To be eligible for a P1 Licence a driver must:

A Provisional (P1) licence must be held for a minimum period of 1 year.

In determining the period for which a person has held a licence, or whether the qualifying period has been completed, any periods of suspension are not to be taken into account provided that the suspension was made under South Australian law and commenced prior to 1 September 2022 [Motor Vehicles Act 1959 s 81A(22)].

The following conditions and rules apply to P1 licence holders [see Motor Vehicles Act 1959 (SA) s 81A]:

For P1 licence holders who are under the age of 25 the following restrictions apply:

1. Restrictions on night time driving

P1 licence holders who are under the age of 25 must not drive a motor vehicle between the hours of midnight and 5.00 am unless accompanied by a qualified supervising driver [s 81A(16)].

An exemption from the night time driving restrictions is available for a range of purposes including employment, education/training, formal volunteer work, or to participate in sporting, artistic, scientific, charitable and/or religious activities. In each case, drivers must take the shortest practicable route between home and the activity for the exemption to apply. Police and emergency service members (both paid and volunteer) are also exempt while on duty. The onus is on the driver to prove to SAPOLat the roadside that they meet the exemption criteria. Drivers are encouraged to carry supporting documentation (e.g. a letter from their employer) whenever they are driving during curfew. For further information see the MyLicence websitewhich also contains a sample exemption form that can be downloaded for use by a P1 driver.

In prescribed circumstances a driver will have a defence to a charge of an offence under section 81A(16). Prescribed circumstances include:

2. ‘Peer Passenger’ restrictions

P1 licence holders who are under the age of 25 must not drive a motor vehicle while 2 or more peer passengers are in the vehicle unless accompanied by a qualified supervising driver [s 81A(18)]. A peer passenger is defined as a passenger aged between 16 and 20 years.

An exemption from the peer passenger restriction is only available if a driver is required to carry more than one passenger aged 16 to 20 in the course of their employment. Police and emergency service members (both paid and volunteer) are also exempt while on duty. The onus is on the driver to prove to SAPOLat the roadside that they meet the exemption criteria. Drivers are encouraged to carry supporting documentation (e.g. a letter from their employer) whenever they are driving with multiple peer passengers. For further information see the MyLicence websitewhich also contains a sample exemption form that can be downloaded for use by a P1 driver.

In prescribed circumstances a driver will have a defence to any charge of contravening the restrictions. Prescribed circumstances include driving for work purposes (must be paid employment).

Where all the peer passengers, or all but one of the peer passengers, are immediate family members of the driver there will be a defence to any charge under section 81A(19). An immediate family member of a driver is defined as:

3. High powered vehicles

P1 licence holders under the age of 25 must not drive a high powered vehicle [s 81A(13)]. The maximum penalty for this is $1,250. A person can apply to the Registrar of Motor Vehicles for an exemption from this requirement [see s 81A(14)].

Where a driver breaches their P1 conditions (including where the driver has accumulated 4 or more demerit points), certain consequences may follow.

A breach of conditions will result in:

[See Motor Vehicles Act 1959 (SA) s 81B(1)(d),(e)]

Penalty - see Expiable Offences, Codes and Fees (PD320A) on the SAPOL website (link opens new window) (as at 1 July 2022)

Under section 81BA of the Motor Vehicles Act 1959 (SA) a P1 licence holder may enter into a Safer Driver Agreement in lieu of a disqualification but only under certain conditions. See Safer Driver Agreements.

Options for appealing a disqualification are limited for P1 licence holders and will be determined by whether the offence is a serious disqualification offence.

A serious disqualification offence is defined under s 81BA(6) as:

If the offence is not a serious disqualification offence, the driver is eligible to enter into a Safer Driver Agreement under section 81BA. If eligible to enter into a Safer Driver Agreement, a driver cannot lodge an appeal.

Where the offence is a serious disqualification offence a P1 licence holder can lodge an appeal, but only on the grounds that their loss of licence will result in severe and unusual hardship to either themselves or their dependants [s 81BB(4)], and provided they have not successfully appealed in the preceding 5 years [s 81BB(2)].

If successful, no further appeals can be made for 5 years.

The effect of a successful appeal for a P1 licence holder will be:

See also Appealing disqualification for breach of conditions.

Where a driver has successfully appealed a disqualification for breach of conditions and subsequently breaches a prescribed condition or incurs 4 or more demerit points, he/she will be disqualified from holding a licence for a period of 12 months and have their licence cancelled [s 81BB(8)].

Where a P1 driver chooses not to appeal or is unsuccessful in an appeal they will no longer be required to re-apply for a Learner’s Permit. Once the period of disqualification has been served the driver will be eligible to reapply for a P1 licence.

For more information see the My Licence SA - P1 Provisional Licence website.