CDL skills test

Three parts, for the vehicle you will drive

49 CFR 383.113 requires three groups of skills for the class of vehicle the applicant operates or expects to operate.

The pre-trip inspection is the first. On every test vehicle the applicant must identify each safety-related part and explain what to inspect. The section names the engine compartment, the cab and engine start, steering, suspension, brakes, wheels, the side of the vehicle, the rear of the vehicle, and the special features of a tractor-trailer, school bus, or coach if that is the test vehicle. If the test vehicle has air brakes, the applicant must also locate the air-brake controls, check the connections and the low-pressure warning, confirm that the system holds air with the engine running, and check that the brakes work.

Basic control is the second. The applicant must start, warm up, and shut down the engine; move and accelerate smoothly forward and backward; stop smoothly; back in a straight line while checking the path; position the vehicle and turn left and right; shift as required; and back along a curved path.

On-road driving is the third. The section lists visual search, signals, speed for the road and the conditions, gaps for lanes and intersections, turn position and off-tracking, following distance, weather, and watching other vehicles before a change in speed or direction.

Checked October 29, 2026: 49 CFR 383.113.

The permit wait, and where the test happens

49 CFR 383.25(e) says the permit holder is not eligible to take the skills test in the first 14 days after the permit is first issued. 49 CFR 383.113(d) says the skills test is conducted in on-street conditions, or in a combination of on-street and off-street conditions. Paragraph (e) allows a state to use simulators, but not as a substitute for the required testing in on-street conditions.

The state books the appointment and supplies, or approves, the test vehicle. This page does not list a state’s appointment phone number or a retest fee. Those were not in the federal sections checked. Use your state licensing agency. The permit guide covers the knowledge tests that come before this one. A state may waive this test for qualifying military CMV experience. The conditions are in the veterans guide, not on this page.

Passing is not a published point total on this page

49 CFR 383.135(b)(1) says the applicant must successfully perform all of the skills in 49 CFR 383.113 and attain the scores in the examiner manual for the vehicle being used. This page does not reprint that manual, so it does not state a point value.

Paragraph (b)(2) requires an automatic failure if the applicant does not obey traffic laws, causes an accident during the test, or commits an offense listed as an automatic failure in the driver and examiner manuals referred to in 49 CFR 383.131. Those manuals are the list. This guide does not add offenses they do not name.

A driver whose CDL has already expired should read the refresher guide before booking this test. Virginia and New Mexico publish different cutoffs, and 49 CFR 383.73 does not set one national expiration retest. The vehicle you test in can also add a restriction. Air brakes, transmission, and the fifth-wheel connection are covered in the class comparison. Use the pre-trip guide and the practice sets to study the federal topics. They are not the state exam.