Oregon CDL Permit Test: Costs, Requirements, and What to Bring

The Oregon CDL permit test is a written knowledge exam you take at a DMV field office to earn a Commercial Learner Permit (CLP). The core exam is the General Knowledge test: 50 multiple-choice questions, with a passing score of 80 percent (40 correct). Depending on the class of license and endorsements you want, you’ll take one or more additional knowledge tests during the same visit. The CLP costs $40, and each knowledge test attempt costs $10.¹

Which Tests You’ll Actually Take

Everyone starts with the General Knowledge test. What you add on top depends on the license and endorsements you’re after.

General Knowledge

Fifty questions covering vehicle inspection, cargo securement, safe driving practices, emergency procedures, and federal regulations. You need 40 correct to pass. Every question draws from the Oregon Commercial Driver Manual, available as a free PDF from the DMV, and the exam sticks close to the material in it.² Treat the manual as your primary study resource.

Combination Vehicles

Required for a Class A license (tractor-trailers and other combination vehicles). It covers coupling and uncoupling, rollover risks, and handling characteristics unique to articulated vehicles.³

Air Brakes

Required if the vehicle you plan to drive uses air brakes. Covers system components, inspection procedures, and stopping distances. Skip it or fail it and the DMV places an L or Z restriction on your permit barring you from air brake vehicles — a restriction most trucking jobs won’t accept.

Endorsement Tests

Each endorsement requires its own knowledge test, typically 20 to 30 questions, scored at the same 80 percent threshold:³

Tanker (N): physics of liquid loads, surge effects, safe driving for tank vehicles.
Doubles/Triples: stability, coupling, and inspection for pulling multiple trailers.
Passenger (P): buses and other passenger-carrying commercial vehicles.
School Bus (S): student loading and unloading, stop-arm procedures, emergency evacuation. Requires both the S test and the P endorsement.
Hazardous Materials (H): a 30-question test on identification, handling, placarding, and emergency response. The H endorsement also requires a separate TSA security threat assessment with fingerprinting; the fee is $85.25 ($41 with a valid TWIC) and covers five years. TSA recommends enrolling at least 60 days ahead because some applications take over 45 days to process.⁴

What It Costs and How to Book

Oregon DMV requires an appointment for field office visits, so don’t walk in cold. The fees as of January 2024:¹

Commercial Learner Permit (original): $40
Each knowledge test attempt: $10

A Class A applicant taking General Knowledge, Combination Vehicles, and Air Brakes on one visit pays $40 for the permit plus $30 in test fees, or $70 total. You pay the $10 test fee again for each retake.

What to Bring to the DMV

Oregon DMV requires proof of your full legal name, U.S. citizenship or lawful permanent residence, identity, date of birth, and residential address.³ A certified birth certificate, valid U.S. passport, or permanent resident card typically covers the first few, paired with something showing your current Oregon address. Names must match exactly across documents; mismatches create delays.

You also need a Medical Examiner’s Certificate from a provider listed on the FMCSA National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners.⁵ This is the DOT physical. It checks vision (at least 20/40 in each eye, corrected or uncorrected), hearing, blood pressure, and general fitness for operating a commercial vehicle. Expect to pay $50 to $200 depending on the provider. You can search by zip code on the National Registry site.

Pick Your Self-Certification Category

When you apply, you declare which type of commercial driving you’ll do. The federal categories:⁶

Non-Excepted Interstate (NI): driving across state lines for general commercial purposes. The most common category; a current medical certificate must go to the DMV.
Excepted Interstate (EI): across state lines but only for specific exempt activities like transporting school children, government work, or fire and rescue. No federal medical certificate required.
Non-Excepted Intrastate (NA): only within Oregon, subject to the state’s medical certification requirements.
Excepted Intrastate (EA): only within Oregon for activities the state has determined don’t require medical certification.

If you do both excepted and non-excepted work in the same commerce type, pick the non-excepted category. Getting this wrong creates headaches when you upgrade to a full CDL.

Who Can Apply

You must be at least 18 to get a CLP in Oregon, which limits you to intrastate driving only. Crossing state lines or hauling hazardous materials requires age 21 or older. You also need a valid Oregon driver license — either a non-commercial Class C or an existing commercial license if you’re adding a class or endorsement.³

Your driving record carries more weight here than for a standard license. Oregon DMV suspends a CLP for one year for a conviction involving driving under the influence, leaving the scene of an accident, refusing an alcohol test, or using any vehicle to commit a felony. A second major offense is a lifetime disqualification. Lesser violations stack: two serious traffic offenses within three years (reckless driving, speeding 15 mph or more over the limit in a commercial vehicle, following too closely) bring a 60-day suspension; three or more bump that to 120 days.⁷

CLP holders also cannot use traffic diversion programs. Accepting diversion for a traffic offense while holding a CLP triggers a DMV suspension of the permit.

If You Fail a Test

Oregon requires a waiting period before retaking a failed knowledge test. Under Oregon administrative rules, the DMV may impose a 90-day wait after a failed attempt. That alone is reason to work through the Commercial Driver Manual thoroughly before you book your appointment, rather than treating the first attempt as a trial run.

What the Permit Gets You

Pass your knowledge tests and the DMV issues your Commercial Learner Permit the same day. The CLP is valid for one year and cannot be renewed.⁸ If it expires before you finish your skills test, you start over, including fees and knowledge tests.

The CLP lets you practice on public roads, but only under strict conditions. A CDL holder with the matching class and endorsements must sit in the front passenger seat beside you at all times. You cannot carry passengers beyond your supervising driver, test examiners, and other trainees. You cannot haul hazardous materials under any circumstances, and with a Tanker endorsement on a CLP you can only drive empty tank vehicles.⁹

Federal law also requires a 14-day waiting period between CLP issuance and your first skills test attempt.¹⁰ With a one-year permit that can’t be renewed, line up your Entry-Level Driver Training and skills test early so a retake or scheduling gap doesn’t eat your window.

1
Oregon Department of Transportation. Commercial Driver License Fees
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Oregon Driver & Motor Vehicle Services. Commercial Driver Manual
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Oregon Driver & Motor Vehicle Services. Getting a Commercial Driver License or Commercial Learner Permit
4
Transportation Security Administration. HAZMAT Endorsement
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Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners
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Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. How Do I Determine Which of the 4 Categories of Commercial Motor Vehicle (CMV) Operation I Should Self-Certify To
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Oregon Driver & Motor Vehicle Services. Commercial Driver Convictions and Suspensions
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Oregon Department of Transportation. Commercial Driver Licensing Procedure Will Change Sept. 26
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eCFR. 49 CFR 383.25 – Commercial Learner’s Permit
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Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Three-Month Waiver in Response to the COVID-19 Emergency – For States and CLP Holders Operating Commercial Motor Vehicles