New Jersey CDL Practice Test

Everyone takes the General Knowledge test, and it must be passed before any endorsement test. Then add the tests for what you'll drive: Air Brakes (skip it and you get an L restriction), Combination Vehicles for Class A, and the endorsement tests for doubles or triples (T), passengers (P), school buses (S, which also needs P), tank vehicles (N) and hazardous materials (H).

50 questions, and you pass with 80% (40 correct). Each endorsement has its own separate test, also passed at 80%. The tests are multiple choice on a computer.

The Commercial Driver License Manual the New Jersey MVC posts (version March 2025): General Knowledge (Sections 1, 2 and 3), Transporting Passengers, Air Brakes, Combination Vehicles, Doubles and Triples, Tank Vehicles, Hazardous Materials and School Buses. The manual's chart shows which sections to study for each license class and endorsement. New Jersey Commercial Driver License Manual p. 1-5

Wait seven days, then take it again. There is no limit on attempts while your examination test receipt is valid (180 days); after that it must be renewed. Passing scores count for 360 days.

Yes, every CDL knowledge test is offered in English or Spanish except the Hazardous Materials test, which is in English only. There are no audio versions, and interpreters aren't allowed for the knowledge or road tests.

80% on each of the 8 tests, each graded on its own (General Knowledge: 40 of 50). Every test's numbers are in the table on this page. Always confirm the current tests with the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC). Why 80% in every state →

At least 18, with a New Jersey basic (Class D) license first. Under 21 you may drive only within New Jersey and can't get the hazmat or passenger endorsement; driving across state lines, hazmat, school bus and passenger work need age 21 and three years of driving experience.

A basic New Jersey license, 6 Points of ID (including your Social Security card, proof of address and lawful presence), the CDL application, a CDL Holder Self-Certification form, a medical examiner's certificate on file with the National Registry when your type of driving requires one, vision of 20/40 in each eye, and the ability to tell red, green and amber apart. You also buy a non-refundable examination test receipt before the knowledge tests.

A CLP is valid for 180 days and must be carried with your New Jersey driver license. Practice with a qualified CDL holder for at least 14 days, unless waived, before the skills test, which covers a pre-trip inspection, basic control skills and a road test in a vehicle you supply. If you fail, wait at least 14 days to retest.

Yes, from a provider on FMCSA's Training Provider Registry: before the Hazardous Materials knowledge test, and before the skills test for a first Class A or B CDL, a first passenger, school bus or hazmat endorsement, or an upgrade.

Vehicles carrying placarded hazardous materials, vehicles built for 16 or more people including the driver, vehicles that carry children to or from school, camp, child care and similar places, and vehicles used for hire that carry 8 to 15 people including the driver.

Among others: taxi drivers carrying fewer than seven passengers and ride-sharing van drivers, firefighters, rescue and first-aid squad drivers, farmers hauling their own goods within 150 miles of the farm, military operators, operators of construction equipment not built for public roads, and people driving recreational vehicles for personal use.

E: no manual-transmission vehicle (you tested in an automatic). K: within New Jersey only. O: no tractor-trailer. Q: 15 passengers or fewer. T: probationary driver with a supervising driver. V: medical variance. Z: no full air brake vehicle. An L restriction is added if you don't pass the air brakes tests.

New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) lists the current fees for the commercial learner permit, the CDL tests and the license on its official fee page.

Yes, once you've passed the pre-trip inspection. New Jersey lets you bank passed skills-test scores for one CLP cycle, 180 days from when the permit was issued. Bring the fail/denial form from the earlier attempt to the retest.

There's no set number, but after several failures the MVC can make you wait six months before testing again. Each retest is at least 14 days after a fail, and the CLP and test receipt must be renewed once their 180 days are up.

Your own, as the MVC doesn't lend one. It must suit the class or endorsement you're testing for and have a current inspection sticker, registration, an insurance card, legible GVWR placards and no cargo on board. Bring a licensed driver qualified for it, along with your test receipt and CLP.

Yes. New Jersey uses the manufacturer's weight rating or the registered gross weight, whichever is higher, so a truck registered at 26,001 pounds or more needs at least a Class B CDL. Air brakes alone don't make a lighter truck need a CDL.

At least 70 degrees of peripheral (side) vision in each eye, on top of 20/40 sight in each eye and being able to tell red, green and amber apart.

Complete entry-level driver training, apply to the TSA, submit fingerprints for its background check, and pass the Hazardous Materials test. You must be a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident. The endorsement lasts four years in New Jersey; to renew it, get fingerprinted at least 45 days before your license expires.

Every passenger endorsement holder needs a medical examiner's certificate on the National Registry, whatever their type of driving, and from September 1, 2026 a fingerprint receipt or results are needed when a CLP with a P endorsement is issued. School bus drivers also need federal and state background checks and a Department of Education employment history approval.

A first DUI conviction in a passenger vehicle brings a one-year CDL suspension on top of the basic license suspension, and a second one permanently revokes the CDL. After a DUI you also can't hold or apply for the passenger endorsement for three years.

If you'll live here more than six months, transfer it within 60 days of becoming a resident or before it expires: bring your CDL to a driver testing center, pass a vision test, bring a medical examiner's certificate and a signed self-certification form, and buy a transfer permit. Hazmat holders take the written test again and submit fingerprints; passenger holders submit fingerprints too.

Yes, a few federal rules. A first violation of an out-of-service order now costs your CDL for at least 180 days (the manual still says 90). If your license is suspended, revoked or canceled, or you are disqualified, tell your employer by the end of the next business day (the manual says within two business days). And for exams since June 23, 2025, FMCSA sends your medical examiner’s certificate to the state electronically, so you no longer hand in a paper copy.

Categories 1 (non-excepted interstate) and 3 (non-excepted intrastate) need a valid medical examiner's certificate on the National Registry. Categories 2 and 4, the excepted ones, need only the CDSC-1 self-certification form, unless you hold a passenger or school bus endorsement. Drivers under 21 must choose category 3 or 4.

The MVC decertifies and downgrades your CDL, and you can no longer legally drive a commercial vehicle. That happens if there's no signed self-certification form on file, or no valid electronic medical certificate or variance on the National Registry when your category needs one. A CDL can't be renewed until you comply.

Yes. Besides the federal medical certificate, school bus (S) drivers aged 70 to 74 give their employer a New Jersey medical exam form each year, by June 1, and drivers 75 and older every six months. Skipping it can cost you the right to drive a school bus.

Yes. A CLP holder faces the same tougher penalties as a CDL holder for moving violations, whether the ticket came while practicing in a commercial vehicle or while driving a personal car.

Yes, whenever you like. You can move down a class or take off an endorsement, and if you no longer want commercial privileges at all, a motor vehicle agency can change you back to a basic license.

Possibly. New Jersey has a Lifetime CDL Suspension Reinstatement Application under its CDL rules. You send it with every supporting document to the MVC's CDL/Bus Unit, which checks whether you meet the criteria and tells you in writing whether you qualify.

A CDL lasts four years, but your first one is shortened to end with your current basic license. Renewal is in person at a motor vehicle agency only, never by mail. Bring your 6 Points of ID and, when needed, the self-certification form.