How to Get a CDL: From Permit to License, Step by Step

The CDL steps in order, with the federal rule behind each

Federal rules set the minimum path, and your state licensing agency runs it. Here is the order most first-time applicants follow.

1. Choose your class and endorsements. The class comes from the weight ratings of the vehicle you will drive, and each endorsement adds a test. The Class A, B and C guide works through the ratings.
2. Self-certify your type of driving. You certify one of four types of commerce, from non-excepted interstate to excepted intrastate (49 CFR 383.71(b)(1)). If you certify non-excepted interstate, you need a DOT medical exam from a medical examiner listed on FMCSA's National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners. Since June 23, 2025, the state receives the examiner's certificate electronically from FMCSA (383.71(h)(1)(ii)).
3. Apply for a commercial learner's permit. You must be at least 18, hold a regular license from the same state, and prove citizenship or lawful permanent residency and your state of domicile (383.71(a)). The state checks your driving record across the last 10 years and, since November 18, 2024, the Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse (383.73(a)).
4. Pass the knowledge tests. You need at least 80% on each one (383.135(a)). General Knowledge is required for the permit, and you add Air Brakes, Combination Vehicles and any P, S or N endorsement tests your vehicle and permit need. A failed Combination test bars a Class A permit, and a failed Air Brakes test puts an air brake restriction on it (383.135(a)(2) and (3)).
5. Hold the permit and train. You may not take the skills test in the first 14 days after the permit is first issued (383.25(e)). You can drive only with a qualified CDL holder beside you, as the CLP rules guide explains.
6. Finish entry-level driver training (ELDT) if it applies. It is required before a first Class A or B skills test, an upgrade to Class B or A, or a first P or S skills test, from a provider on FMCSA's Training Provider Registry (383.71(a)(10) and (e)(5)). A first HazMat endorsement needs the HazMat theory course before its knowledge test. The provider reports your completion, and the state verifies it electronically before testing you (383.73(b)(11)).
7. Pass the skills test. It has three segments in a fixed order, pre-trip inspection, basic vehicle control and on-road driving, taken in a vehicle representative of your class (383.133(c)). The skills test guide covers each segment.
8. Receive your CDL. A CDL may be valid for no more than eight years (383.73(b)(9)). A hazardous materials endorsement also needs a TSA security threat assessment, or a valid TWIC, before the state can issue it (383.141(b)).

Federal clocks that run on the way to a CDL

Several deadlines overlap, and missing one can mean repeating a step.

States add their own clocks. California, for example, says its application and fee are valid for 12 months, and you must meet every requirement, including the knowledge and skills tests, within that window or reapply (California DMV, as checked on October 28, 2026). Texas's CLP terms appear below with the fees.

Day by day, the core of the path looks like this. On day 0 the permit is issued. Days 1 through 14 are for training only. From day 15, the skills test is possible once any required ELDT has been reported, as long as the permit is still valid.

Preparing for the CDL knowledge tests

The knowledge tests are the step you control most directly. Start with your state's CDL manual, then work through General Knowledge, Air Brakes and Combination Vehicles as they apply to you; the CDL permit study guide lays out the order. If you already have a test date in mind, the free CDL study planner turns it into a dated outline you can count back from. For practice beyond the manual's review questions, full CDL prep planned for launch covers all eight knowledge tests, from General Knowledge to School Bus.

A CDL cost worksheet you can fill in

Every state sets its own fees, so start with your state's fee page. The Texas column shows one state's published figures as an example, from the Texas DPS fee page as of October 2026. Fill in the last column with what your state lists.

California's DMV says each skills test retake carries a retest fee but does not list the amount on its CDL page. Retests add cost, so ask your state for its knowledge and skills retest fees before you start. Study materials are a cost you choose: the one-time CDL prep periods planned for launch run 30, 90 or 180 days, from $19.99, and the free study planner and 20 practice questions cost nothing.

Non-domiciled CDL applicants under the March 2026 federal rule

If you would be applying for a non-domiciled CLP or CDL, check eligibility before you pay for anything. A federal final rule effective March 16, 2026 limits non-domiciled CLPs and CDLs for applicants domiciled in a foreign country to holders of three employment-based classifications: H-2A, H-2B and E-2 (49 CFR 383.5 and 383.71(f)). FMCSA has since granted all states a five-year exemption, effective May 14, 2026, to issue them to citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and Palau who live in the United States. No later federal change had been published as of October 28, 2026, so check for updates before you apply in 2027.

States have reacted in their own ways. As checked on October 28, 2026, California's DMV says it has paused non-domiciled CLP and CDL transactions, and Washington's Department of Licensing says it has stopped all non-domiciled CLP and CDL transactions and testing. Confirm your own case with your state licensing agency.

For training rules in more depth, see the entry-level driver training guide. Because each knowledge test stands alone at 80%, the CDL prep planned for launch tracks your accuracy on each test separately.