By Haul Handbook editorial team· Updated Oct 5, 2026
Quick answers for Vermont 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
- the agency's own examiners
- Training rule
- Federal ELDT applies
- License class
- A, B or C, set by the truck
Amounts below come from Vermont Agency of Transportation, Department of Motor Vehicles (commercial driver licensing).
Booking points to mydmv.vermont.gov.
State-specific ELDT notes are cited below.
Federal definitions, rendered below with the fee and test facts.
What a Vermont CDL costs
These are the license-side fees Vermont Agency of Transportation, Department of Motor Vehicles (commercial driver licensing) 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 (CDP)
- $18 (One year from issue)23 V.S.A. § 4110(a)(8)(B) sets the permit fee, and the DMV's CDL Fees page and manual list the same amount. § 4108(e) issues the permit for one year and allows one renewal or reissuance within two years, while the 2025 manual says no renewals are allowed and another permit means retaking the knowledge tests. The DMV's CDL overview page states a 180-day validity instead; the statute's one-year term is recorded.
- Commercial driver's license, new (two-year or four-year)
- $108 (4 years (a 2-year license is also offered))Four-year license 108 dollars, two-year license 72 dollars (23 V.S.A. § 4110(a)(8)(A) and the DMV CDL Fees page). A driver who surrenders a valid Vermont Class D license gets a credit for its remaining full years. An enhanced CDL costs 36 dollars more (144 dollars for four years, 108 for two), and a motorcycle endorsement adds 4 dollars a year. The two-year option is not available to holders of a School Bus endorsement.
- Commercial driver's license renewal (two-year or four-year)
- $108 (4 years (a 2-year renewal is also offered))The DMV CDL Fees page prices new and renewal licenses in one column: 108 dollars for four years and 72 dollars for two. Renewal is in person; a renewal notice arrives about a month before expiration (six months for School Bus or HazMat holders), and the license expires on the fourth (or second) birthday anniversary after issue.
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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A first-time applicant pays the permit fee, a knowledge test fee for each test, the scheduling deposit and skills test fee, any endorsement test fees and then the license fee. The manual dates its fee table December 2024; the statute and the live CDL Fees page carry the same amounts.
Which class of CDL the work needs
The class is set by what you drive, and the definitions are federal: Vermont 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 Vermont
States split between running CDL skills tests themselves and certifying third-party testers; it changes where you book and who you pay.
- Testing model
- 23 V.S.A. § 4108(b)(3) says the knowledge and skills tests are prescribed and conducted by the Commissioner. The DMV gives the skills test (pre-trip inspection, control skills and road test) at its own skills test locations, booked through myDMV after the scheduling deposit is paid, in a vehicle representative of the class, with its registration, proof of insurance and a valid inspection sticker. The permit must be held at least 14 days first. § 4108(c) lets the Commissioner authorize third-party skills testers under 49 CFR 383.75, but the DMV pages and manual read name no third-party examiner. § 4108(d) allows a skills test waiver for qualifying military drivers (Form VL-054).
- Scheduling
- Customers who do not schedule an appointment in advance cannot be tested. Skills tests may be canceled for bad weather; call 802-828-2000 beforehand. Cancel at least 48 hours ahead or a new deposit is needed. mydmv.vermont.gov
- Before you apply
- An applicant must be at least 18 and hold a valid Vermont Class D operator's license to get a commercial learner's permit. A driver aged 18 to 20 may hold a CDL restricted to operation within Vermont; interstate driving starts at 21 (23 V.S.A. § 4108(b)(1)). Each applicant self-certifies a type of commerce, and drivers in non-excepted intrastate commerce provide a Vermont Only medical examiner's certificate. A permit holder drives only with a qualified CDL holder beside them and carries the Class D license too. A new resident must transfer an out-of-state CDL within 30 days.
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 Vermont'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 DMV restates the federal Entry-Level Driver Training rule in 49 CFR 380: ELDT applies to a first Class A or B CDL, an upgrade to a higher class, and a first School Bus, Passenger or HazMat endorsement, must be finished before the skills test (before the knowledge test for HazMat), and uses providers on FMCSA's Training Provider Registry. Nothing read adds a Vermont training requirement.
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: Vermont Commercial Driver's Manual (VN-111, 07/2025). 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 Vermont.
If you searched for Vermont 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 Vermont startup sequence