By Evan Reid, Founder of Haul Handbook · Updated Jul 30, 2026
Quick answers for Tennessee 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
- 12
- 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 Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security, Driver Services Division.
Use the agency testing notes below.
State-specific ELDT notes are cited below.
Federal definitions, rendered below with the fee and test facts.
What a Tennessee CDL costs
These are the license-side fees Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security, Driver Services Division 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.
- Class A commercial learner permit (PA)
- $14 (1 year)The $14.00 total is an $8.00 license cost, priced at $8.00 per year, plus a $6.00 application fee. A Class B or C learner permit (PB or PC) totals $13.00: a $7.00 license cost plus the same $6.00 application fee. County Clerk Partners add a $4.00 administrative fee on top of the state fees.
- Class A commercial driver license
- $70 (8 years)The $70.00 total is a $64.00 license cost, priced at $8.00 per year for eight years, plus a $6.00 application fee. A Class B or C CDL totals $62.00: a $56.00 license cost at $7.00 per year plus the $6.00 application fee. Tennessee licenses run eight years from the date of issuance rather than from the holder's birthdate. County Clerk Partners add a $4.00 administrative fee.
- CDL renewal
- The Department of Safety fee table prices Class A and Class B or C commercial licenses as single lines and does not separate an original from a renewal, so no distinct renewal amount is recorded rather than one being inferred. What the department does state about renewal: Class A, B, and C CDL holders must renew in person at a Driver Services Center, must present a current valid medical certification at the time of renewal, and receive a courtesy renewal notice roughly eight to ten weeks before the credential expires.
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.
Other published fee lines
Scroll sideways to see every column.
Every amount above is the state total: the license or endorsement cost plus the application fee the same table charges. The Department of Safety publishes no itemized knowledge test or road skills test fee, and it warns that third-party testing organizations may charge their own fee for a skills test, so no test price is recorded here. Accepted payment at a Driver Services Center is cash, check, money order, MasterCard, Visa, American Express, or Discover.
Which class of CDL the work needs
The class is set by what you drive, and the definitions are federal: Tennessee 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 Tennessee
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 Safety tests two ways. Knowledge tests for a commercial learner permit are taken at a Full-Service Driver Services Center, and the department gives road skills tests at its own centers. It also certifies third-party organizations to give CDL skills tests, and publishes the county, company, examiner name, and the classes and endorsements each one is approved to test. All CDL applicants must pass vision, knowledge, and skills tests, and the road skills test is preceded by a pre-trip vehicle inspection and a vehicle control exercise.
- Scheduling
- A road skills test at a Driver Services Center is booked by phone on (615) 502-4179, Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Central, not through an online scheduler. A third-party skills test is booked directly with the certified organization, which may add its own fee.
- Before you apply
- A Tennessee CDL applicant must be at least 18, and an applicant under 21 is restricted to operating inside Tennessee. Applicants must prove United States citizenship or lawful permanent resident status, and Tennessee does not issue a non-domiciled commercial driver license. Beginning January 1, 2026, a CDL issued to a holder of a valid unexpired Permanent Resident Card is issued as a Temporary CDL. At the counter the department asks for a valid DOT medical certification card, proof of Social Security number, a Tennessee driver license or ID or a valid license or CDL from another state, two proofs of Tennessee residence, and the citizenship or residency proof, all as original documents issued within the past four months.
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 Tennessee'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 of Safety's Entry-Level Driver Training page restates the federal FMCSA rule and its exceptions without adding a Tennessee requirement of its own. Training applies to a first Class A or Class B CDL, an upgrade from Class B to Class A, and the school bus, passenger, and hazardous materials endorsements, for anyone issued the credential after February 7, 2022. A driver who meets an exception to the skills test in 49 CFR Part 383 is also exempt from the training rule.
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: Commercial Driver License 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 Tennessee.
If you searched for Tennessee 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 Tennessee startup sequence