Hazmat Endorsement in Georgia: ELDT, TSA Check, and Renewal

To get a hazmat endorsement in Georgia, you need a valid Georgia CDL, a passing TSA security threat assessment, the federally required entry-level training if it’s your first time, and a passing score on the hazmat knowledge test at a Georgia Department of Driver Services office. Plan on 30 to 60 days from the day you submit your TSA application, driven mostly by how long the background check takes. The endorsement is good for five years from the date of your TSA threat assessment.

What You Need Before You Start

You must already hold a full Georgia CDL (Class A, B, or C). A Commercial Learner’s Permit doesn’t qualify.¹ You also need to be a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident; that requirement comes from federal law and applies everywhere.²

Your Medical Examiner’s Certificate — the CDL medical card — needs to be current and on file with DDS.³ If yours has lapsed, renew it before doing anything else. DDS won’t issue an endorsement while your medical certification is expired.

Entry-Level Driver Training for First-Time Applicants

If this is your first hazmat endorsement, federal rules require you to finish Entry-Level Driver Training through a provider listed on FMCSA’s Training Provider Registry before you can sit for the knowledge test.⁴ It’s a theory course. Topics include loading and unloading, emergency response, route planning, incident reporting, and bulk package handling.⁵

Your provider uploads your completion record to FMCSA by the second business day after you finish. Check it yourself using the “Check Your Record” tool on the Training Provider Registry before you head to DDS — if the record isn’t there, you’ll be sent home.⁶

Drivers who already held the H endorsement before February 7, 2022, are exempt. ELDT applies only to first-time applicants.⁴

The TSA Background Check

The TSA security threat assessment is the longest step, so start it first. You pre-enroll through the Universal Enrollment Services portal, giving your residential and employment history, then schedule an in-person appointment at a TSA-authorized enrollment center for fingerprints and identity verification.⁷

The fee is $85.25, non-refundable, and covers both the FBI criminal history check and TSA’s intelligence review. It’s good for five years.⁷ If you already hold a valid TWIC card, you may qualify for a reduced rate of $41, but your hazmat endorsement will then expire when your TWIC does.⁸

Most background checks take 30 to 60 days. You can track status online with the enrollment ID from your appointment. When TSA clears you, it sends the “Determination of No Security Threat” straight to Georgia DDS. Nothing for you to carry.

What Can Disqualify You

The background check screens criminal history in two tiers.

Permanent Bars

Some felony convictions block the endorsement for life, with no waiver: espionage, sedition, treason, federal crimes of terrorism, murder, and crimes involving a transportation security incident. Explosives offenses and improper transportation of hazardous materials are also permanent.⁹

Interim Bars

A second tier disqualifies you if you were convicted within the past seven years or released from incarceration within the past five. Robbery, arson, extortion, distribution of controlled substances, bribery, and smuggling all fall here.⁹ Once enough time has passed, you’re eligible to apply and clear the full check.

Mental Capacity

You’re also disqualified if a court has found you lacking mental capacity or if you’ve been involuntarily committed to a mental health facility. Voluntary admission and commitment purely for observation don’t count.¹⁰

Waivers

If you’re denied on an interim offense or a mental health finding, you can ask TSA for a waiver. You submit the request in writing with your identifying information, an explanation of the disqualifying event, and supporting documents such as court dispositions, proof of restitution, evidence of completed probation or rehabilitation, and professional references. For a mental health disqualification, include court documents restoring your competency or confirming you’re no longer subject to commitment. Waivers are not available for the permanent-bar offenses.

The Knowledge Test at DDS

Once TSA’s clearance reaches DDS and your ELDT record is on file (if it applied to you), go in person to a DDS Customer Service Center to take the hazmat knowledge test. It covers safe handling, emergency response, labeling and placarding, and route planning. You need 80% to pass.¹

Adding the endorsement after your CDL was originally issued costs $5. If you add it during initial CDL issuance, there’s no separate fee.¹¹ After you pass, DDS gives you a temporary paper permit that lets you start hauling hazmat right away; the permanent card gets mailed to your Georgia address.

One note on codes: if you need to haul hazmat in a tanker, you’ll take both the H and N (tanker) knowledge tests, and your license will show a single X endorsement instead of the two letters separately.¹

Renewal Every Five Years

The endorsement expires five years from the date of your TSA threat assessment, not the date printed on your CDL. Renewal means another TSA background check, another set of fingerprints, and another pass on the hazmat knowledge test.¹²¹

Start 60 to 90 days out. There’s no grace period, and if the endorsement lapses you cannot legally haul hazmat until the new clearance is fully processed. Given a background check can take one to two months on its own, waiting until the last week costs work.

A Side Benefit: TSA PreCheck

A valid hazmat endorsement gets you access to TSA PreCheck lanes when you fly. Enter your two-letter state abbreviation followed by your CDL number in the Known Traveler Number field when you book, and the endorsement does the rest.⁷

1
Georgia Department of Driver Services. Adding CDL Endorsements
2
eCFR. 49 CFR Part 1572 – Credentialing and Security Threat Assessments
3
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Medical
4
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Entry-Level Driver Training
5
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. ELDT Curricula Summary
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Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Training Provider Registry
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Transportation Security Administration. HAZMAT Endorsement
8
TSA Enrollment by IDEMIA. HAZMAT Endorsement (HME) Threat Assessment Program (HTAP)
9
eCFR. 49 CFR 1572.103 – Disqualifying Criminal Offenses
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eCFR. 49 CFR 1572.109 – Mental Capacity
11
Georgia Department of Driver Services. Fees and Terms
12
Georgia Department of Driver Services. Renew a Commercial Driver’s License (CDL)