By Evan Reid, Founder of Haul Handbook · Updated Sep 28, 2026
Quick answers for Minnesota 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
- 17
- Skills testing
- the agency's own examiners
- Training rule
- Federal ELDT applies
- License class
- A, B or C, set by the truck
Amounts below come from Minnesota Department of Public Safety, Driver and Vehicle Services (DVS).
Booking points to onlineservices.dps.mn.gov/EServices/?Link=ScheduleAppointment.
State-specific ELDT notes are cited below.
Federal definitions, rendered below with the fee and test facts.
What a Minnesota CDL costs
These are the license-side fees Minnesota Department of Public Safety, Driver and Vehicle Services (DVS) 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's permit (CLP), Class A, B or C instruction permit
- $26.75 (180 days)Sold at driver exam stations only. The CDL manual states a CLP is valid for 180 days and may be renewed as long as it is not valid for more than one year from first issuance, and it must be held 14 calendar days before the road test. Minn. Stat. 171.06, subd. 2 sets a much smaller statutory permit fee; the DVS table shows the total a driver pays at the counter.
- Class A CDL
- $65 (4 years)Minnesota prices the licence by class rather than charging one flat CDL fee: the DVS table lists Class B and Class C originals below Class A (see the other fee lines). The class ladder itself is statutory, Minn. Stat. 171.06, subd. 2, and the published totals add the technology surcharge and filing fee that the same subdivision authorizes. An enhanced licence costs extra on top.
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.
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Test fees
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Other published fee lines
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Two Minnesota fee sources disagree and the newer one is used. The fee table printed in Part A of the CDL manual lists lower Class A, B and C, instruction permit and no-show amounts than the current DVS fee page, so every amount here follows the DVS page. Behind both sits Minn. Stat. 171.06, subd. 2, which fixes a class-tiered base fee (Class A highest, then B, C and D) and adds a technology surcharge and a filing fee. Skills tests carry no separate fee because DVS gives them itself; only retests, no-shows and late cancellations cost extra.
Which class of CDL the work needs
The class is set by what you drive, and the definitions are federal: Minnesota 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 Minnesota
States split between running CDL skills tests themselves and certifying third-party testers; it changes where you book and who you pay.
- Testing model
- Minnesota gives the CDL tests itself. DVS says to take the written tests, then apply and pay for the CLP, hold it at least 14 calendar days, then schedule the CDL road test and pass it, with the road test booked through the DVS appointment system. The manual splits the skills test into three phases taken in the vehicle type the driver wants to be licensed for: the vehicle inspection, the vehicle control exercises, and the road test itself, which runs over a route set by a DVS examiner. The knowledge tests are given in English on paper or computer, and each may be tried once per day. Neither the DVS CDL pages nor the manual describe a third-party skills tester program. A driver with the K (intrastate only) restriction must pass the skills test in Minnesota; results from other states are not accepted.
- Scheduling
- Book the road test through DVS online services after the 14-day CLP hold. Missing the slot or cancelling late adds a fee, so confirm the test vehicle and paperwork (proof of GVWR, and passenger capacity for a bus) before booking. onlineservices.dps.mn.gov/EServices/?Link=ScheduleAppointment
- Before you apply
- A Minnesota CDL is required to operate a single vehicle over 26,000 pounds, a combination over 26,000 pounds that tows a unit over 10,000 pounds, a vehicle designed to carry 16 or more people including the driver, or any vehicle carrying placarded hazardous materials. Class A covers the combinations, Class B single vehicles over 26,000 pounds, and Class C lighter vehicles carrying placarded hazmat or 16 or more passengers. The endorsements are T (doubles and triples), P (passenger), N (tank), H (hazardous materials), S (school bus) and X (tank plus hazmat). A CLP applicant must hold a valid Minnesota driver's license and be at least 18, or at least 21 to operate commercially outside Minnesota. Every CDL driver self-certifies one of four operating categories (interstate or intrastate, non-excepted or excepted), which decides whether federal or state medical rules apply; farm trucks run by a farmer within 150 miles of the farm, emergency vehicles and recreational vehicles are exempt.
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 Minnesota'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.
Minnesota applies the federal entry-level driver training rule and adds no state curriculum. The CDL manual describes the FMCSA Training Provider Registry program: ELDT applies to drivers getting a Class A or B CDL for the first time, upgrading B to A, or getting the S, P or H endorsement on or after February 7, 2022. DVS adds timing guidance: the classroom (theory) part can be taken any time, the behind-the-wheel part only after the CLP is issued, and behind-the-wheel must be completed within a year of the theory training. A driver with a previous CDL may have ELDT waived in some cases.
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: Minnesota Commercial Driver's License (CDL) Manual. 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 Minnesota.
If you searched for Minnesota 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 Minnesota startup sequence