The Pennsylvania CDL self-certification form, DL-11CD, tells PennDOT which of four commercial driving categories you fall into and whether you need a federal medical certificate on file. It is a single page. The decision that matters is the category you check, because that choice determines whether you also need a DOT physical and controls what PennDOT does with your license if your medical status ever lapses.
Pick Your Self-Certification Category First
The form asks you to check one of four boxes. Two questions decide it: do you ever cross a state line while driving commercially, and does your work fall under a federal medical exemption?
- Non-Excepted Interstate (NI): You drive commercially across state lines and must carry a Medical Examiner’s Certificate. This covers most long-haul and regional trucking.
- Non-Excepted Intrastate (NA): You drive commercially only within Pennsylvania and must carry a Medical Examiner’s Certificate. PennDOT adds a “K” restriction to your license limiting you to intrastate operation.
- Excepted Interstate (EI): You cross state lines, but your work falls under a federal exemption, so no DOT physical is required.
- Excepted Intrastate (EA): You drive only within Pennsylvania and your work is exempt from medical qualification. A “K” restriction is added to your license.
Excepted operations are defined by federal regulation and include school bus service, government vehicles operated by federal, state, or local agencies, fire trucks and rescue vehicles used in emergencies, transport of sick or injured persons, and occasional movement of personal property that isn’t for hire or part of a commercial enterprise.1eCFR. 49 CFR 390.3 – General Applicability If your job doesn’t match one of those, you’re non-excepted and you need the DOT physical.
Interstate versus intrastate is more straightforward. Cross a state line while driving commercially, even occasionally, and you’re interstate. Never leave Pennsylvania and you’re intrastate. If you’re not sure, ask your employer or PennDOT before you file; the wrong box can either leave you operating illegally or push you through a medical exam you didn’t need.
Filling Out the Form
The DL-11CD is one page. The fields are:2Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Self-Certification Form DL-11CD
- Your full legal name, date of birth, driver’s license number, daytime phone number, and email (optional).
- One checked box for your self-certification type: NI, NA, EI, or EA.
- An indication of whether this is your initial self-certification or a change to a category you previously reported.
- Your signature and the date. Signing certifies the information is true under penalty of law.
That’s everything. The form doesn’t ask for your Social Security Number, and it doesn’t ask you to copy anything off your Medical Examiner’s Certificate. The medical certificate rides on a separate electronic track.
How to Submit the DL-11CD
PennDOT accepts the form several ways, and the method depends on how close you are to a certification deadline.3Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Self-Certification/Medical Examiner’s Certification Frequently Asked Questions
- Online: A fillable version lets you complete and sign the form on screen; when you finish, it is emailed directly to PennDOT.4Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Self-Certification Form DL-11CD (Digital Submission)
- Mail, 30 or more days before your deadline: Bureau of Driver Licensing, P.O. Box 69008, Harrisburg, PA 17106-9008. Use a trackable method so you have proof it arrived.
- Fax, less than 30 days before your deadline: (717) 783-5429.
- Email, less than 30 days before your deadline: CDLmedscert@pa.gov.
- In person, less than 30 days before your deadline: Any PennDOT Driver License Center.
Paper copies of the form are available at any Driver License Center, and the PDF is on PennDOT’s Commercial Driver Information Center at pa.gov. Keep whatever confirmation you have, whether that’s a printout, a fax receipt, or a screenshot of the digital submission.
The DOT Physical Goes to PennDOT Separately
If you checked NI or NA, you also need a current Medical Examiner’s Certificate (Form MCSA-5876), commonly called the DOT physical card. Drivers in the EI and EA categories don’t.
Your exam must be done by a provider listed on FMCSA’s National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners, searchable at nationalregistry.fmcsa.dot.gov.5Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners An examiner who isn’t on the registry can’t transmit your results, and your status with PennDOT won’t update. A standard certificate is valid for up to 24 months, though the examiner can issue a shorter one to monitor a condition.6Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. DOT Medical Exam and Commercial Motor Vehicle Certification A typical exam runs $75 to $150.
As of June 23, 2025, the National Registry transmits exam results electronically to PennDOT, which posts them to your driving record.3Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Self-Certification/Medical Examiner’s Certification Frequently Asked Questions PennDOT no longer accepts paper medical certificates in person or by email. Don’t try to mail, fax, or hand-deliver the medical card itself; only the DL-11CD moves through those channels.
PennDOT recommends renewing your DOT physical at least six months before it expires. Electronic transmission is not instant, and a short lag between your exam and your record update can be enough to flip your status to “not-certified” if you cut it close.
What Happens if You Miss the Deadline
If PennDOT has no valid self-certification on file, or your medical certification lapses, your status is marked “not-certified.” Federal rules give the state 60 days to downgrade the CDL;7eCFR. 49 CFR 383.73 – State Procedures PennDOT’s own window is 45 days, after which the commercial designation is removed and the license becomes a standard non-commercial driver’s license.3Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Self-Certification/Medical Examiner’s Certification Frequently Asked Questions
This still happens even if your CDL is currently suspended or disqualified for another reason. You have to keep self-certification and medical documentation valid regardless, or the downgrade stacks on top of whatever else is already pending.
If your DOT physical card is about to expire and you can’t get a new exam in time, PennDOT suggests filing a new DL-11CD switching your category to EI or EA as a stopgap. That prevents the automatic downgrade. The trade-off is that you can’t perform any non-excepted commercial driving until you recertify medically and switch your category back.
Getting a downgraded CDL back is a much bigger job than keeping it current. Once the commercial designation is removed, you may have to apply for a new commercial learner’s permit and retake the required knowledge and skills tests, along with putting a valid medical certificate and a new DL-11CD back on file.