By Evan Reid, Founder of Haul Handbook · Updated Sep 28, 2026
Quick answers for Kansas CDL applicants
Use this page to answer the four searches most CDL applicants make before choosing a school or booking a test: what the state charges, which class of license the work needs, where the skills test is handled, and whether the state adds anything beyond federal ELDT.
- Published fee lines
- 9
- Skills testing
- agency offices or approved third-party testers
- Training rule
- Federal ELDT applies
- License class
- A, B or C, set by the truck
Amounts below come from Kansas Department of Revenue, Division of Vehicles.
Booking points to ksrevenue.gov/dovcdltesting.html.
State-specific ELDT notes are cited below.
Federal definitions, rendered below with the fee and test facts.
What a Kansas CDL costs
These are the license-side fees Kansas Department of Revenue, Division of Vehicles publishes; training tuition is a separate, school-set cost covered in our CDL training cost guide. A line reading "Not confirmed" means the agency publishes no figure; the note beside it says what the agency does say.
- Commercial learner permit (the chart's Regular CDL Permit line)
- $13The chart builds the total from a $5 issuance fee plus the $8 photo fee, the same in every age group. The chart prints no validity period, so none is recorded.
- New CDL, any class, with skills testing
- $41The chart builds this from an $18 issuance fee, a $15 skills test fee and the $8 photo fee, plus $10 for each endorsement. Its age column for this line reads over 21. A new CDL issued without testing, such as a transfer, totals $26. The chart prints no license term, so none is recorded.
Endorsement fees
Endorsements ride on the base license; hazmat also carries a federal background check handled outside the license fee. Our hazmat endorsement guide covers that federal layer.
Scroll sideways to see every column.
Test fees
Other published fee lines
Scroll sideways to see every column.
All figures come from the KDOR Kansas Credential Fee Chart, whose footer reads Updated 5/2023. Third-party testers are not on the chart and set their own charges, which KDOR does not publish.
Which class of CDL the work needs
The class is set by what you drive, and the definitions are federal: Kansas issues licenses against these three rather than writing its own. Pick the class by the heaviest combination you will actually operate, because the skills test is taken in a vehicle of that class.
- Class A
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combination weight rating or gross combination weight of 26,001 pounds or more (whichever is greater), inclusive of a towed unit or units with a gross vehicle weight rating or gross vehicle weight of more than 10,000 pounds.
- Class B
- Any single vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating or gross vehicle weight of 26,001 pounds or more, or such a vehicle towing a vehicle not exceeding 10,000 pounds GVWR or gross vehicle weight.
- Class C
- Any single vehicle or combination that does not meet Class A or B but is designed to transport 16 or more passengers including the driver, or transports placarded hazardous materials or select agents.
- Which class a hotshot needs
- A hotshot combination needs a Class A CDL when the greater of its GCWR or actual combination weight reaches 26,001 pounds and the greater of the towed unit’s rating or actual weight exceeds 10,000 pounds. Check Class B for a heavy single vehicle and Class C for passenger or hazardous-material use. Federal registration requirements depend separately on the operation.
Endorsements ride on whichever class you hold; the hazmat endorsement guide covers the one carriers ask about most, and CDL versus non-CDL driving covers the boundary case of trucks that stay under the threshold. If the plan is a specific vehicle rather than a license, hotshot trucking and the box truck business guide walk what each one requires end to end.
Who gives the skills test in Kansas
States split between running CDL skills tests themselves and certifying third-party testers; it changes where you book and who you pay.
- Testing model
- KDOR lists 11 state CDL skills testing offices (Chanute, Colby, Dodge City, Edgerton, Garden City, Hays, Phillipsburg, Salina, Seneca, Topeka and Wichita), and skills exams there are by appointment only. KDOR also refers to Third Party CDL examining stations that it audits every year, and it publishes a list of third-party commercial driving schools; its public pages do not say which of those schools give the skills test, so ask the school directly.
- Scheduling
- CDL skills exams are by appointment only: call the testing office you will visit to schedule the road test. Edgerton and Topeka run limited staff, so call before visiting for written exams. ksrevenue.gov/dovcdltesting.html
- Before you apply
- KDOR requires a CDL for any single vehicle with a gross vehicle weight of 26,001 pounds or more, or a combination with a gross combination weight rating of 26,001 pounds or more. A non-domicile CDL goes only to a holder of an H2A, H2B or E2 visa with a valid passport and an I-94 or I-797A. Since June 2, 2025 Kansas can no longer enter a medical examiner's certificate by hand; it must arrive electronically from the National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners.
Every applicant also needs a current medical certificate; our DOT physical guide covers the exam that produces it. Not sure your truck even needs a CDL? Start with CDL vs non-CDL.
The federal training rule, then Kansas's position
Entry-level driver training (ELDT) is federal: it applies in every state before the tests it gates, and the training must come from a provider on FMCSA's registry. The full walkthrough lives in our how to get a CDL guide.
- Who must train
- First-time Class A or Class B applicants; Class B holders upgrading to Class A; First-time S, P, or H endorsement applicants
- Registry requirement
- Entry-level driver training means training received from an entity listed on FMCSA's Training Provider Registry, completed before taking the CDL skills test for a first or upgraded Class A or Class B CDL, before the skills test for a first P or S endorsement, or before the knowledge test for a first H endorsement. You must complete training with a provider listed on the registry.
- States may add more
- States with training requirements that exceed the federal minimum standard may prohibit you from taking the skills test, or the knowledge test for the H endorsement, until you meet their state requirements as well as the federal ones. Federal rules also allow you to receive training and take the CDL skills test in a state other than the state you are licensed in.
KDOR restates the federal entry-level driver training rule that took hold on February 7, 2022: first-time Class A or B applicants, B-to-A upgrades, first-time S or P and first-time hazmat applicants must train with a provider on the FMCSA Training Provider Registry before testing. KDOR's ELDT page lists the federal exemptions and adds no Kansas training hours or curriculum.
The official manual and where this fits
The knowledge tests come straight from the state's own manual, so study the agency's current edition: Kansas Commercial Driver's License Manual (Version: March 2025). The CDL licenses you as a driver; if the plan is your own trucks and your own freight, the business side runs on its own track through start a trucking company in Kansas.
If you searched for Kansas CDL requirements, go here next
Still deciding if you need a CDL?
Start with the vehicle weight and use case. The national guide explains the CDL threshold before you pay for a permit or training.
Compare CDL vs non-CDLReady to drive under your own authority?
The CDL is the driver credential. Operating authority, IRP, IFTA, insurance, and permits are the business credential stack.
See the Kansas startup sequence