Sim racing will now count toward Nürburgring Nordschleife racing permit 

New licence regulations at the Nürburgring Nordschleife now include sim racing elements and will come into force from December 2025.

Issued by the German motorsport organising body (DMSB), the DMSB Permit Nordschleife is required by all drivers wishing to race at the Nordschleife. This includes both the ADAC Nürburgring Langstrecken-Serie (ALS), as well as the track’s blue riband ADAC Nürburgring 24 Hours event.

DPN Level B Permit criteria

Perhaps inspired by the incredible exploits of sim racing enthusiasts Max Verstappen and Chris Lulham at the ‘ring earlier this year, the new rules allow drivers with at least an International Grade D racing licence to obtain the DPN Level B permit much quicker than before. 

To receive a DPN Level B permit, drivers can now run in at least one round of the Rundstrecken Challenge Nürburgring (RCN) championship and also participate in one season of the Digital Nürburgring Endurance Series 2025/2026, which uses the iRacing platform.

At least three out of the four sim racing rounds must be completed incident-free to count towards the permit, with real-world RCN performance tests and DPN driver training courses remaining valid forms of entry, including the mandatory DPN e-learning course.

Previously, to receive a Level B permit, drivers had to complete at least 15 laps across one solo or two two-driver RCN events. However, Verstappen fulfilled another method by completing a full DPN driver training course.

DPN Level A Permit rules relaxed

Criteria for obtaining the DPN Level A permit, which allows drivers to race GT3 cars, have also been relaxed, with drivers only having to run one penalty-free race on the Nordschleife and at least eight laps. 

Previously, to achieve an A licence, participants had to complete at least 20 per cent of their team’s total driving time, making the new regulations both easier to understand and accomplish.

It is hoped that the simplification of the Nordschleife’s permit rules will allow more Formula 1 drivers like Verstappen, and global stars like Valentino Rossi, to compete at the ‘ring in future, given that the time commitment to obtain Permits A and B has now been greatly reduced.

Featured image courtesy of NLS