The short version
- Renewal costs $50 for eight years, up from $40 before October 2025. Renewing after your license expires adds $10.
- You can renew up to 180 days early, online if you’re eligible or at any DMV facility.
- Upgrading to REAL ID? Bring your original documents to the DMV. It costs the same as a standard license.
Delaware driver’s licenses are issued by the Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV). Licenses expire on your birthday, and the DMV sends a renewal reminder about 60 days before.
Not a standard renewal?
- New to Delaware? You’ll transfer your out-of-state license instead of renewing. If you’re bringing a car, our guide to an out-of-state title transfer in Delaware covers titling it.
- License suspended? Reinstatement comes first. See our guide to reinstating a suspended Delaware driver’s license.
- Commercial license? You can renew a CDL no earlier than 30 days before it expires, and not online.
When Can You Renew a Delaware Driver’s License?
Delaware licenses are issued for eight years, and you can renew any time in the 180 days before yours expires.
- Late fee: Under 21 Del. C. § 2715, renewing after your license expires adds a $10 late fee. There’s no grace period.
- Tests: The DMV may give a written and road test at renewal, but it says they’re normally waived.
- Military: Active-duty members, Defense Department employees and their dependents who were stationed outside Delaware when their license expired don’t pay the late fee, and they can renew by mail.
- Driving privilege cards: These renew every four years for $20, rather than every eight.
Delaware Driver’s License Renewal Requirements: Online Eligibility, Eye Screening and REAL ID
- Online eligibility: You can renew online if you’re over 18 and have a valid Class D license within six months of expiration. The state’s announcement of the service says it isn’t available for commercial or graduated licenses, if you used the DMV’s self-service kiosk at your last visit, or if you’ve lost your driving privileges.
- Eye screening: In person, you’ll pass an eye-screening test. The DMV can also ask for a report from an optometrist or ophthalmologist, which marks 20/40 vision as unrestricted and 20/50 as daylight driving only.
- REAL ID: A REAL ID costs the same as a standard license. To upgrade, you’ll show original documents once, in person: one proof of identity and legal presence, one proof of your Social Security number, two proofs of Delaware residency from different sources, and any marriage licenses, court orders or divorce decrees that changed your name.
- Moved recently? You may need to show proof of your new address when you renew, and the DMV can also ask for proof of your Social Security number or legal presence.
How to Renew Your Delaware Driver’s License Online or in Person
Renew Your Delaware Driver’s License Online
- Log in to the DMV’s myDMV license services within six months of your expiration date.
- Confirm your details. Your new license will use your most recent DMV photo.
- Pay the $50 fee, then print the temporary paper license.
- Watch your mail. The new card should arrive within about two weeks.
Online renewal can’t upgrade you to a REAL ID, since that takes original documents shown in person.
Renew Your Delaware Driver’s License in Person
- Go to a DMV facility in Wilmington, Delaware City, Dover or Georgetown. The DMV suggests Tuesday or Thursday mornings, and avoiding the 15th and the last day of the month. Our guide to Delaware DMV appointments explains booking and checking wait times.
- Turn in your current license and fill out an application.
- Pass the eye screening and have your photo taken.
- Pay the fee. The DMV prints licenses at the counter, so you’ll leave with your new card.
How Much Does It Cost to Renew a Delaware Driver’s License?
| Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| Eight-year license renewal | $50 |
| Late fee, after expiration | $10 |
| REAL ID upgrade | Same as a standard license |
| Driving privilege card renewal (four years) | $20 |
| Example: renewing two weeks after your license expired | $60 ($50 renewal + $10 late fee) |
The fees come from 21 Del. C. § 2715. The renewal fee rose from $40 to $50 in October 2025.
At $50 for eight years, the license works out to $6.25 a year. Military members who were stationed outside Delaware when their license expired pay the $50 without the late fee.
Delaware Driver’s License Renewal FAQs
$50 for eight years, plus $10 if your license has already expired. A REAL ID costs the same as a standard license.
Yes, if you’re over 18 and have a valid Class D license within six months of expiration. Commercial and graduated licenses can’t be renewed online, and neither can licenses of drivers who used the self-service kiosk at their last visit.
Up to 180 days before it expires. Commercial licenses can be renewed no earlier than 30 days before.
Yes, if you renew in person. The DMV screens your eyes at the counter and can ask for a report from an eye doctor.
By mail, with a copy of your military orders and military ID, to the DMV’s Driver Services Department in Dover. The late fee is waived if you were stationed outside Delaware when your license expired.
Update it through myDMV, which changes the address on your license and your vehicles together. Our guide to a Delaware DMV address change covers the other options.
Renew in the six months before your birthday to avoid the $10 late fee. In Delaware, the renewal costs $50 for eight years, whether or not you choose a REAL ID.
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