Who gives the CDL skills test in Nebraska?

The Department of Motor Vehicles gives CDL skills tests by appointment only, and certified third party testers (companies and schools authorized under 247 NAC chapter 8) may also give them for a fee. A skills appointment needs a valid CLP held at least 14 days, every applicable knowledge test passed, and completed Entry Level Driver Training, which the Department verifies electronically. Third party testers must book at least two business days ahead, and a driver tested by one may be called back to retest with state staff as part of the Department's audit. A failed written or skills test needs at least a one-day wait before a retest.

Where do the Nebraska CDL fees on this page come from?

Every dollar amount renders from Nebraska Department of Motor Vehicles, Driver Licensing Services's own published fee schedule, cited beside the figure. When the agency publishes no figure for a line, this page shows the agency's own note instead of a guess.

How much is a CDL permit in Nebraska?

$10 (One year) for the commercial learner permit, valid one year. It is the license-side fee from the schedule above; the knowledge test itself is priced separately where the state publishes it.

What is the difference between Class A, B, and C?

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.

Do I need my CDL before starting a trucking company?

They are separate tracks: the CDL licenses the driver, while operating authority licenses the business. Most owner-operators finish the CDL first because revenue depends on it, then file the business-side registrations. The state startup guide linked on this page covers that second track in order.

Nebraska CDL: Requirements, Cost, and Testing

By Evan Reid, Founder of Haul Handbook · Updated Sep 27, 2026

Quick answers for Nebraska 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: 8
Skills testing: agency offices or approved third-party testers
Training rule: Federal ELDT applies
License class: A, B or C, set by the truck

What a Nebraska CDL costs

These are the license-side fees Nebraska Department of Motor Vehicles, Driver Licensing Services 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), original: $10 (One year)The CLP must be held at least 14 days before a skills test, and requires every applicable written test to be passed before it issues. If it expires before all three skills segments are passed, earlier passed segments are void.
Commercial driver's license, five-year license: $55 (Expires on the birthday in the fifth year after issuance; licenses issued under age 21 expire on the 21st birthday)The statute prices the CDL at 11 dollars for each year of validity, so a full five-year license costs 55 dollars. Shorter licenses cost 11, 22, 33, or 44 dollars.
Commercial driver's license renewal, five years: $55 (Five years)Renewal is priced from the same validity table as an original license. Nebraska residents renewing up to one year after expiration skip written tests already passed, except hazardous materials.

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.

Nebraska CDL endorsement fees
Endorsement	Fee	Notes
Add, change, or remove a class, endorsement, or restriction on a CDL	$10	One statutory line covers every endorsement (H, N, P, S, T, X) and every class or restriction change. The same 10 dollar charge applies on a CLP. The hazardous materials endorsement also needs a federal TSA security threat assessment, whose fee is not set by Nebraska.

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Other published fee lines

Other Nebraska CDL fee lines
Item	Fee	Term	Notes
CDL valid for less than five years, per year of validity	$11	One to four years	11 dollars for one year or less, 22 for two, 33 for three, 44 for four, under the 60-4,115 table.
CDL replacement	$11
CLP replacement	$10
CLP class, endorsement, or restriction change	$10
Identity security fee	Not confirmed		Neb. Rev. Stat. 60-4,115(6) lets the Department add an identity security fee to every license, set by the Department and capped at 8 dollars. The amount charged is not published on the pages read, so none is recorded.

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Neb. Rev. Stat. 60-4,115 is the only fee source: it splits each fee between the county general fund and the Department of Motor Vehicles Cash Fund. It carries no knowledge-test or skills-test line. Third party testers charge their own fee for the skills test, which the state does not set.

Which class of CDL the work needs

The class is set by what you drive, and the definitions are federal: Nebraska 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 Nebraska

States split between running CDL skills tests themselves and certifying third-party testers; it changes where you book and who you pay.

Testing model: The Department of Motor Vehicles gives CDL skills tests by appointment only, and certified third party testers (companies and schools authorized under 247 NAC chapter 8) may also give them for a fee. A skills appointment needs a valid CLP held at least 14 days, every applicable knowledge test passed, and completed Entry Level Driver Training, which the Department verifies electronically. Third party testers must book at least two business days ahead, and a driver tested by one may be called back to retest with state staff as part of the Department's audit. A failed written or skills test needs at least a one-day wait before a retest.
Scheduling: State skills test appointments are made by phone at (402) 471-7983, and the applicant must be the person who calls. The scheduler asks for the Nebraska driver license number, a cell phone number, and an email address, and confirms by email.
Before you apply: Nebraska issues Class A, B, and C CDLs at 18 for intrastate driving and at 21 for interstate driving. Applicants prove U.S. citizenship or lawful status, self-certify their type of operation, and carry a medical examiner's certificate on the National Registry when certifying as non-excepted interstate or intrastate. A restricted CDL lets Nebraska residents 18 or older operate Class B or C farm-service vehicles within 150 miles for a seasonal period of up to 210 consecutive days in any twelve months, with no knowledge or skills test.

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 Nebraska'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.

The Department restates the federal ELDT rule without a Nebraska addition: training is required before a first Class A or B skills test, a B to A upgrade, a first P or S endorsement skills test, or a first hazardous materials knowledge test, and providers post completion to FMCSA's Training Provider Registry. The one state layer is on providers, not drivers: an approved ELDT provider must also comply with Nebraska's rules for driver training schools.

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: Nebraska Commercial Driver's License Manual (March 2026). 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 Nebraska.

If you searched for Nebraska 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-CDL

Ready 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 Nebraska startup sequence