Virginia State Inspector Test Dates and Locations

Virginia State Police safety inspector test dates and locations are published on the Virginia State Police website, which lists every official testing site and its schedule.¹ You can bring your completed application to any of those sites on a scheduled testing day, but you have to arrive on time and with everything in order, because a late arrival or a paperwork problem ends the day before it starts.²

Where the Exam Is Given

Testing takes place at State Police testing sites. The current list of locations and their schedules lives on the Virginia State Police Safety Division page, along with the downloadable application forms and study guides.¹ You choose the site; there is no assignment based on where you live.

Students enrolled in a vocational-technical automotive mechanics program have a separate route. The vo-tech instructor contacts the assigned Safety Division trooper or local area office by March 15 to schedule testing for students who are at least 18, or who turn 18 by March 31 of that year. The written exam and the practical exam are both administered at the vo-tech center, so students in that program don’t travel to a State Police site.²

One boundary worth knowing before you plan your test day: passing the exam certifies you, but it doesn’t authorize you to inspect vehicles anywhere you want. Inspections have to be performed at an official inspection station appointed by the Superintendent of State Police.³ You can still apply and test without a current employer by writing “Inactive” in the station name block on the application.⁴

When to Arrive and What Gets You Turned Away

Show up before the designated testing time. If you arrive after it, you will not be allowed to test that day.²

The trooper at the site will check your driver’s license and verify that your forms are properly notarized before you sit down. If your license is expired, suspended, or revoked, your application is destroyed on the spot, and you’ll have to reapply once the license is reinstated.⁵ If the Authorization for Release of Information (SP-170D) isn’t notarized, your application is returned.⁶

What to Bring to the Testing Site

Four forms have to be completed and brought with you. All are on the Virginia State Police website:¹

Safety Inspector Application (SP-170B), completed in full and notarized.
Criminal History Record Request (SP-167), notarized, with a $15 payment by cashier’s check, business check, or money order payable to “Virginia State Police,” or credit card information provided on the form.
Inspector Application Worksheet, listing your two character references, two mechanical references, employment history, and automotive training.
Authorization for Release of Information (SP-170D), signed in the presence of a notary.

Three of the four forms require notarization, so plan a notary visit before your test day. Remote notarization through NotaryCam is not allowed for the SP-167 in this context; you need in-person notarization.⁶

Who Can Test

Before you pick a date, confirm you meet the basics. You must be at least 18. You need at least one year of practical experience as an automotive technician repairing vehicles for the public, or, as an alternative, six months as a mechanic plus a separate six months mirroring a certified state inspector. Work on your own vehicles doesn’t count; the experience has to come from a shop, dealership, or similar business servicing customer vehicles.⁵

You also choose your license class when you apply, and you’ll test on that class. Class A covers any motor vehicle, motorcycle, or trailer. Class B covers trailers only. Class C covers motorcycles only. Changing or upgrading your class later requires only the written and practical exams for the new class, not a full reapplication.⁷

What the Test Day Looks Like

Two exams: written and practical.

The Class A written exam has five sections of 20 questions each, covering general information, brakes, suspension, lights, and glass. You have to score at least 75% on every section individually. Classes B and C are single 50-question exams with a minimum passing score of 74%.² Free study guides for each class are on the State Police website, and the regulation directs applicants to study the Official Motor Vehicle Safety Inspection Manual in its entirety before testing.¹

The practical exam tests your ability to inspect a real vehicle. The passing threshold matches the written: 75% for Class A, 74% for Classes B and C.²

If You Fail, When Can You Retest

Fail either the written or the practical on your first try, and you can retest after 30 days. Fail a second time and the trooper forwards your application to Safety Division Headquarters; you then have to wait six months before contacting your assigned Safety Division trooper or local area office to reapply.⁵

Vo-tech students who don’t pass follow the same retest rules: 30 days after a first failure, six months after a second.²

Recertification Testing

Your inspector’s license is valid for three years. Renewal requires a recertification written exam matching your license class, with the same minimum passing scores as the original certification. The recertification exam is typically administered at the same testing sites used for initial certification.²

If your license expires before you retest, you have a one-month grace period to take the recertification exam, and you cannot perform inspections during that month. Fail the exam during the grace period and you get one more attempt after waiting 30 days. Fail that second attempt and the license is treated as fully expired, which sends you back through the complete initial certification process.⁷ Schedule your recertification before the expiration date if you can, so a bad test day doesn’t cost you the ability to work.

1
Virginia State Police. Safety Division for Inspectors
2
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Administrative Code 19VAC30-70-9.2 – Examinations for Inspectors License
3
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Administrative Code 19VAC30-70-10.1 – Official Inspection Station Appointment
4
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Administrative Code 19VAC30-70-9 – Inspector Requirements
5
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Administrative Code 19VAC30-70-9.1 – Inspector Certification
6
Virginia State Police. Safety Inspector Certification Instructions
7
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Administrative Code 19VAC30-70-9.3 – Reinstatement of Safety Inspector License, Classification Change, Recertification