Quick answer: To get a Maryland CDL you pick a class (A, B, or C), complete federal Entry-Level Driver Training from a provider on the FMCSA registry, pass the knowledge test, hold a commercial learner’s permit while you practice, pass the skills test, and clear a DOT medical exam. You must already hold a regular driver’s license, be 18 to drive within Maryland or 21 to drive interstate or haul hazmat, and give up any out-of-state license. The MVA issues the credential; the harder part is keeping it once you have it.
I’m David Waranch, and I’ve handled thousands of Maryland traffic and CDL cases. I don’t help people get a commercial license, the MVA does that, but I do help drivers keep the one they worked for. If you’re about to spend months and real money earning a CDL, you should know both the process and what can take it away. The second half is the part you won’t find on the MVA’s site.
What Are the CDL Classes in Maryland?
Maryland follows the federal vehicle groups in 49 C.F.R. § 383.91. The class you hold decides what you’re allowed to drive, and driving a vehicle outside your class is itself a serious traffic violation, so get this right before you test.
| Class | Type | What it lets you drive |
|---|---|---|
| A | Combination | Any combination of vehicles with a Gross Combination Weight Rating of 26,001 lbs or more, where the vehicle(s) being towed exceed 10,000 lbs GVWR. |
| B | Heavy straight | Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 lbs or more, or such a vehicle towing a unit not over 10,000 lbs. |
| C | Small / special | Anything that is neither A nor B but is designed to carry 16 or more passengers including the driver, or is used to transport hazardous materials. |
Two details trip people up. For Class A it’s Gross Combination Weight Rating, and the 10,000 lb figure applies to what you’re towing, not the truck. For Class C it’s 16 or more including the driver, so fifteen passengers plus you, not “over 16.” The classes also step down: a Class A holder can drive Class B and C vehicles, and Class B covers Class C, as long as you hold the right endorsements. It’s worth learning which Maryland CDL endorsements you actually need before you sit any test, because each one has its own requirements.
How Do You Get a Maryland CDL, Step by Step?
The path runs through a permit first, then the road test. Here is the order the MVA and the federal rules require:
- Hold a regular driver’s license first, and only one. The one-license rule is federal. You cannot keep a CDL in Maryland and a driver’s license from another state at the same time, so you surrender the out-of-state license.
- Complete Entry-Level Driver Training (ELDT). Mandatory since February 2022 for any first-time Class A or Class B CDL, and for a first-time School Bus, Passenger, or Hazmat endorsement. It must come from a provider listed on the FMCSA’s Training Provider Registry. If your school isn’t on the registry, your test doesn’t count, so confirm before you pay anyone.
- Pass the knowledge test. This is the written exam for your class and any endorsements you want.
- Get your commercial learner’s permit (CLP) and practice. Only three endorsements can go on a CLP: Passenger (P), School Bus (S), and Tank (N).
- Pass the skills test in a representative vehicle for your class. Under federal ELDT rules, first-time applicants must finish the training before taking the CLP-to-CDL skills test.
- Clear the DOT medical exam and file a current medical certificate. Some conditions have waiver programs.
You’ll also need proof of identity, age, and Maryland residency. Fees change, so check the MVA for current figures rather than trusting a number that may be out of date.
How Old Do You Have to Be for a Maryland CDL?
You can earn a CDL at 18, but until you turn 21 you’re limited to intrastate driving, meaning Maryland only. One trip across the Virginia or Pennsylvania line and you’ve breached the restriction. You also cannot carry hazardous materials until 21, because the hazmat endorsement requires a TSA background check that isn’t open to younger drivers. Interstate work and hazmat both wait until your 21st birthday.
Can You Lose a CDL for Something You Did in Your Own Car?
Yes, and this is the one that ends careers. Under 49 C.F.R. § 383.51, mirrored in Maryland by Md. Code, Transp. § 16-812, a DUI in a non-commercial vehicle, your own car, off duty, nothing to do with work, disqualifies you from driving commercially for one year. A second major offense in any vehicle at any time is a lifetime disqualification, which the state may reduce to 10 years only after you complete an approved rehabilitation program. The alcohol limit behind the wheel of a commercial vehicle is 0.04, half of what applies to everyone else, and if you’re hauling placarded hazardous materials when a major offense happens, the one year becomes three.
The costly myth: “It happened in my personal car on the weekend, so it can’t touch my commercial license.” It can, and it does. The federal rules count a major-offense conviction the same whether you were in a truck or your family sedan. Before you plead to anything, talk to a lawyer, because the disqualification lands on your livelihood, not just your driving record. See our full breakdown of CDL disqualifications in Maryland.
Do Ordinary Traffic Tickets Disqualify a CDL?
Not on their own, but they stack up fast. “Serious traffic violations” under § 383.51 include going 15 mph or more over the limit, reckless driving, following too closely, improper or erratic lane changes, texting or using a hand-held phone while driving a CMV, and driving without the proper class or endorsement. A single one carries no disqualification. But a second within three years is a 60-day disqualification, and a third within three years is 120 days. Two speeding tickets you’d have shrugged off as a car driver can put you out of work for two months, which is why how traffic tickets affect a Maryland CDL deserves a closer look than most drivers give it.
Will a PBJ Keep a Conviction Off My CDL Record?
No. Probation before judgment is the outcome that rescues most Maryland drivers, no conviction and no points, but for a CDL holder it does nothing. The federal anti-masking rule, 49 C.F.R. § 384.226, forbids a state from hiding, deferring, or diverting a CDL holder’s conviction. Maryland cannot mask it, however sympathetic the judge, and a PBJ won’t protect a commercial driver the way it protects everyone else. This is exactly why I tell commercial clients not to just pay the ticket: paying is a guilty plea, a guilty plea is a conviction, and that conviction lands on a federal record that follows you to every carrier you’ll ever apply to. If a DUI is involved, the stakes climb higher still, which is covered in detail under Maryland DUI and CDLs. For the wider picture, our CDL and commercial drivers knowledge hub pulls the whole area together.
If you already hold a CDL and you’ve been cited, call before your court date and before you pay anything. As a Maryland truck driver traffic violation lawyer, I know the margin for error here is far smaller than it is for other drivers, and in many cases I can appear for you and resolve the case without a conviction.
Frequently Asked Questions
Class A is for combinations, such as a tractor pulling a trailer over 10,000 lbs with a combined rating of 26,001 lbs or more. Class B is a single heavy vehicle rated 26,001 lbs or more. A Class A license also lets you drive Class B and Class C vehicles with the right endorsements.
If this is your first Class A or Class B CDL, or your first School Bus, Passenger, or Hazmat endorsement, yes. Entry-Level Driver Training has been mandatory since February 2022, and it must come from a provider on the FMCSA Training Provider Registry. Training from an unlisted provider does not count.
Yes. A DUI in your own vehicle, off duty, disqualifies you from driving commercially for one year, and three years if you were hauling placarded hazmat. A second major offense in any vehicle is a lifetime disqualification. The federal rules do not care that you were not working at the time.
Law Offices of David R. Waranch — 301-563-9575 · toll-free 1-877-566-2408. Hablamos Español.
Last updated: August 2026. Statutory references: 49 C.F.R. §§ 383.51, 383.91, 384.226; Md. Code, Transp. § 16-812. This page is general information about Maryland and federal commercial licensing law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.