How to Get a Commercial Driver’s License in Nevada

To get a commercial driver’s license in Nevada, you apply at a Nevada DMV CDL office, pass a DOT physical, finish entry-level driver training through an FMCSA-registered provider, pass the knowledge tests for a Commercial Learner’s Permit, hold that permit at least 14 days, and then pass a three-part skills test in the class of vehicle you plan to drive. CDL services are handled only at dedicated CDL offices, not at regular DMV branches, so plan your visits around those locations.

Who Qualifies

You must be at least 18 to apply, but the age opens up what you can actually do. Drivers between 18 and 20 are limited to intrastate work and cannot carry passengers for hire or haul placarded hazardous materials. Interstate driving, hazmat loads, and passenger-for-hire work all require you to be 21. Operating an over-length combination vehicle of 70 feet or more requires you to be 25.¹

You also need a valid Nevada driver’s license before applying. The DMV reviews your driving record across every state where you’ve held a license over the past 10 years and checks for outstanding suspensions or revocations. You can only hold one driver’s license at a time nationally, so an active out-of-state license has to be surrendered.

Bring these to your CDL appointment:

Proof of identity, such as a certified birth certificate or U.S. passport if you were born in the United States
Proof of your Social Security number: the card itself, a W-2, a 1099, or a pay stub showing the full number
Two documents proving Nevada residency, with your name and residential address (utility bills, vehicle registration, and similar)
A current Medical Examiner’s Certificate from a DOT-certified examiner

The DMV publishes the full list of acceptable identity and residency documents online.¹

DOT Physical and Self-Certification

Every applicant needs a physical exam from a provider listed on the FMCSA’s National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners. The exam covers vision, hearing, blood pressure, and your general fitness to operate a large vehicle. If you pass, the examiner issues a Medical Examiner’s Certificate (the “medical card”) that you file with the Nevada DMV.²

At the same time, you self-certify what kind of commercial driving you’ll do by picking one of four categories: non-excepted interstate (across state lines, medical card required), excepted interstate (across state lines but only for specific exempt purposes, no federal medical card), non-excepted intrastate (Nevada only, state medical rules apply), or excepted intrastate (Nevada only, state-exempted activities). If more than one category fits, you pick the more restrictive one. Most people driving commercially for a living fall into non-excepted interstate.³

Pick Your Class and Endorsements

Nevada follows the federal three-class system, and the class you need depends on the size and setup of the vehicle you plan to drive.

Class A covers combination vehicles with a gross combination weight rating of 26,001 pounds or more where the towed unit weighs more than 10,000 pounds (tractor-trailers, large flatbeds)
Class B covers single vehicles of 26,001 pounds or more, or those vehicles towing a unit of 10,000 pounds or less (straight trucks, large buses, dump trucks)
Class C covers smaller vehicles that carry 16 or more passengers including the driver, or that haul placarded hazardous materials

A higher-class CDL covers the vehicles in the lower classes, so a Class A license lets you drive Class B and C vehicles as well, and you won’t need a separate non-commercial license.⁴⁵

Endorsements add to what you can carry or whom you can drive. Each one requires its own knowledge test:

H for hazardous materials
P for passenger vehicles
N for tankers hauling bulk liquids or gases
S for school buses
T for doubles and triples

If you take the skills test in a vehicle without air brakes, your CDL will carry a restriction barring you from air-brake-equipped commercial vehicles.

The hazmat endorsement has an extra step the others don’t. You’ll have to pass a Transportation Security Administration Security Threat Assessment, which involves fingerprinting at a TSA enrollment center, an FBI criminal background check, immigration verification, and global watchlist screening. The fee is $85.25 and the clearance lasts five years. TSA advises starting at least 60 days before you need the endorsement, since processing can run past 45 days when demand is high. Some criminal convictions permanently disqualify applicants.⁶

Entry-Level Driver Training

If this is your first CDL, or you’re adding a P, S, or H endorsement, you have to complete Entry-Level Driver Training through a provider listed on the FMCSA’s Training Provider Registry. The rule took effect on February 7, 2022, and does not apply to people who already held the CDL or endorsement before that date.⁷

Training has a theory portion and behind-the-wheel instruction. The theory curriculum covers 30 topics across basic vehicle operation, safe operating procedures, advanced practices like hazard perception and skid recovery, vehicle systems and malfunctions, and non-driving duties such as hours-of-service rules, cargo documentation, and post-crash procedures. There’s no federally set minimum number of training hours, but you have to score at least 80 percent on the theory assessment. Your provider submits certification to the registry within two business days of completion, and the DMV verifies that record before letting you test.⁸

Commercial Learner’s Permit

You can’t take the skills test without first holding a Commercial Learner’s Permit. Apply in person at a Nevada DMV CDL office with the identity, Social Security, residency, and medical documents listed earlier. Then take the written knowledge tests:

General Knowledge, covering traffic laws, safe driving, vehicle inspection, and cargo handling
Air Brakes, unless you accept a restriction barring you from air-brake-equipped vehicles
Combination Vehicles, if you’re going for a Class A
A separate knowledge test for each endorsement you want

Study the official Nevada CDL Manual, which the DMV offers free and which covers all of this material.

The CLP costs $57.50 and is valid for 180 days.⁹ You must hold it for at least 14 days before you can take the skills test. Any time you drive with the CLP, a licensed CDL holder with the proper class and endorsements for that vehicle has to sit in the front passenger seat (or directly behind you in a bus) with you under direct observation.¹⁰ If the CLP expires before you finish the skills test, you reapply, pay the fee again, and retake the knowledge tests; previously passed skills sections do not carry over.

The Skills Test

The skills test is the final step and the one most applicants spend the longest preparing for. It has three parts, taken in order:

Pre-trip vehicle inspection, where you walk around the vehicle and explain what you’re checking and why
Basic vehicle control, where you perform maneuvers like straight-line backing, offset backing, and parallel parking in a controlled area
On-road driving, where the examiner evaluates lane changes, turns, intersections, and highway driving in real traffic

You can schedule the test through a Nevada DMV CDL office or an authorized third-party tester, since Nevada allows third-party skills testing through certified companies and schools.¹¹ On test day, bring your valid CLP and a commercial vehicle of the class you’re testing for, in safe operating condition. If the pre-trip portion turns up an actual defect, the test ends there.

Interpreters are not allowed during any part of the skills test. You have to understand and respond to the examiner in English throughout.¹² This catches people off guard because the written knowledge tests can be given in other languages.

Fees and How Long the License Lasts

Pass the skills test, then return to a CDL office to finalize the application, pay the remaining fees, and have your photo taken. The main costs through the process:

Commercial Learner’s Permit: $57.50
CLP completion (converting to a full CDL): $57.50
Original CDL requiring knowledge and skills tests: $141.50
Adding an endorsement: $14 per endorsement plus a $3.50 photo fee
Skills test to add or remove a restriction or endorsement: $30

These fees do not include entry-level driver training, the DOT physical, or the $85.25 TSA threat assessment for a hazmat endorsement.⁹

A standard Nevada CDL is valid for eight years. If you’re 65 or older when it’s issued or renewed, it lasts four years instead. Limited-term licenses for non-citizens may carry shorter validity periods.¹³

If You Already Hold a CDL From Another State

Moving to Nevada with an active CDL means transferring it at a CDL office rather than starting over. Nevada requires you to surrender the out-of-state license, because you can only hold one active license nationally. A transfer with only knowledge testing costs $111.50; one that also requires skills testing is $141.50.⁹ Bring the same identity, Social Security, and residency documents a new applicant would, along with your current medical certificate.

1
Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles. Commercial Driver License Information
2
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Medical Requirements
3
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. How Do I Determine Which of the 4 Categories of Commercial Motor Vehicle Operation I Should Self-Certify To
4
eCFR. 49 CFR 383.91 – Commercial Motor Vehicle Groups
5
Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles. CDL Self Certification and License Classes
6
Transportation Security Administration. HAZMAT Endorsement
7
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Entry-Level Driver Training (ELDT)
8
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. FMCSA Training Provider Registry
9
Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles. Driver License/ID Fees and Exemptions
10
eCFR. 49 CFR 383.25 – Commercial Learners Permit
11
Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles. Third-Party Certification General Information
12
eCFR. 49 CFR 383.133 – Test Procedures
13
Legal Information Institute. Nevada Administrative Code 483.832 – Expiration and Renewal of License