How to Submit Your Texas CDL Self-Certification Affidavit

If you hold a Texas commercial driver license or commercial learner permit, Texas CDL self-certification is the declaration you file with the Department of Public Safety stating which of four types of commercial driving you do, and it determines what medical paperwork you have to keep current.¹ Pick the wrong category, miss a deadline, or let your medical certificate lapse, and DPS will downgrade your license. Getting it back means retaking both the knowledge and skills exams.

Pick Your Operation Category First

Federal rules require every CDL and CLP holder to certify under one of four categories.² Your category decides whether you need a federal Medical Examiner’s Certificate, a Texas state medical qualification, or nothing at all.

Non-Excepted Interstate

You cross state lines, or you haul cargo that started in or is bound for another state. The shipment’s character matters more than whether your particular trip crosses a border: if the shipper intends the goods to move in interstate commerce, you’re operating interstate.³ Drivers in this category must meet the full federal medical standards and keep a valid Medical Examiner’s Certificate on file.

Excepted Interstate

You cross state lines, but your work is on the narrow federal list of exemptions from the medical certification requirement. That list covers:

Federal, state, or local government employees driving on official business
School bus drivers moving students and staff between home and school
Drivers transporting sick or injured persons, or human remains
Fire truck and rescue vehicle operators during emergencies
Farmers hauling their own products, machinery, or supplies within 150 air-miles of the farm in a non-combination vehicle
Custom harvesters moving equipment or harvested crops
Drivers responding to propane heating fuel or pipeline emergencies

If this is you, you don’t need a federal Medical Examiner’s Certificate.⁴ The exemption attaches to the operation, not the employer type. A government employee hauling general freight across state lines may still fall under non-excepted rules if that specific transport isn’t on the list.⁵

Non-Excepted Intrastate

You never leave Texas and you don’t haul interstate shipments. Instead of federal medical standards, you must meet Texas driver qualification requirements under 37 Texas Administrative Code Section 16.23, which largely mirrors the federal framework.⁶ A medical certificate is still required.

Excepted Intrastate

You stay in Texas and your work is specifically exempted from state medical qualification rules, including certain agricultural operations and work covered under Texas Administrative Code Section 4.12. No medical certificate is required.⁶ Be careful here. If you occasionally pick up a load that qualifies as interstate commerce, you’ve moved yourself into another category whatever your certification says.

Match the Category to the Right Form

The forms DPS actually uses are:¹

CDL-4, Texas Commercial Driver Application — Interstate Driver Certification, for drivers who cross state lines
CDL-5, Texas Commercial Driver Application — Intrastate Driver Certification, for drivers who stay within Texas
CDL-10, Certification of Physical Exemption under 49 CFR Part 391/390, for drivers who qualify for a federal exemption from standard medical requirements

Each form asks for your full legal name, date of birth, Texas driver license number, and other identifying information so DPS can match the certification to your driving record. All three are available for download from the DPS website.

Your Medical Examiner’s Certificate

If you certify as non-excepted interstate or non-excepted intrastate, you need a valid Medical Examiner’s Certificate, Form MCSA-5876, from a provider listed on the FMCSA’s National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners.⁷ Not every doctor qualifies. The examiner must be currently listed on that registry.

A DOT physical is valid for up to 24 months. The examiner can issue the certificate for a shorter period if something like high blood pressure needs monitoring.⁸ Drivers with insulin-treated diabetes must be re-examined every 12 months and provide a completed ITDM Assessment Form (MCSA-5870) from their treating clinician within 45 days of the exam.⁹ Drivers who don’t meet standard vision in one eye must also be re-examined annually.¹⁰

To find a certified examiner, use the search tool at nationalregistry.fmcsa.dot.gov. You can search by city and state or zip code and narrow by examiner or business name.¹¹ The exam itself typically runs $75 to $225 depending on the provider. There is no separate state processing fee for filing the medical certificate with DPS.

How Your Paperwork Gets to DPS

The submission mechanics changed in June 2025 and change again in April 2026.

Medical Certificate

Since June 23, 2025, your medical examiner submits your exam results directly to DPS through the FMCSA’s National Registry II (NRII) system by midnight of the next calendar day after your exam. FMCSA then forwards your identification, exam results, restriction information, and any medical variance data electronically to DPS.¹ You no longer hand-deliver or mail a paper certificate to the state.

Starting April 10, 2026, Texas will not accept paper medical certificates at all. If your examiner hasn’t transmitted electronically, DPS won’t have your certificate on record, and your status could slip to “not certified.” After your exam, confirm the examiner has submitted through NRII, then check your DPS driving record a few weeks later to verify the certificate posted. If your current examiner isn’t set up for NRII, find one who is before your next physical.

Self-Certification Category

To change your self-certification category, such as switching from interstate to intrastate because you changed jobs, you have to visit your local DPS driver license office in person. Allow up to 10 business days from the date of submission for your record to update fully.¹

What a Lapse Costs You

If your medical certificate expires or DPS never receives your self-certification, your record is marked “not certified.” Federal rules then require the state to complete a CDL downgrade within 60 days.¹² A downgrade strips the commercial privileges from your license.

Getting them back is not a matter of catching up on paperwork. DPS requires you to complete the CDL knowledge and skills exams again.¹ For most drivers that means lost income while they’re off the road, on top of the testing time and fees. If your CDL has already been downgraded, you have to visit your local DPS driver license office in person to start reinstatement, with a current medical certificate on file through NRII and the required exams passed. There is no shortcut around the retesting once a downgrade is on your record.

Track your medical certificate expiration date and schedule your DOT physical ahead of it. The whole problem is avoidable.

1
Texas Department of Public Safety. Commercial Driver License (CDL) Medical Certification Requirement
2
eCFR. 49 CFR 383.71 – Driver Application and Certification Procedures
3
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Interstate v. Intrastate Commerce
4
eCFR. 49 CFR 390.3 – General Applicability
5
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. How Do I Determine Which of the 4 Categories of Commercial Motor Vehicle (CMV) Operation I Should Self-Certify
6
Cornell Law Institute. 37 Texas Administrative Code 16.23 – Medical Certificate Requirements
7
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Medical Examiners Certificate (MEC), Form MCSA-5876
8
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. DOT Medical Exam and Commercial Motor Vehicle Certification
9
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Insulin-Treated Diabetes Mellitus Assessment Form, MCSA-5870
10
eCFR. 49 CFR 391.45 – Persons Who Must Be Medically Examined and Certified
11
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners
12
eCFR. 49 CFR 383.73 – State Procedures