Non-Domicile Citizenship Requirements for Licensing
In late September 2025, the United States Department of Transportation had issued an emergency rule which substantially tightened the eligibility and verification requirements for obtaining a non-domiciled Commercial Learner's Permit and License.
Effective May 13, 2026, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles reestablished the issuance of non-domiciled CDLs and CLPs, also known as non-immigrant or temporary CDLs or CLPs, for certain immigrants as defined below:
Non-citizen Documentation Requirements
Now that the State of Florida has lifted the pause, non-citizen applicants will be required to provide an unexpired foreign passport and a valid, unexpired I-94/94A form that indicates a lawful employment-based status:
- H-2A (Temporary Agricultural Workers)
- H-2B (Temporary Non-Agricultural Workers)
- E-2 (Treaty Investors)
Lawful permanent residents holding an unexpired green card (Form I-551) were not affected by the pause and remain eligible.
The documents must be presented in person at a state licensing agency with every application for renewal of and/or upgrade of a Commercial Learner’s Permit or Commercial Driver's License.
Each state will individually verify an applicant's lawful status through the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) system. The SAVE system is maintained by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
Asylum seekers, refugees, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients, and others who previously qualified with Employment Authorization Documents remain ineligible to apply for a Commercial Driver's Permit and License.
Non-Domicile Definitions
A Commercial Learner's Permit (CLP) is a permit that allows a person to begin the process of learning how to operate a commercial motor vehicle while under the direct tutelage of a person who holds a valid Commercial Driver’s License (CDL).
A CLP is considered non-domiciled when the holder of the CLP is not a permanent resident of the state and has their permanent home is outside the United States. The purpose of the non-domiciled CLP is to allow foreign nationals who are legally residing in the United States to begin the process of obtaining a CDL to work in the trucking industry.
Current Class A Convening Date Schedules
The Class A Tractor/Trailer full (three week course) Commercial Driver's License (CDL) driver program schedule:
- Monday, July 27, 2026
- Tuesday, September 8, 2026
- Monday, September 28, 2026
- Monday, October 19, 2026
- Monday, November 9, 2026
- Monday, November 30, 2026
- Monday, December 28, 2026
Ensure your drive time now by calling Mike Rash now at (352)302-0903!
