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Massachusetts CDL Requirements
Everyone in the State of Massachusetts who wishes to obtain or who currently holds a commercial driver license is federally required to inform the RMV of the type of commerce they plan to operate.
- Non-Excepted Interstate (NI)
You must meet the Federal DOT medical certificate requirements. - Non-Excepted Intrastate (NA)
You must meet the Massachusetts State driver qualification requirements.
You should certify at the highest standard for which you qualify so as to not limit work opportunities. Non-Excepted Interstate (NI) is the broadest category and the one you should select if you meet the criteria, even if you currently do not consider yourself an interstate driver.
What if I can’t meet the medical qualifications for interstate commercial operation?
If you do not meet the Federal DOT medical certificate requirements, you may qualify for an intrastate medical waiver through the Registry of Motor Vehicles. This waiver permits operation of a CMV used in Massachusetts intrastate commerce only. Individuals who have been issued a intrastate medical waiver will have a W (waiver) restriction placed on their license.
CDL Self-Certification
Submit the following two documents:
- Massachusetts Department of Transportation CDL Self-Certification Form, LIC103_0118, download the form here from MassDOT.
- Copy of your valid DOT medical card (Medical Examiner’s Certificate only, not the long form). Enlarge the copy to ensure that all information is legible.
Online:
Go to myRMV Online Service Center
By Mail:
MassDOT, RMV Division
Driver Licensing
PO Box 55889
Boston, MA 02205
In Person:
At any RMV branch office.
Medical Certificate Renewal
For NI and NA categorized drivers, self-certification is tied to the expiration date of the medical certificate, variance, SPE or waiver. Therefore, drivers will need to re-certify using the same form when they renew these documents. Depending on the validity period of your medical card, you will most likely have to re-certify every 1 to 2 years.
To avoid a downgrade of your CDL, make sure you renew your medical certificate and re-certify with MassDOT before your medical card’s expiration date. Use the CDL Self-Certification process, described above, to keep your Medical Certificate updated with Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles.
Special Information Updates Pertaining To ALL STATES
MEDICAL EXAMINERS MUST CONTINUE TO ISSUE MEDICAL CERTIFICATES TO ALL DRIVERS
The FMCSA has requested that all medical examiners continue providing drivers with a paper copy of the Medical Examiner’s Certificate – Form MCSA-5876, so that Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) holders can provide a copy to the State licensing agency, and the non-CDL drivers can provide the documentation to their employers and Federal and State enforcement officials.
The Agency is currently completing efforts to put into place an electronic system to enable medical examiners to transmit the medical certificate information from the National Registry system to the State licensing agencies.
Until that system is completed, which compliance date according FMCSA is June 23, 2025, medical examiners must continue to issue paper copies of the medical certificates to drivers who pass the medical exam.
ALL DRIVERS MUST CONTINUE TO CARRY A PAPER COPY OF THEIR MEDICAL CERTIFICATE
Commercial Drivers – You still need to carry a paper copy of your medical card, until FMCSA announces that this is no longer necessary.
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Dealing with Federal DOT Regulations across the board is tough enough!
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In Ma. at age 70
Do I need to get a med card issued to me for 6 months?
If I already have a med. card for 2 years that hasn’t expired?
@Doug
Why are you asking this question? More information would be very helpful.
I self certified 2 years. I no longer work and haven’t since 2005..However I want to keep my Class B- CDL. Why do I need a medical card?
I drive a small pick up truck (Toyota Tacoma) for the company I work for. We are a Utility Construction company in Massachusetts. Am I required to get a DOT Certificate?
@Alex
Most likely yes.
Check with your local drivers license department or ask a state trooper.
I just did drud test ,blood pressure portion ,eye test,hearing test,and weight test(50lbs)The company wants me to drive box truck do i need to redo evertything again. Non CDL with air brakes.
@Nicholas
Did the first test provide you with a medical certificate? If not then you need the medical certificate examination to receive a valid medical card to operate a commercial motor vehicle.
I work in Boston as a MBTA bus driver and recently failed hearing test by a small margin I have to hearing aids will I be disqualified from my driving job
@William
You are allowed to pass the medical requirements with hearing aids.
I recently failed the blood pressure portion of the test. I was told to get three passing readings by my own doctor and I would receive my card. They gave me a three month card for the time being. I spent over $200 dollars in copays to get my blood pressure under control and sent the readings back to the dot Doctor. I was then told the regulations have changed and they can’t take the last physical report even though it hasn’t expired. So I did what they told me to do and I still got screwed. Now I have to pay another $85 for a new physical. I believe the state and the doctors are in cahoots to rip people off
Can you get a CDL in MA if you only have one good eye? Other eye is totally blind, original eye is fine.
@Tony
It will require a special waiver, so check with your local drivers license department for more information.
Is there a list of medications that are not allowed to be prescribed to CDL holders?
If so where can it be found?
@David
49 CFR 391.41(b)(12) identifies driver use of Schedule I drugs as medically disqualifying.
There is no other list of allowed/disallowed medications.
FMCSA regulations and guidelines address medical conditions, and the implications of treatment on driver safety.
It’s up to the medical examiner to make the final qualifying decision, based on information from the treating physician.
Hello, I had recently heard that if you self-certify for your dot card they skip out on the drug test part of it. Is that true?
@Jordan.
No.
All three – 1. Self-certification 2. DOT physical exam 3. drug and alcohol testing are separate, and required.
I am a board certified family physician in Massachusetts and have performed DOT examinations for years. I have decided not to obtain federal certification to perform DOT/CDL examinations for various reasons. It is my understanding that I can still perform examinations for the Non-Excepted Intrastate (NA) applicants. Some of my patients in the NA category have not had their CDL approved despite not specifically requiring the Non-Excepted Interstate (NI) designation. Can you clarify this issue? Thank you. SDM
I live In Massachusetts and i am a class D driver with type 2 diabetes who is on insulin, my question is can I get a medical card.The company I work for requires that an employee who drives the company viechles rather it’s a van or box truck have a medical card.Thanks
@Joe
Yes, you should be able to acquire a medical card. But you want to check with your state drivers license department and ask what their criteria will be for you to get the card. Your situation is going to require specific information and it will be specific to your state.
Our company locatedin Springfield, Mass. recently had one of our driver renew their medical card. They submitted all of the proper requirements. The bill for the procedure came in, as the trainer for our company I informed the driver to submitt the bill to our management team. They enclosed the bill for this service in the driver’s paycheck envelope. Indicating this is the driver’s responsibility for paying the bill. Based on the Mass DOT provision who is responsible for the bill?
@Robert
That will function on the company’s policy.
I work at a company who’s drivers get the d.o.t. exams. We are paying a company to keep track of all the license info including expirations on the drivers. This company also has the drivers participate in a pool for random drug testing. Is this a MA law that they need to be in this pool?
I am new to the company, and have been hired to help with costs among other things. Someone here at the company seems to think that the pool is the law. My old company never participated in a pool with their drivers. Please advise.
@Tess
50% of all commercial drivers must be drug tested every year and 10% of the drivers must be alcohol tested. The pool is a simpler way for a small company to stay compliant with federal regulations.
I am awaiting a waiver from the mass DOT. I have diabetes and have sent in all required paperwork via priority mail last Tuesday ….how long before i hear back from the office in Haymarket square? I.can not drive until this gets done….ugggghhhh. Also i think they need to find a faster way to get these waivers done as it severely impacts on a persons ability to make a living. Thank you
I just was downgraded to a regular drivers license because my dot medical cad expired in March 2015.im getting a dot physical this week.can i be upgraded back to my cdl after I get a new medical card
@Joe
This is a CDL question rather than a medical card question.
You’ll need to check with your local state drivers license department to be sure.
Every state treats their CDL process differently.
Will you be disqualified if you are treated for epilepsy but haven’t had a seizure for 3 years?
@Sarah
That will have to be determined by the examining doctor. It will be the medication in question now, not so much the non-seizures. FMCSA is pretty set on this one. You could check with the FMCSA and ask about the possibility of getting a seizure waiver.
I obtained my CDL and when I applied for the license I also filled out the self-certification. I have a medical cqrd which was submitted to the RMV. Is there another DOT card I need? I recently applied for a new job and after presenting mu med-card I was told I needed to produ e my DOT card. Can someone tell. E what that card is and where I would obtain it?
@Lucia
A certified medical examiner does a DOT medical examination. He then gives you copies of the long form (the medical examination) and a medical certificate to put in your wallet. The medical certificate is your medical card. To the best of my knowledge there is no other form needed.
will prescibed methadone prevent someone from obtaining a dot card?
@Jay
Yes. Methadone is pretty much an instant disqualifier.
You might try getting your prescribing doctor to either change meds or fill out your medical release form stating the needs and usage of this medication.
you are wrong a dot physical has no drug test,if you pay for it yourself,if a company sends you our are random selected thats it.walk in pay for it yourself no drug test, but when, not if you have a drug test ,your company will prob terminate you,there suppose to no meds your on, thats why companys pay for test and do a drug screen.its late and this post is old,sorry for misspellings . i do medical cards at my office,fyi.youll pass if in good health, vision blood psi,we take uern for sugar only and a few bending exercises,oh and hearing is a BASIC test…But the road is a dangerous place so i would talk to your Dr and ween off fast if you like working.killing yourself is one thing but killing a family in a car in front of you because of a drug you shouldn’t drive on(could you live with yourself,hard enough if you weren’t on the drugs,) and a new hire will have a drug screen…hope this helps not trying to step on anyone’s toes,facts are facts . you will get it but at what cost??????????????
When you are getting examined for your medical certification card you are asked about medications you are on. At this point you would have to disclose that you are on methadone. Nothing you mentioned about drug testing is relevant unless you are telling him to lie to the attending physician.
If everyone is federally required to have a medical card to safely operate CDL vehicels, why do Town of Yarmouth Highway Dept CDL drivers all have waivers and do not have to obtain medical cards. I cannot think of anything more hypocritical, unfair, and should be dealt with with a class action lawsuit. It really shoots holes in the stated safety concerns of the state, towns, and federal govt.
They are not exempt. That’s somebody in that dept saying that. Ask a state trooper
Bernie The Town of Yarmouth as the Town of Barnstable as most Municipalities were given the option of staying with the Medical certificate or using the Foley Drug and Alcohol testing. Yarmouth and Barnstable elected to go with the Foley testing program, Harwich I believe stayed with the Medical Card. The problem they are running into now is the Dept of Public Safety requires you to have the Medical Card to have a hoisting license to operate equipment.
Municipal drivers in the state of MA who drive for DPWs that have elected to use the Foley testing system are exempt from carrying a DOT medical card. AS LONG AS THEY DRIVE WITHIN THE BOUNDARIES of their municipalities and they obtain an EA self verification. If they work for a Solid Waste division and haul the waste to an off site location outside the boundaries of the municipalities they will need to have a intrastate selfcertifucation and have the Medical Card
If a person is on Suboxone or Vivitrol does this disqualify them for passing the DOT exam?
@Susan
Until this person is off the medications, they would have difficulty getting through the DOT examination.
Both of these meds are going to throw up major red flags. So once off the meds they may be OK.
See FAQ – Medications.
I have a cdl license in ma my medical card is going to expire currently got one for 3 months have be told have sleep disorder go tested and just got machine which having trouble with I have trouble breathing through nose going to see dr if my med card expires is there a grace period before I would have to take the cdl exam again Thanks
@Joe
Once the test is done you would need to be on the unit for a period of 90 days before you can get another medical card.
You could talk with the examiner and explain your situation and they may be able to give you an extension based on the fact that you are using the unit and need time to adjust.
What is the weight of a truck that determines if u need a dot card. Thanks for your help.