To get an F endorsement in CT, you apply by mail to the Connecticut DMV using Form R-7, submit a current federal medical certificate, and pass a state and federal criminal background check done through fingerprinting. The endorsement sits on either your standard driver’s license or your CDL, and it is what Connecticut law requires before you can carry passengers in a taxi, livery vehicle, service bus, motor bus, or motor coach.1Connecticut.gov. Get an Endorsement for Your CDL or License Plan on several weeks from mailing your packet to hearing back, most of it spent waiting on the background check.
Vehicles That Require It
Under Connecticut General Statutes § 14-44, the F endorsement is required to operate any of these with passengers on board:2Justia. Connecticut Code 14-44 – License Endorsement for Operators of Commercial Motor Vehicles Used for Passenger Transportation
- Taxis and livery vehicles (town cars, limousines, and other private-hire cars that are not taxis) — any class of license with the F endorsement is enough.
- Service buses, defined as vehicles designed to carry ten or more passengers used in private service without charge. If the bus seats 16 or more, you also need a CDL with a P endorsement.3Connecticut General Assembly. Chapter 246 – Motor Vehicles
- Motor buses and motor coaches, which require a CDL with both P and F endorsements.4Connecticut eRegulations. Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies Section 14-44-3 – Required Endorsements
You can move any of these vehicles without passengers for road testing or repositioning even if you do not hold the endorsement.2Justia. Connecticut Code 14-44 – License Endorsement for Operators of Commercial Motor Vehicles Used for Passenger Transportation Once someone is riding, the F must be on your license. Student transport is a separate program: it uses the “A” endorsement, not the F.4Connecticut eRegulations. Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies Section 14-44-3 – Required Endorsements
Who Can Qualify
Age
The minimum age is 18 for driving inside Connecticut. If the vehicle is a commercial motor vehicle, you must be 21, and 21 is also the federal minimum for carrying passengers across state lines.5CT.gov. Apply or Maintain a Public Passenger Endorsement6Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles. Get a Commercial Learner’s Permit
Medical Certificate
Every applicant, CDL or standard license, has to pass a physical done by a medical examiner listed on the FMCSA’s National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners.5CT.gov. Apply or Maintain a Public Passenger Endorsement The exam follows 49 CFR 391.41–391.49 and covers vision, hearing, cardiovascular health, blood pressure, and conditions that can cause loss of consciousness.7eCFR. 49 CFR Part 391 – Qualifications of Drivers and Longer Combination Vehicle (LCV) Driver Instructors The examiner then issues a Medical Examiner’s Certificate on Form MCSA-5876.8Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Medical Examiner’s Certificate (MEC), Form MCSA-5876 You will copy the examiner’s National Registry number and the certificate expiration date onto your R-7, so keep it in hand when you fill out the application.
Clean Record
Connecticut law requires you to swear, under oath, that you have no criminal record and no conviction under §§ 14-227a or 14-227m (operating under the influence) within the last five years.2Justia. Connecticut Code 14-44 – License Endorsement for Operators of Commercial Motor Vehicles Used for Passenger Transportation The DMV pulls your full driving history from Connecticut and any other state where you have held a license, and the Commissioner must be satisfied you are a “proper person” to hold the endorsement. A conviction or arrest the DMV treats as a serious criminal offense will stop the endorsement from being issued, or get an existing one removed.9CT.gov. CDL Classes, Endorsements, and Restrictions This is the step where most applications fail, and old charges do surface in the federal check.
How to Apply
1. Fill Out Form R-7
Download Form R-7, the Application for Public Passenger Endorsement, from the CT DMV website.10Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles. Application for Public Passenger Endorsement R-7 Complete it along with the FBI and Non-Criminal Justice Privacy authorization forms, which let the state run your fingerprints through federal databases.5CT.gov. Apply or Maintain a Public Passenger Endorsement Every date and ID number on the R-7 has to match your medical certificate exactly. Mismatches are a common reason packets come back. If you have held your Connecticut license for less than five years, the DMV may ask for certified driving and criminal histories from your prior states.
2. Mail the Packet
Send the signed R-7, the privacy authorizations, a copy of your Connecticut license, and a sex offender registry check result to the DMV’s Public Passenger Endorsement Review Unit in Wethersfield.5CT.gov. Apply or Maintain a Public Passenger Endorsement Review is centralized, not a walk-in at your local branch.
3. Get Fingerprinted
Pre-enroll for fingerprinting through the FlexCheck portal run by the Connecticut Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection.11Connecticut Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection. State Police Bureau of Identification The fees:
- Fingerprinting: $15
- State criminal history check: $75
- Federal criminal history check: $13.25
Total: $103.25, paid at the fingerprint location by check, money order, or exact cash. Once your prints clear both databases, the DMV mails you its decision.
Renewing the Endorsement
Public passenger endorsements renew in person at a DMV office, not online or by mail.12CT.gov. How to Renew Driver’s License Before you go, the DMV must already have a current, legible, unexpired medical certificate on file, dated within one year of renewal. A lapsed medical certificate is the fastest way to lose an endorsement you spent weeks getting, so book the physical before the certificate expires, not after.
Penalties for Driving Without It
Carrying passengers in a taxi, livery vehicle, service bus, motor bus, or motor coach without the F endorsement is an infraction.3Connecticut General Assembly. Chapter 246 – Motor Vehicles The bigger consequence is downstream: if your endorsement is revoked, suspended, or withdrawn, the Commissioner cannot issue you any other public passenger endorsement during that period. One violation can shut you out of every category of passenger driving in Connecticut, not just the one you were caught in.
If You Are Denied
When the DMV refuses to issue or renew the endorsement because of your criminal record, you can request a hearing in writing. You have 20 days from the denial to make that request.2Justia. Connecticut Code 14-44 – License Endorsement for Operators of Commercial Motor Vehicles Used for Passenger Transportation The hearing runs under Connecticut’s Uniform Administrative Procedure Act, and an unfavorable decision can be appealed to the Superior Court under § 4-183. The 20-day window is firm; miss it and the administrative challenge is gone. If you have reason to expect a denial based on your record, draft the hearing request in advance so you can send it the day the rejection arrives.