Military Test Waiver Eligibility

Service members who are currently licensed and who are, or were, employed within the last year in a military position requiring the operation of a military motor vehicle equivalent to a commercial motor vehicle. Additional eligibility restrictions apply, see below.

At the discretion of the Commissioner, the knowledge test and the skills test required under 49 C.F.R. §§ 383.113 and 383.133, as amended, and the tests required for a passenger endorsement or a tank vehicle endorsement or a hazardous materials endorsement under 49 CFR §§ 383.117, 383.119, or 383.121, as amended may be waived for a commercial motor vehicle driver with military commercial motor vehicle experience who is currently licensed at the time of his or her application for a commercial driver license, if the test is substituted with an applicant’s driving record in combination with the driving experience specified in this subsection. The Commissioner shall impose conditions and limitations to restrict the applicants from whom alternative requirements for the skills test may be accepted. Such conditions shall include the following:

1. the applicant must certify that, during the two-year period immediately prior to applying for a commercial driver license, he or she:
   • has not had more than one license in addition to a military license;
   • has not had any license suspended, revoked, or canceled;
   • has not had any convictions for any type of motor vehicle for the disqualifying offenses specified in subsection 4116(a) of this title;
   • has not had more than one conviction for any type of motor vehicle for serious traffic violations specified in subdivision 4103(16) of this title; and
   • has not had any conviction for a violation, other than a parking violation, of military, state, or local law relating to motor vehicle traffic control arising in connection with any traffic crash, and has no record of a crash in which he or she was at fault; and
2. the applicant must provide evidence and certify that he or she:
   • is regularly employed or was regularly employed within the last year in a military position requiring operation of a commercial motor vehicle;
   • was exempted from the commercial driver license requirements in 49 C.F.R. § 383.3(c); and
   • was operating for at least the two years immediately preceding discharge from the military a vehicle representative of the commercial motor vehicle the driver applicant operates or expects to operate.