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Regulatory Guidance

Welcome to the FMCSA Guidance Portal. This web portal is a searchable, indexed database that contains and links to all guidance documents in effect from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. The guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract.

To comment on any guidance document, or to request issuance, reconsideration, modification, or rescission of any guidance document, please identify the guidance document in your request and send it to: FMCSAguidance@dot.gov. NOTE: The FMCSAguidance mailbox is not intended to serve as a mailbox for general inquiries. For inquiries that go beyond the limited purpose of the FMCSAguidance mailbox, please call FMCSA's Information Line (800-832-5660) or visit FMCSA's "Contact Us" page to send your inquiry to the appropriate mailbox.

Subject Agency Identifier Topic Issued Date
May a State issue a “conditional,” “occupational” or “hardship” license that includes CDL driving privileges when a CDL holder loses driving privileges to operate a private passenger vehicle (non-CMV)? FMCSA-CDL-383.51-Gen-Q07 Commercial Driver License Standards; Hardship License CDL Privileges
Must the State use the date of conviction, rather than the offense date, to calculate the starting and ending dates for the driver disqualification period specified in § 383.51? FMCSA-CDL-383.51-Gen-Q08 Commercial Driver License Standards; Date of Conviction
Must the State use the offense date or the conviction date to determine if two or more serious traffic *8472 convictions occurred within a 3-year period? FMCSA-CDL-383.51-GenQ09 Commercial Driver License Standards; Offense Date vs Conviction Date
Is a driver of a combination vehicle with a GCWR of less than 26,001 pounds required to obtain a CDL, if the trailer’s GVWR is more than 10,000 pounds? FMCSA-CDL-383.91-Q02 Commercial Driver License Standards; CDL Requirement for Less than 26,001 pounds
§380.719 – Requirements for continued listing on the training provider registry Guidance Q&A Question 12: Is there a fee associated with registering on the Training Provider Registry? FMCSA-ELDT-380.719-Q012 380.719, Entry Level Driver Training,, Training Provider Registry
Do third party skills test examiners have to be qualified to administer skills tests in all types of CMVs? FMCSA-CDL-383.75-Q03 Commercial Driver License Standards; Third Party Testing, type of CMV
May a State expand a vehicle group to include vehicles that do not meet the Federal definition of the group? FMCSA-CDL-383.91-Q01 Commercial Driver License Standards; State Expansion of Vehicle Group Types
Do third party skills test examiners have to meet all the requirements of State-employed examiners—i.e., all the State’s qualification and training standards? FMCSA-CDL-383.75-Q02 Commercial Driver License Standards; Third Party Testing
Can a State which expands the vehicle group descriptions in § 383.91 enforce those expansions on out-of-State CMV drivers by requiring them to have a CDL? FMCSA-CDL-383.91-Q03 Commercial Driver License Standards; Enforcement of Out-of-State Drivers
What CMV group is a driver of an articulated motorcoach (bus) with a GVWR of 26,001 pounds or more required to possess? FMCSA-CDL-383.91-Q04 Commercial Driver License Standards; Articulated Bus, CDL Type