To get an NH CDL permit, you need to be at least 18, hold a valid New Hampshire driver’s license, pass a DOT physical, pick the permit class that matches the vehicle you want to drive, pass the written knowledge tests at a DMV office that handles commercial licensing, and pay a $20 fee. The permit is good for 180 days, and you cannot take the CDL skills test until at least 14 days after it is issued.
Who Qualifies
Federal law sets the floor at 18 for any commercial learner’s permit in the United States.1eCFR. 49 CFR 383.71 – Driver Application and Certification Procedures An 18-year-old CLP holder is limited to driving inside New Hampshire. To cross state lines for work, you need to be 21.
You also need a valid New Hampshire Class D driver’s license before you apply.2NH Division of Motor Vehicles. Commercial Driver Learner Permit On the application, you certify that you are not disqualified from holding a CDL and that you do not hold a driver’s license from any other state.1eCFR. 49 CFR 383.71 – Driver Application and Certification Procedures You will need to show proof of U.S. citizenship or lawful permanent residency, a document establishing New Hampshire as your state of domicile (a government-issued tax form works), and a Social Security number the DMV can verify. The DMV also pulls your driving record from every state where you have been licensed in the past 10 years.
One check happens behind the counter: since November 2024, New Hampshire must query the FMCSA Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse before issuing any CLP or CDL.3eCFR. 49 CFR 383.73 – State Procedures An unresolved drug or alcohol violation will stop the application, even if you have never worked as a commercial driver before. If a past employer reported a violation you never cleared through a return-to-duty process, resolve that first.
Pick Your Permit Class
The class you choose controls what you can practice in and which knowledge tests you take.
- Class A covers combination vehicles rated at 26,001 pounds or more where the towed unit alone weighs more than 10,000 pounds. Tractor-trailers sit here.
- Class B covers single vehicles of 26,001 pounds or more, or that weight range towing a unit of 10,000 pounds or less. Dump trucks, large buses, and straight trucks sit here.
- Class C covers vehicles that fall below the Class A and B weight thresholds but are designed to carry 16 or more people including the driver, are required to display hazmat placards, or are classified as tank vehicles.
A Class A gives you the broadest privileges, and a Class A CDL earned later also lets you drive Class B and Class C vehicles.4NH Division of Motor Vehicles. License Classifications, Restrictions and Endorsements
Only three endorsements can go on a CLP: passenger (P), school bus (S), and tank vehicle (N). Each requires passing a separate knowledge test. With a P or S endorsement, you cannot carry actual passengers or students beyond your supervising CDL holder, other trainees, and test examiners. With an N endorsement, the tank must be empty and free of hazardous residue. A hazmat (H) endorsement is not available on a permit at all, and a CLP holder cannot transport hazardous materials under any circumstances.5eCFR. 49 CFR 383.25 – Commercial Learner’s Permit Hazmat is something you add after the CDL.
Get Your DOT Medical Card
Every commercial driver needs a current medical examiner’s certificate. The exam has to be done by a healthcare professional listed on FMCSA’s National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners, not just any doctor.6Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners You fill out your health history on the Medical Examination Report (Form MCSA-5875), and the examiner checks your vision, hearing, blood pressure, and overall physical condition. If you pass, you get a Medical Examiner’s Certificate (Form MCSA-5876), the “DOT medical card.”7Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Medical Examination Report Form, MCSA-5875 Bring it to the DMV.
You also need to submit a self-certification telling the DMV what kind of driving you intend to do. New Hampshire uses Form DSMV 612, which lists four categories: non-excepted interstate, excepted interstate, non-excepted intrastate, and excepted intrastate.8New Hampshire Department of Safety Division of Motor Vehicles. CDL Medical Card and Certification Form Most drivers crossing state lines fall into non-excepted interstate, which requires a current DOT medical card on file with the DMV at all times.9Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. How Do I Determine Which of the 4 Categories of Commercial Motor Vehicle Operation I Should Self-Certify To Picking the wrong category creates problems later, so take it seriously.
Study and Pass the Knowledge Tests
Every applicant takes the General Knowledge test. It has 50 multiple-choice questions covering vehicle inspection, safe driving, cargo handling, and emergency procedures, and you need 80 percent to pass.10NH Division of Motor Vehicles. Commercial Driver Licenses The questions come straight from the New Hampshire CDL Manual, which the DMV publishes online.
If you want a Class A permit, you also take a Combination Vehicles test on coupling, trailer air brakes, and following distances. Anyone whose vehicle has air brakes takes an Air Brakes test as well, regardless of class. Failing Air Brakes doesn’t block the permit; it places an “L” restriction on it that limits you to vehicles without air brakes. Each endorsement knowledge test works the same way, with 80 percent to pass.
At the DMV
Bring these to any New Hampshire DMV office that handles commercial licensing:
- Your current New Hampshire driver’s license.
- Your Medical Examiner’s Certificate (Form MCSA-5876), unless you are in an exempt category.
- Your completed self-certification (Form DSMV 612).
- Proof of identity and residency from the DMV’s accepted-documents checklist.
The DMV runs a vision screening at the counter. New Hampshire administrative rules require a minimum of 20/40 vision in both eyes, or 20/30 if you have vision in only one eye.11Cornell Law Institute. New Hampshire Administrative Code Saf-C 1004.08 – Special Visual Acuity Requirements If your vision is below that, the DMV can still issue a license in certain cases, but you will need an eye doctor to complete an additional evaluation form.
Once you clear vision screening and all required knowledge tests, you pay the $20 CLP fee on top of any applicable base licensing fee.12New Hampshire Division of Motor Vehicles. Licensing Fees The DMV hands you a temporary paper permit on the spot so you can start training the same day. The permanent plastic card arrives by mail within 60 days, and most people get theirs within about 45.13New Hampshire Division of Motor Vehicles. Temporary Paper License
What You Can Do With the Permit
A CLP is not a CDL. You cannot drive a commercial vehicle alone. A supervising driver must sit in the front seat right next to you at all times, or in the seat directly behind the driver on a bus or motor coach.2NH Division of Motor Vehicles. Commercial Driver Learner Permit That supervisor must hold a valid CDL with the correct class and endorsements for the vehicle, and New Hampshire requires them to be at least 25. Carry your regular New Hampshire driver’s license with your CLP whenever you are behind the wheel.5eCFR. 49 CFR 383.25 – Commercial Learner’s Permit
You cannot take the CDL skills test for the first 14 days after your CLP is issued.5eCFR. 49 CFR 383.25 – Commercial Learner’s Permit In practice most people need far more seat time than that, especially for Class A combination vehicles, but the rule sets a hard floor.
Validity and Renewal
The permit is valid for 180 days from the issue date. If you are not ready to take the skills test by then, you can renew it one time, as long as your original knowledge test results are less than one year old.2NH Division of Motor Vehicles. Commercial Driver Learner Permit The renewed permit cannot run past one year from the original issue date.3eCFR. 49 CFR 383.73 – State Procedures If a full year passes without earning your CDL, you start over, including retaking the knowledge tests. Apply for the renewal before your permit expires.
What Comes After the Permit
Before the state will let you sit for the CDL skills test, you must complete Entry-Level Driver Training through a school listed on FMCSA’s Training Provider Registry.14eCFR. 49 CFR Part 380 Subpart F – Entry-Level Driver Training ELDT applies to anyone seeking a Class A or Class B CDL for the first time, upgrading from Class B to Class A, or adding a passenger, school bus, or hazmat endorsement for the first time.1eCFR. 49 CFR 383.71 – Driver Application and Certification Procedures It has a theory portion (with an 80 percent minimum on the assessment) and behind-the-wheel training on a closed range and public roads.15eCFR. 49 CFR Part 380 – Special Training Requirements The school uploads your completion certificate to the Training Provider Registry, and the DMV will not schedule your skills test until that record is on file.16Training Provider Registry. Training Provider Registry
Once ELDT is in the system and the 14-day waiting period is up, call the DMV at (603) 227-4000 to schedule the skills test. It has three parts: a pre-trip vehicle inspection, basic vehicle control maneuvers, and a road test. You have to pass all three.