CDL Requirements in Kentucky
Verified against Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Division of Driver Licensing ·
Compiled and verified against primary state DMV/DPS/BMV sources by GetCDLLicense — cite-or-deny, with no invented figures. How we source & verify →
Kentucky splits CDL administration between two agencies: the Transportation Cabinet's Division of Driver Licensing issues the credential and handles self-certification, while the Kentucky State Police Driver Testing Branch administers both the knowledge and skills tests under KRS 281A.160(1)(a). Kentucky charges no flat first-time CDL fee — an original CDL is sold as a prorated add-on to the applicant's existing operator license — and the resulting CDL runs an unusually long 8-year cycle. Skills-test and retest fees feed a dedicated statutory State Police CDL skills-testing fund used to contract and train civilian examiners.
Kentucky's CDL requirements — including a $11 commercial learner permit fee and an intrastate minimum age of 18 — are verified against Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Division of Driver Licensing (see Kentucky Transportation Cabinet — New Pricing for Typical CDLs (fee schedule PDF)), current as of 2026-07-25.
Kentucky CDL Requirements at a Glance
This is the fee, age, and testing detail for Kentuckyspecifically — 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 | $11 |
| Minimum holding period before skills test | 14 days |
| CLP validity | 6 months |
| Age minimums | |
| Intrastate minimum age | 18 |
| Interstate minimum age | 21 (federal floor) |
| Fees | |
| Application fee | — |
| Initial CDL fee | — |
| Renewal fee | $88 |
| Renewal period | 8 years |
| Knowledge test fee | — |
| Skills test fee | $50 |
| Testing rules | |
| Third-party testers allowed | Yes |
| Retest waiting period | — |
Other published fees
- Skills test, applicant holding a Kentucky operator license under 30 days or an out-of-state license/CLP: $150
- Skills retest, per additional attempt: $50
- Endorsement knowledge test (tanker, doubles/triples, passenger, school bus, hazmat): $5
- Combination, air brake, or endorsement written retest, per attempt after the first: $5
- REAL ID renewal, operator/CDL: $93
- Renewal, operator/CDL with S endorsement: $73
- REAL ID renewal, operator/CDL with S endorsement: $78
- Renewal, operator/motorcycle/CDL: $98
- Transfer, operator/CDL: $103
- REAL ID transfer, operator/CDL: $108
- S endorsement application fee (Class A only): $24
- S endorsement application fee (Class B only): $9
- Hazmat fingerprinting and application processing (paid to Kentucky State Police): $138.25
- National Crime Information Center (NCIC) background check: $3
- Duplicate license: $15
- Farm Restricted Service CDL, Class B (60, 120, or 180 days): $15
- Reinstatement after suspension, revocation, or disqualification: $50
KRS 281A.120(3) caps a commercial learner's permit at 180 days and allows only one renewal or reissuance within a two-year period for the same vehicle class. Applicants must already hold a valid Kentucky Class D operator's license and clear the KRS 281A.300 criminal history background check. A permit issued to an 18-to-20-year-old Kentucky resident under KRS 281A.120(2) is valid only for intrastate operation, carries a mandatory "K" restriction printed on the card, and cannot be used for a school bus or a hazardous-materials load.
KRS 281A.170(6) bars anyone under 21 from holding a Class A, B, or C license without a "K" restriction and from operating a school bus at any age under 21; KRS 281A.170(7) then bars a "K"-restricted driver from interstate operation. Kentucky does, however, expressly permit a CDL holder under 21 to carry a hazardous-materials endorsement for intrastate transport under KRS 281A.170(6)(b).
KRS 281A.160(4) authorizes the State Police to approve third-party skills testers under a 49 C.F.R. §383.75 agreement, and KRS 281A.160(5) requires administrative regulations keeping an arm's-length relationship between any third-party tester and commercial truck-driving programs run by KCTCS or KRS Chapter 165A proprietary schools. In practice all publicly advertised scheduling routes through the Kentucky State Police Driver Testing Branch itself, funded via the statutory State Police CDL skills-testing fund to contract and train civilian examiners. A score of at least 80% is required on each of the three skills-test portions (pre-trip inspection, basic maneuvering, road skills), and an applicant retests only on the portions failed. Knowledge-test failures may be retaken the next day tests are administered; after six failures a 3-day wait applies, and after three further failures another 3-day wait. Skills tests may be retaken an unlimited number of times but no more than once in any 24-hour period, and failing any one portion four times triggers a mandatory 7-day wait. Missing a skills-test appointment without 48 hours' notice or a written medical excuse counts as a failure of every portion scheduled and forfeits the fee.
Kentucky CDL Endorsements
| Endorsement | Available | Fee | Knowledge test | Skills test |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hazardous materials (H) | Yes | $5 | Yes | No |
| Tank vehicle (N) | Yes | $5 | Yes | — |
| Doubles/triples (T) | Yes | $5 | Yes | — |
| Passenger (P) | Yes | $5 | Yes | Yes |
| School bus (S) | Yes | $5 | Yes | Yes |
Hazardous materials: Kentucky publishes a $5 endorsement knowledge test fee. Fingerprinting and application processing are handled by the Kentucky State Police Driver Testing Branch by appointment (888-655-9655), with a separate KSP-collected fee. Applicants must already hold a Kentucky CDL or Kentucky CDL permit to qualify. Kentucky permits an under-21 CDL holder to carry the hazmat endorsement for intrastate transport only (KRS 281A.170(6)(b)).
Tank vehicle: Kentucky publishes a $5 endorsement knowledge test fee. KRS 281A.170(3)(b) also defines a combined "X" endorsement covering tank and hazardous-materials operation together. No separate skills test is stated for the N endorsement.
Doubles/triples: Kentucky publishes a $5 endorsement knowledge test fee. KRS 281A.170(3)(b)(2) defines the "T" endorsement as authorizing double and triple trailers in jurisdictions that allow triples. No separate skills test is stated for the T endorsement.
Passenger: Kentucky publishes a $5 endorsement knowledge test fee. Adding the P endorsement is one of the license actions the CDL manual states will additionally require an application fee, a CDL instruction permit fee, and a new license fee, and the skills test must be taken in a passenger vehicle of the licensed class.
School bus: Beyond the $5 endorsement knowledge test fee, Kentucky charges a distinct S endorsement application fee of $24 (Class A) or $9 (Class B), and adding the endorsement also requires an application fee, CDL instruction permit fee, and new license fee. Notably, KRS 281A.160(3)(a) exempts S-endorsement applicants from the skills-testing fee entirely. KRS 281A.175 additionally requires a school bus driver to pass a physical examination at least every 24 months. No one under 21 may operate a school bus in Kentucky (KRS 281A.170(6)(a)(2)).
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 Kentucky
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 Kentucky
Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Division of Driver Licensing administers self-certification for the following FMCSA operating categories:
- Non-excepted interstate
- Excepted interstate
- Non-excepted intrastate
- Excepted intrastate
Form TC 94-169 prints all four FMCSA categories, but Kentucky narrows them in two state-specific ways. First, 601 KAR 1:005 requires every Kentucky CDL holder to be medically certified regardless of which category is selected — so the form instructs that "no CDL holder/applicant is excepted intrastate and should never mark this category." Second, either intrastate category forces a "K" restriction to be printed on the CDL or permit, which is the actual mechanism barring interstate operation.
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.
- Kentucky does not charge a flat first-time CDL fee. An original CDL is priced as a prorated add-on to your existing operator license, running $18.75–$45 (standard) or $23.75–$50 (REAL ID) depending on how much time is left on that license — so two applicants can pay different amounts for the same credential on the same day.
- Kentucky's self-certification form lists all four federal categories but then instructs that one of them must never be used: because 601 KAR 1:005 requires every Kentucky CDL holder to be medically certified, the form states that "no CDL holder/applicant is excepted intrastate and should never mark this category." Kentucky effectively removes the excepted-intrastate medical exemption that the federal categories otherwise allow.
- The 2025 Kentucky CDL Manual states the hazmat fingerprinting charge inconsistently within a single section: it gives $138.25 twice as the amount to pay online or by certified check, then tells applicants to bring "the $115.00 payment" to the appointment. We record $138.25, the figure stated twice and tied to the actual payment channels, but the $115.00 line is still printed in the current manual — confirm the amount with the Kentucky State Police Driver Testing Branch before paying.
- Two current Kentucky sources disagree on how long a commercial learner's permit lasts: KRS 281A.120(3) caps it at 180 days, while the Transportation Cabinet's live fee sheet labels the $11 Standard Commercial Permit "Valid for One Year." The statute is the controlling authority, and this record follows it.
means no primary source publishes that figure — left blank on purpose rather than estimated or copied from an unverified aggregator.
Sources
- Kentucky Transportation Cabinet — New Pricing for Typical CDLs (fee schedule PDF)
- KRS 281A.160 — Testing of knowledge and skills, fees, State Police CDL skills-testing fund
- KRS 281A.170 — Form of licenses, endorsement codes, age limits, 8-year expiration
- KRS 281A.150 — Applicants to apply in person, statutory fee ceilings
- KRS 281A.120 — Issuance of commercial learner's permit
- Kentucky State Police — 2025 Commercial Driver License Manual (PDF)
- KYTC Form TC 94-169 — Commercial Driver License Self-Certification
- KYTC Division of Driver Licensing — Commercial Driver's License
- Kentucky State Police — Driver Testing Branch
Data last verified: 2026-07-25 (verified by: agent) | Source: Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Division of Driver Licensing