What is ELDT?

The short answer

ELDT stands for Entry Level Driver Training. Since February 2022, federal rules require anyone getting a Class A or Class B commercial licence for the first time — or upgrading, or adding certain endorsements — to complete training from a provider listed on the FMCSA Training Provider Registry before they can take the skills test.

It is not a suggestion and it is not paperwork a school can wave through. If your provider is not on the registry, the training does not count.

It comes in two halves

ELDT splits into theory and behind-the-wheel. They are separate, and they can be completed with different providers.

Theory is classroom knowledge — how the vehicle works, safe operating procedures, hours of service, cargo, wellness, and the rest. It is assessed, and you need at least 80% to pass.

Behind-the-wheel is exactly what it sounds like, and has to happen in a truck on a range and on public roads. No online provider can do that part, us included.

• Theory: knowledge, assessed at 80%, can be completed online
• Behind-the-wheel: range and public road, in person, at a licensed school or carrier programme

Who has to do it

You need ELDT if you are applying for a Class A or Class B CDL for the first time, upgrading from Class B to Class A, or adding a school bus, passenger, or hazardous materials endorsement.

You do not need it if you already held the licence before February 2022, or if you fall under one of the narrow exemptions in the regulation.

Why people get caught out by it

The usual story: someone books a CDL school, pays, and discovers partway through that the theory portion is a separate requirement with its own assessment — or that the training they have been doing does not appear on the registry.

Knowing it exists before you commit money is most of the battle. It also means you can arrive having already done the theory, which is a shorter, cheaper school course and a much easier first week.

How the theory works here

We cover the Class A theory curriculum — all thirty required topics — with a final assessment at the 80% threshold, and completions are reported to the FMCSA registry as the rules require.

It is free. There is no paid tier, no card, and nothing to cancel. You still need a school or a company programme for the behind-the-wheel portion, and we are not one.