CDL Requirements in Arkansas
Verified against Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, Office of Driver Services ·
Compiled and verified against primary state DMV/DPS/BMV sources by GetCDLLicense — cite-or-deny, with no invented figures. How we source & verify →
Arkansas's Department of Finance and Administration (DFA), Office of Driver Services, issues CDLs and CLPs, but the Arkansas State Police (ASP) is named directly on DFA's own restrictions table as the assigning authority for several skills-test-related restriction codes (no manual transmission, no air brake, no Class A passenger vehicle, no tractor-trailer) — evidence of a split administrative role rather than DFA acting alone end to end. Arkansas raised its CDL fee from $40 to $50 and extended the renewal cycle from four to five years under Act 753, effective January 1, 2022. DFA also offers a federally-optional restricted CDL for farm-related service industries (agri-chemical businesses, custom harvesters, farm retail suppliers, livestock feeders) that waives the standard knowledge and skills tests.
Arkansas's CDL requirements — including a $50 CDL fee and an intrastate minimum age of 18 — are verified against Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, Office of Driver Services (see Arkansas DFA — Commercial Drivers License (CDL)), current as of 2026-07-25.
Arkansas CDL Requirements at a Glance
This is the fee, age, and testing detail for Arkansasspecifically — for the full step-by-step process see how to get a CDL, and for what Class A, B, and C each permit see CDL classes.
| Commercial learner’s permit (CLP) | |
|---|---|
| CLP fee | — |
| Minimum holding period before skills test | 14 days |
| CLP validity | 12 months |
| Age minimums | |
| Intrastate minimum age | 18 |
| Interstate minimum age | 21 (federal floor) |
| Fees | |
| Application fee | — |
| Initial CDL fee | $50 |
| Renewal fee | $50 |
| Renewal period | 5 years |
| Knowledge test fee | — |
| Skills test fee | — |
| Testing rules | |
| Third-party testers allowed | — |
| Retest waiting period | — |
Valid for up to 1 year; after expiration the CLP holder must retake the general and endorsement knowledge tests. The CLP holder must be 18 or older, hold a valid driver's license from the same jurisdiction, and have passed the general knowledge test. A CLP holder is not eligible to take the CDL skills test in the first 14 days after initial issuance, matching (not exceeding) the federal floor. The CLP itself counts as a valid CDL for behind-the-wheel training only while the CLP holder is directly supervised by a CDL holder qualified for the vehicle group/endorsement in use.
DFA's CLP page sets a blanket 18-or-older minimum to hold a CLP at all, without itself distinguishing interstate from intrastate. The interstate/intrastate split is instead enforced through the state's four-category self-certification system: a driver certifying Non-Excepted or Excepted Intrastate (Types 3/4, 'NA'/'EA') gets a 'K' restriction (operation within Arkansas only) placed on the license.
A CDL can be renewed without retesting as long as it has not been expired for 1 year or more (per DFA's own DSMV FAQ); if downgraded or voluntarily surrendered for 1 year or more, the holder must retake all phases of the CDL exam. No DFA page found states whether Arkansas runs a third-party CDL skills-testing program, nor does any page publish a fixed day-based retest waiting period, so both are left unrecorded rather than assumed.
Arkansas CDL Endorsements
| Endorsement | Available | Fee | Knowledge test | Skills test |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hazardous materials (H) | Yes | — | Yes | No |
| Tank vehicle (N) | Yes | — | Yes | No |
| Doubles/triples (T) | Yes | — | Yes | No |
| Passenger (P) | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
| School bus (S) | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
Hazardous materials: Arkansas does not allow an out-of-state Hazardous Materials Endorsement (HME) holder to transfer any remaining validity period into an Arkansas HME — a new threat assessment must be completed for Arkansas. No separate DFA endorsement fee is published.
Tank vehicle: Code N (Tank Vehicles). A CLP must carry an 'X' restriction (no cargo) before this endorsement can be added, restricting the holder to an empty tank vehicle that has been fully purged of any prior hazardous-material residue. No separate DFA endorsement fee is published.
Doubles/triples: Code T (Double and Triple Trailers): allows a truck-tractor combination with up to 3 trailers/semi-trailers. No separate DFA endorsement fee is published. Arkansas also publishes a distinct 'X' code (Combination Hazmat/Tank) requiring both the tank-vehicle and hazardous-materials knowledge exams together — a combined-endorsement structure this site's five-endorsement layout does not separately represent, so it is described here rather than given its own entry.
Passenger: Code P: allows transport of 16 or more passengers including the driver. A CLP holder carrying a P endorsement may not operate a CMV carrying passengers other than federal/state auditors and inspectors, test examiners, other trainees, or the CDL supervising driver. No separate DFA endorsement fee is published.
School bus: Code S: requires passing a special knowledge exam on safety considerations for transporting passengers in a school bus, plus a skills test performed in an actual school bus. A CLP holder carrying an S endorsement may not operate a school bus carrying passengers other than federal/state auditors and inspectors, test examiners, other trainees, or the CDL supervising driver. No separate DFA endorsement fee is published.
For what each endorsement permits, the federal knowledge/skills testing baseline behind it, and hazmat’s separate TSA security threat assessment, see CDL endorsements.
Federal requirements that apply in Arkansas
These are set by federal regulators and are the same in every US jurisdiction. Full detail here.
- Entry-Level Driver Training (ELDT). Since February 2022, first-time CDL applicants — and drivers upgrading to Class A or seeking a first-time school bus, passenger, or hazmat endorsement — must complete Entry-Level Driver Training with a provider on the FMCSA Training Provider Registry before testing.
- DOT medical certificate. Most CDL holders who operate in interstate commerce must hold a valid DOT medical examiner's certificate, issued by an examiner listed on the FMCSA National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners.
- Interstate minimum age. Federal rules set 21 as the minimum age to drive commercially across state lines; states set their own intrastate minimum, commonly 18.
- Hazmat security threat assessment. A hazardous materials endorsement additionally requires a TSA security threat assessment, which is a federal process separate from the state endorsement.
Self-certification in Arkansas
Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, Office of Driver Services administers self-certification for the following FMCSA operating categories:
- Non-Excepted Interstate
- Excepted Interstate
- Non-Excepted Intrastate
- Excepted Intrastate
DFA's own CDL Self-Certification and Medical Card Information chart lays out all four FMCSA categories under Arkansas's own Type numbering: Type 1 (NI) Non-Excepted Interstate — federal medical card required; Type 2 (EI) Excepted Interstate — medical card not required; Type 3 (NA) Non-Excepted Intrastate — federal medical card required; Type 4 (EA) Excepted Intrastate — medical card not required. A 'V' restriction is added for any FMCSA medical variance; a 'K' restriction is added for either intrastate category.
Source Notes
Where a source is stale, conflicting, or required a judgment call, we document it here rather than presenting a single confident-sounding number. See our methodology for how these calls are made.
- Arkansas's DFA does not publish a standalone CDL/CLP fee schedule page. The $50, five-year CDL fee cited here is drawn from DFA's 'Recent Changes in the Law' bulletin describing Act 753 of 2021 (effective January 1, 2022), which raised the fee from $40 for a four-year license. No more recent fee change was found; confirm current pricing with a local Revenue Office or the CDL Help Desk before applying.
means no primary source publishes that figure — left blank on purpose rather than estimated or copied from an unverified aggregator.
Sources
- Arkansas DFA — Commercial Drivers License (CDL)
- Arkansas DFA — Commercial Endorsements
- Arkansas DFA — CLP - Commercial Learner's Permit
- Arkansas DFA — Commercial Restrictions
- Arkansas DFA — Hazardous Materials Endorsement
- Arkansas DFA — Medical Certification/SPE/Waiver and Exemptions
- Arkansas DFA — CDL Self-Certification and Medical Card Information (chart)
- Arkansas DFA — Restricted CDL (farm-related industries)
- Arkansas DFA — Recent Changes in the Law (Act 753, CDL fee/renewal cycle)
- Arkansas DFA — DSMV FAQs (CDL renewal without retesting)
- Arkansas DFA — Driver Services (division contacts)
- Arkansas DFA — Driver Services Forms
Data last verified: 2026-07-25 (verified by: agent) | Source: Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, Office of Driver Services