Is there a maximum age for holding a driver’s license in Nevada?

No. However, senior citizens who hold a Nevada driver’s license have to abide by three special rules:

1. Drivers aged 65 and older must renew their licenses in person at the Nevada DMV, not over the internet;
2. Driver’s aged 65 and older must renew their licenses every four (4) years (younger drivers may renew them every eight (8) years); and
3. Drivers aged 70 and older must undergo a brief physical evaluation in order to renew their driver’s licenses

So as long as the person is able-bodied and fit to drive, there is no age limit at which point he/she must surrender his/her Nevada driver’s license.

Age-related conditions that may threaten a person’s driver’s license

Although there is no maximum age for holding a driver’s license in Nevada, there are several age-related illnesses, injuries, or conditions that may cause the person’s license to be temporarily suspended or possibly revoked permanently.

Just some of the conditions that may put an elderly person’s driver’s license in jeopardy include:

1. Hearing impairment that cannot be helped with a hearing aid or other medical device
2. Vision impairment that cannot be helped with corrective lenses
3. Diabetes, if it is not well-controlled by medication and monitored by a doctor
4. Recurring fainting or dizzy spells, if they are not well-controlled by medication and monitored by a doctor
5. Heart conditions that are not well-controlled by medication and monitored by a doctor, such as:
   1. thrombosis
   2. coronary insufficiency
   3. angina pectoris
   4. myocardial infarction
6. Limited mobility that cannot be corrected
7. Inability to reach the gas and brake pedals
8. Arthritis, if it is not well-controlled by medication and monitored by a doctor
9. Any other type of vascular, muscular, rheumatic, orthopedic, or neuromuscular disease that is not well-controlled and monitored by a doctor

People who suffer from these conditions should consult with their physicians about whether it is safe for them to continue driving. If the Nevada DMV learns that the person is suffering from one of these conditions, it can either:

1. Request that the person submit to a driving test, written test, and/or vision test. If the person tests poorly, the DMV may choose to suspend or restrict the person’s license and order them to retake the tests every year;
2. Suspend the driver’s license for 90 days if the person is suffering from a condition where he/she loses consciousness. Then, the DMV can reinstate the license or grant him/her a restricted license if it deems the person well enough to drive; or
3. Revoke the license right away, though it can always grant the person a new license if his/her medical conditions improve.

When the Nevada DMV takes a person’s license away for medical purposes, the person can always try to contest the suspension or revocation at a DMV hearing. It is a like a mini-trial, and the person can call physicians and other medical providers as witnesses to attest to the person’s fitness to drive. An administrative law judge presides over the hearing and will hand down a decision within a few days of the hearing.

Learn more about medically-restricted driver’s licenses in Nevada.