How to check that a CDL school is registered with FMCSA

Why the Training Provider Registry matters since 2022, what registration does and does not prove, and the questions to ask before you pay tuition.

If you are getting a commercial driver's license for the first time, the school you pick has to be on a federal list. Since February 7, 2022, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has required most new CDL applicants to complete entry-level driver training (ELDT) with a provider listed on its Training Provider Registry (TPR) before they can take the CDL skills test. Training from an unregistered school does not count, no matter how good it is. This guide explains how to check a school, what the registry does and does not tell you, and what else to ask before you sign an enrollment agreement.

Why registration matters

When you finish ELDT, the training provider has to report it to FMCSA through the registry. Under 49 CFR 380.717 the provider must send your name, license or permit number, the CDL class or endorsement you trained for, whether you completed theory, behind-the-wheel training or both, the total clock hours you spent behind the wheel, and its own TPR number, by midnight of the second business day after you finish. Your state licensing agency checks that record before it lets you take the skills test (or, for hazmat, the knowledge test). If the school is not on the registry, there is no record to send, and you may have to pay for training a second time.

The rule applies to people applying for a Class A or Class B CDL for the first time, Class B holders upgrading to Class A, and first-time applicants for the passenger (P), school bus (S) or hazardous materials (H) endorsement. FMCSA's ELDT applicability page explains the exceptions, such as drivers who already held a CDL or a commercial learner's permit issued before February 7, 2022.

How to look a school up

1. Search the registry. Go to the TPR search and look for the school by name or by your location. Each listing on this site comes from FMCSA's daily download of the same registry, and shows the registered location name and the provider behind it.
2. Check the location, not just the brand. Every campus or training site must register separately and gets its own TPR number (49 CFR 380.703(a)(7)). A chain that is registered in one city is not automatically registered at the yard where you will drive.
3. Check the class and the training type. The registry records, for each class and endorsement, whether the location offers theory (classroom or online), behind-the-wheel range training (a closed course) and behind-the-wheel public road training. A location registered only for Class B theory cannot complete your Class A training.
4. Check that it is open to you. Many registered locations are private: carriers, school districts, utilities and government agencies that only train their own employees. This site lists only locations that are open to the public.

Theory and driving can come from different providers

ELDT has two parts. Theory covers topics such as vehicle inspection, hours of service, hazard perception and trip planning, and ends with a written assessment on which you need an overall score of at least 80 percent (49 CFR 380.715). Behind-the-wheel (BTW) training is done in a real commercial vehicle on a range and on public roads, and the instructor has to document that you are proficient in every skill in the curriculum.

The rules allow you to take theory from one registered provider (often online) and BTW from another. But both parts of BTW training, range and public road, must come from the same provider (49 CFR 380.707(c)). If a school offers only range time and sends you elsewhere for road training, ask how that will be certified.

What registration does not tell you

Registration is a self-certification. To get on the list, a provider attests through FMCSA's online form that it follows the federal curriculum, uses qualifying vehicles, facilities and instructors, and holds any license its state requires. FMCSA can audit or investigate a provider and can remove it from the registry, but being listed is not an inspection, a quality rating or an accreditation. The registry does not publish pass rates, prices, job placement figures or complaints.

There are also no minimum hours. The federal curriculum in Appendix A to Part 380 says there is no required minimum number of hours for theory or for behind-the-wheel training; the instructor must cover every topic and decide when you are proficient. Two registered schools can therefore offer very different amounts of driving time for the same license.

Check the state license too

A provider that trains in person must be licensed, certified, registered or otherwise authorized to provide training under the laws of the state where the training takes place (49 CFR 380.703(a)(5)). Depending on the state, that may be the private postsecondary or career school agency, the department of motor vehicles, or the department of education. A state license often comes with rules on refund policies, enrollment contracts and student complaints, so it is worth knowing which agency oversees your school. Online-only theory providers are exempt from state rules on theory instruction.

Instructors

A behind-the-wheel instructor must hold a CDL of the same or a higher class with the endorsements needed for the vehicle, and have at least two years of experience either driving that kind of vehicle or teaching behind the wheel, and meet any state instructor requirements (49 CFR 380.605). Range-only instructors may instead have previously held such a CDL. It is fair to ask a school how long its instructors have been driving and teaching.

Warning signs

• The school cannot give you its TPR number, or the name on the registry does not match the business you are paying.
• The location you will attend is not on the registry, or is registered only for theory.
• You are told the training "doesn't need to be registered" or that the certificate will be uploaded "later" with no date.
• FMCSA's registry shows a notice of proposed removal. When FMCSA proposes to remove a provider, it notes that on the registry and the provider must tell current and future students (49 CFR 380.723).

Questions to ask before you enroll

• What is your TPR number for this location, and which classes and endorsements is it registered for?
• How many hours will I personally spend driving, on the range and on public roads? How many students share a truck?
• Is the truck I will test in manual or automatic? (Testing in an automatic puts a "no manual transmission" restriction on your license.)
• Does tuition include the truck for the skills test, the permit and test fees, the DOT physical and a drug test?
• What is the refund policy if I leave, and which state agency licenses the school?

Every school on this site was listed on FMCSA's registry as an active, public, in-person location on the date shown on its profile. Always confirm the current registration on the TPR before you pay, because providers can be added, changed or removed at any time.

Updated 2026-10-16.

General information only, current as of the date above. The information on CDL School Check is not a safety rating or recommendation. Federal registration shows a company's authority and filings, not the quality of its service. Check the carrier's current status on the official FMCSA site and read your contract before you book. Rules and programs change; check the official sources linked in this guide.