts (Simplified; Traditional also available) and Pennsylvania. Translated editions can lag behind the English one (Pennsylvania's Chinese PDF dates from 2021), so if a number in the Chinese version differs from the current English handbook, trust the English.

Road signs: the part people underestimate

US road signs follow one national standard, the federal Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), so a stop sign or a school-zone sign looks the same in every state. Some states test signs separately with their own pass mark:

• New York: 4 of the 20 questions are signs, and you must get at least 2 right even if your total is 14 or more.
• North Carolina: a separate traffic-sign test where you identify signs by color and shape; you need 9 of 12.
• Georgia: a separate 20-question Road Signs test; you need 15.

Learn signs by shape and color first, because that is how you recognize them when the text is too far away to read: octagon means stop, a downward triangle means yield, a yellow diamond is a warning, a pentagon marks a school zone, orange is for work zones, and a round yellow sign warns of a railroad crossing ahead. Even if you take the written test in Chinese, the signs on the road are in English, so learn the key words too: STOP, YIELD, DO NOT ENTER, WRONG WAY, ONE WAY, NO TURN ON RED.

Learner permit basics

Passing the knowledge test usually gets you a learner's permit, not a license. The details vary, but the pattern is similar everywhere:

• Vision test. For example, New York and Illinois require 20/40, and New Jersey 20/50 for a basic license, with or without glasses.
• Documents and fees. Bring proof of identity, date of birth and address as your state lists them. Some fees are per attempt: Massachusetts charges a $30 exam fee each time, and Georgia's $10 permit fee is paid before every attempt.
• Retakes. North Carolina and New Jersey let you retest after 7 days; Pennsylvania the next business day; Georgia the next day after a first failure and 7 days after later ones. In Texas a failed first attempt holds your application for 90 days, and after 90 days or three failures you start over. California allows three attempts per application.
• Age rules. Teens face extra steps everywhere (driver education, supervised hours, night and passenger limits). Texas also requires a six-hour adult driver education course for first-time applicants aged 18 to 24, and Illinois requires one for ages 18 to 20.
• The road test is usually in English. Georgia, for example, says its road skills test is English only, so practice common instructions like "turn left at the next light" and "pull over to the curb".

Tips to pass the first time

1. Read your own state's handbook. Generic "DMV test" question banks mix states. Blood alcohol limits for drivers under 21, for example, are 0.01% in California and New Jersey but 0.02% in Georgia and Washington.
2. Memorize the numbers. Questions love exact figures: BAC limits (0.08% for adults in all 10 states), following distances, parking distances, school-zone speeds, insurance minimums and point thresholds.
3. Know the safety laws that appear in every state: handheld phone bans, move-over laws for stopped emergency vehicles, stopping for a school bus with flashing red lights, and yielding to pedestrians.
4. Study bilingually. Read in Chinese for understanding, then reread key terms in English: right-of-way, yield, merge, shoulder, crosswalk. It helps on test day if a translation feels awkward, and you will need the words on the road.
5. Take timed mock tests in your state's format. 18 questions in Pennsylvania feels very different from 50 in New Jersey. Aim to pass practice tests comfortably before you book.
6. Review every mistake. Most people fail on a handful of topics. Go back to the handbook section for each wrong answer.

How our practice test helps

DMV Practice Test in Chinese (驾照笔试中文题库) has 150 original questions for each of the 10 states above, written from that state's official handbook, plus 64 road-sign questions drawn to MUTCD shapes and colors. Every question shows Chinese and English side by side and links to the handbook section it comes from, so you can check the rule yourself. The mock test uses your state's real length and pass mark, including New York's sign rule and the separate sign tests in North Carolina and Georgia. Questions you miss go into a wrong-answer notebook stored only in your browser. It is free, with no account.

If you are settling in, our Huaren Local Directory lists Chinese-speaking doctors, lawyers and schools in four metros (see our guide on finding Mandarin-speaking doctors and lawyers), and if citizenship is on your horizon, Civics Test Practice works the same bilingual way.

FAQ

Can I take the DMV written test in Chinese in California?

Yes. The California DMV says the knowledge test is available in more than 40 languages, and it publishes Chinese sample tests and a Chinese edition of the driver handbook. You need 80% correct to pass.

Is the Texas driver license test available in Chinese?

No. Texas DPS says it can only offer the knowledge test in English or Spanish, and translators may not help you during the test. You can bring someone to help you communicate with staff before and after it.

Can I bring my own interpreter to the written test?

Usually not into the test itself. Texas forbids translator help during the test. Some states arrange language help instead: New Jersey can arrange an MVC interpreter if your language is not offered, Massachusetts takes requests for foreign-language oral exams by email, and Illinois allows oral exams for applicants with a language barrier. Ask your DMV before your visit.

Is there a separate road sign test?

In some states. North Carolina has a separate sign test (9 of 12 correct) and Georgia a separate 20-question Road Signs test (15 correct). New York counts 4 sign questions inside its 20-question test, and you must get at least 2 of them right.

Is the Chinese test in Mandarin or Cantonese?

Most states only say "Chinese" for the written test. Massachusetts labels its Chinese versions Mandarin and offers audio; Pennsylvania offers written or audio Mandarin on request; New Jersey's audio test is English and Spanish only. None of the 10 states lists Cantonese audio on its official pages.

Sources

• California DMV: AB 60 driver licenses (test languages) and Instruction and learner's permits
• New York DMV: Prepare for and take your permit test and Driver's Manual (MV-21)
• Texas DPS: Testing in other languages and Texas Driver Handbook (DL-7)
• Washington DOL: Do I need to take a test?
• New Jersey MVC: Knowledge test and Driver Manual
• Massachusetts RMV: Apply for a Class D learner's permit
• Illinois: 92 Ill. Adm. Code 1030.80 and Rules of the Road
• NCDMV: Driver license tests
• PennDOT: Driver's Manual, testing
• Georgia DDS: Test and exams information
• FHWA: MUTCD 11th Edition, Chapter 2A

Last updated 2026-10-18. Test formats, languages and fees change; confirm with your state's DMV before your appointment. This guide is general information, not legal advice.