Racing licences and racing schools.

A competition licence is what separates wheel-to-wheel racing from the non-racing events on getting started. Autocross and SCCA Track Night need no extra licence. Racing does, and each body below builds in schooling and a medical declaration or examination.

SCCA road racing licence

SCCA publishes its licence route on its "I want to road race" page. It starts with SCCA membership, online Drivers School modules, uploading a state driver's licence, meeting the medical requirement, and buying a Novice Permit.

Schooling

Drivers earn Drivers' School credit at an SCCA Drivers' School or Race Experience event, or at an SCCA-accredited professional school, which issues a Certificate of Compliance recommending a licence level. SCCA says a Level 4 accredited school lets a graduate apply directly for a Full Competition Licence, and that Level 2 and 3 schools can count towards some of the required races. Graduates of an accredited school have 365 days after the course to obtain a Novice Permit or Full Competition Licence. SCCA also offers an Alternative Drivers' School for drivers with experience elsewhere, such as track days: an interview, a classroom session and observed driving at an event such as a test day.

From Novice Permit to full licence

SCCA requires three successful Regional race weekends after Drivers' School credit to convert a Novice Permit to a Full Competition Licence, which opens the Majors, the Super Tour and, for those who qualify, the Runoffs. Allen Berg Racing Schools says novices have two years from the permit's issue date to complete those three weekends; we could not find that time limit on SCCA's own page. SCCA's 2026 advice for new racers says Novice Permit holders must hand the permit to the Chief Steward or designate before any on-track session and collect it at the end of the weekend. SCCA also accepts competition credentials from other sanctioning organizations it recognises, under GCR Appendix C.2.

Age

SCCA's minimum age for road racing is 18 in most states, 21 in Mississippi, and 19 in Alabama and Nebraska. Minors need annual parental consent and waivers. Drivers as young as 14 may qualify through an interview with a Divisional Licensing Administrator. SCCA's process for 14 and 15-year-olds requires a racing resume, that interview (SCCA says denials are final), minor waivers, consent from each parent or guardian, and a physician evaluation, and it says completing an accredited school does not replace that approval. Drivers under 16 must use a distinctive Novice Permit for all driver school and regional events.

Medical

SCCA's 2026 medical packet (revised June 2026) lists vision standards, including distance vision correctable to 20/40 in each eye, colour discrimination and 70 degrees of peripheral vision per eye, and the ability to sustain an aerobic heart rate for more than 20 minutes. The sources differ on adults: SCCA describes an annual self-declaration, while Allen Berg's SCCA licensing page asks for a sports physical dated no more than six months before the application. Follow SCCA's current packet.

NASA licences

NASA's licence application covers Competition, Time Trial, Instructor and TREC (endurance) licences, and requires a NASA member number and acknowledgement of NASA's Club Codes and Regulations (CCR). NASA says processing can take up to 10 business days.

• Competition licence: completion of a NASA Competition Racing School or Evaluation, or a competition licence from another sanctioning body. NASA says it may accept recommendations from qualified racing schools, and the application asks whether you have applied for the NASA medical. NASA's HPDE page says a driver who has reached HPDE 4 can take the CCR test for a provisional licence.
• Time Trial licence: NASA requires an HPDE 4 event first; the application asks TT applicants to pass a TT check ride and upload their HPDE Passport, or to show extensive open-passing track or time trial history. A NASA competition licence also qualifies a driver for Time Trial.

One 2026 event listing from NASA Northwest shows how this looks in practice: racers need a current NASA medical on file and a 2026 Competition License, and new racers submit a Provisional License Application with their driving history and planned car, then register for both their race class and Competition School. NASA's 2016 "how to go racing" guide described a provisional licence holder needing four incident-free races before a regular licence; that article is ten years old, and we could not confirm the current CCR requirement.

FIA international licences

The FIA's licence rules are in Appendix L of the International Sporting Code; the 2026 edition was published on 23 to 24 June 2026. Appendix L says:

• Most international licences are issued by the driver's own national sporting authority (ASN) when their results, competence and conduct meet the grade's criteria. The Super Licence and e-Licence are issued by the FIA itself.
• A higher-grade licence is valid for competitions that require a lower grade, unless an age limit or other rule prevents it.
• First-time applicants must complete the FIA's e-learning safety training for their grade, and applicants under 18 need a parent or guardian to countersign. The FIA strongly recommends a first-aid course for road (rally) grades.
• A one-event licence (ITD1) exists for specific FIA-approved international events, with no qualification period.

The Super Licence needed for Formula 1 sits at the top. Appendix L requires a current Grade A licence; age at least 18 at the start of the first F1 event (17 at the FIA's discretion); a question session on the Sporting Code and F1 rules; and 80% participation in each of two full seasons of listed single-seater championships. The main points route needs at least 40 points over the three preceding calendar years (or two preceding years plus the year of application, whichever is higher). Alternative routes require at least 300 km in a representative F1 car at racing speed, within two days and no more than 180 days before applying. A Super Licence is valid to the end of the year of issue, with 12 months' probation after the driver's first F1 race.

In the United States, a 2018 ACCUS document, still linked from SCCA's 2026 forms page, names ACCUS-FIA as the FIA's national authority, lists IMSA, IndyCar, NASCAR, NHRA, SCCA and USAC as member clubs, and says an FIA licence needs a current senior competition licence from one of them plus a current medical certificate. We could not confirm those requirements from a current source. ACCUS also says a licence does not guarantee entry, because organizers may refuse any driver, and that events outside the US need an International Competition Authorization. SCCA links an online ACCUS-FIA application from its road racing forms page.

Racing schools: what they say they offer

Schools describe their own programmes, and the claims below are theirs. SCCA's Drivers' School page lists professional SCCA-accredited schools as a licence route, but the list itself did not load for us, so check it before you book if accreditation matters to you.

Skip Barber Racing School

Skip Barber describes itself as an "SCCA & USAC Licensed Racing School" founded in 1975, running schools at tracks including Circuit of the Americas, Laguna Seca, Lime Rock Park, Road Atlanta, NJMP, VIR, Sonoma and Sebring. It says:

• The One Day Racing School covers classroom vehicle dynamics and weight transfer, car-control exercises and lead-follow laps, in a Skip Barber GT or Formula car depending on venue.
• The Three Day Racing School moves through lead-follow laps, stop-box sessions, open lapping and practice race starts, and puts GT and Formula graduates on the path to an SCCA or USAC licence. An oval version uses a Pro Late Model stock car.
• The Two Day Advanced school focuses on racecraft, with instructors racing wheel-to-wheel with students, and requires the Three Day school or equivalent experience.
• No racing experience is needed (manual-transmission skill is recommended), drivers under 16 are considered case by case, and helmets, suits, shoes and HANS devices are provided.

A sponsored Motor Sport article adds that students completing the advanced course are awarded an SCCA full competition licence only when instructors judge they have reached the standard.

Allen Berg Racing Schools

Allen Berg Racing Schools is based at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca and offers one-, two- and three-day Formula programmes plus advanced versions, in what it describes as carbon-fibre-chassis formula cars. It says it is SCCA-accredited: its graduates receive a Certificate of Compliance that usually recommends a Novice Permit after the two- or three-day programme, and a three-day plus two-day advanced programme allows a direct application for a Full Competition Licence.

What we left out

We did not list the FIA's international grade names, their power-to-weight bands, minimum ages by grade or upgrade criteria, because our reading of the Appendix L document for those details was automated and could not be checked. The exception is the two youngest karting grades, which were checked: ITG starts at 11 and ITF at 13 (see karting championships). We also could not read the current SCCA GCR or NASA CCR licensing text directly, and did not collect karting, NHRA or other bodies' licence rules. Motorsport UK's karting novice route is summarised on getting started.