South Dakota CDL Practice Test

The South Dakota CDL manual lists them: General Knowledge 50 questions, Air Brakes 25, Hazardous Materials 30, and Combination Vehicles, Passenger Transport, Doubles/Triples, Tank Vehicle and School Bus 20 each. You need 80% or better on each test. South Dakota Commercial Driver License Manual p. 15

The South Dakota Commercial Driver License Manual (revised 07/2025): South Dakota’s own pages on who needs a CDL, the tests, the CLP, restrictions and disqualifications, then the national AAMVA text on inspection, safe driving, cargo, passengers, air brakes, combination vehicles, doubles and triples, tankers, hazardous materials and school buses. South Dakota Commercial Driver License Manual p. 12 to 25

No. Each test is given once per day, so a retest is the next business day. Passed tests (and their fees) stay valid for 6 months, and no interpreter is allowed. South Dakota Commercial Driver License Manual p. 15

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 South Dakota Department of Public Safety (DPS), Driver Licensing Program. Why 80% in every state →

Anyone driving a single vehicle rated 26,001 pounds or more, a combination rated 26,001 pounds or more towing a trailer rated over 10,000 pounds, a vehicle built for 16 or more people including the driver, or any vehicle that needs hazardous materials placards.

18, with a valid South Dakota Class 1 or Class 2 license for a CLP. You must be 21 to drive in interstate commerce on a CLP and to get a hazardous materials endorsement.

The CLP is valid for 1 year. You practice only with a CDL holder who is 21 or older and licensed for the vehicle, sitting beside you (or directly behind you in a bus). You must hold it 14 days before the skills test and pass all three skills tests on the same CLP. South Dakota Commercial Driver License Manual p. 15 to 16

Only with a third-party tester: South Dakota Driver Licensing locations don’t give CDL skills tests. Schedule at least two business days ahead, after 14 days on your CLP. The test has three parts (vehicle inspection, basic control skills, road test) and is given in English only.

Yes, the federal ELDT rule applies if you are getting a Class A or B CDL for the first time, upgrading from B to A, or adding a school bus, passenger or hazmat endorsement for the first time. South Dakota adds no training requirement of its own.

South Dakota Department of Public Safety (DPS), Driver Licensing Program lists the current fees for the commercial learner permit, the CDL tests and the license on its official fee page.

Anyone under 18, anyone whose license is suspended, revoked, canceled or disqualified, anyone who isn't a South Dakota resident or domiciled there, and people with large child support arrears (a thousand dollars or more), who may qualify for a 6-month temporary license instead.

You have up to 180 days after it expires to convert it to a CDL. Miss that window and you reapply and pass both the knowledge and skills tests again. A CLP held without a valid medical certificate is limited to driving within South Dakota.

The basic control skills part has a 30-minute limit, and the road test on a DPS-set route takes about 30 to 45 minutes. Failing the vehicle inspection postpones the other parts, failing any skill ends the test, and a vehicle with labeled or marked parts can't be used for the inspection.

Your certified medical examiner submits it electronically through the National Registry. Exam stations and the Driver Licensing Program no longer accept paper cards from drivers or companies, and a new certificate must arrive before the old one expires.

Yes. South Dakota no longer exempts intrastate CDL holders (the old Excepted Intrastate category) from the federal physical requirements, so they re-certify and keep a medical card like other drivers. A CDL without one is downgraded.

Certify the highest category you might use: a driver who stays in South Dakota but crosses the line once or twice a year must certify interstate. Drivers under 21 and in-state school bus drivers certify non-excepted intrastate and keep a K restriction, and adding or removing the K means a new license.

T (double/triple trailers), N (tank vehicle), H (hazardous materials) and X (tank plus hazmat) need knowledge tests only; P (passenger) and S (school bus) need a knowledge test and a skills test.

Age 21, the hazmat knowledge test, a TSA security threat assessment with fingerprints, and proof of citizenship or immigration status. South Dakota asks for the hazmat knowledge test again at every renewal and every transfer.

E bars manual transmissions, K keeps you inside South Dakota, L bars air brakes, M bars Class A buses, N bars Class A and B buses, O allows only vehicles without a fifth wheel, V shows a medical variance, W marks a seasonal CDL and Z bars full air brakes. CLPs may add P (no passengers) or X (empty tanks).

Not for farm-to-market trips within 150 miles of the farm in a farm vehicle run by the farmer, family or employees (drivers 16 or older with a valid license), or for covered farm vehicles with a farm sticker or designation. Seasonal farm-service workers can get a Seasonal CDL (restriction W) with no tests, for Class B or C vehicles within 150 air miles, for one 180-day or two 90-day periods a year. South Dakota Commercial Driver License Manual p. 12 to 20

Apply for a South Dakota CDL within 30 days and surrender your old one. A valid CDL transfers without testing, except that a hazmat endorsement needs the hazmat test and a TSA threat assessment. Commercial learner’s permits don’t transfer.

Current members, and former members within a year of leaving the service, can apply for a skills test waiver (knowledge tests still required) or, in qualifying military jobs, the "Even Exchange" that waives both. Neither covers hazmat, passenger or school bus endorsements. South Dakota Commercial Driver License Manual p. 16 to 17

Combined licenses: a Class A, B or C commercial license that also covers motorcycles. South Dakota's regular classes are Class 1 (car and truck), Class 2 (car, truck and motorcycle) and Class 3 (motorcycle only), and a CLP needs a Class 1 or Class 2 license.

Seasonal workers at custom harvesters, farm retail suppliers, agri-chemical businesses or livestock feeders who are 18, have held a regular operator license for a year (permits don't count), and have had no serious or major violations, suspensions or disqualifications in the past two years. The license is reissued each year to update its dates.

A first violation brings a 180-day disqualification, two in 10 years 2 years, and three in 10 years 3 years (3 and 5 years when hauling placarded hazmat or driving a vehicle for 16 or more people). South Dakota Commercial Driver License Manual p. 21

Besides speeding 15 mph over, reckless driving, bad lane changes, tailgating, texting and handheld phone use, South Dakota lists eluding police, careless driving, failing to stop or yield, failing to stop for a school bus or an officer, and improper passing in a commercial vehicle. Two in three years mean 60 days; three, 120.

Driving a commercial vehicle on a South Dakota road means you've already consented to testing. Refusing, in a commercial or personal vehicle, disqualifies you for at least a year and puts you out of service for 24 hours; a second major offense brings a lifetime ban, which may be reviewed after 10 years.