HAZMAT Endorsement

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The Hazardous Materials Endorsement Threat Assessment Program conducts a threat assessment for any driver seeking to obtain, renew and transfer a hazardous materials endorsement on a state-issued commercial driver’s license. You should apply if you have a state-issued CDL and you are required to transport materials that require placarding under the Department of Transportation hazardous materials regulations.

 

Important Notice: TSA recommends that all applicants enroll for the HME Security Threat Assessment (including renewals) a minimum of 60 days before applicants require an eligibility determination. TSA is experiencing increased demand for HME assessments, and the processing times for some applicants may exceed 45 days.

Apply

Complete the online application or you can complete the entire process in person at an application center unless you are from any of the following states:

Florida, Kentucky, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin, in which case, you should visit your local Department of Motor Vehicles for application and fingerprinting information.

Schedule an appointment online or by calling (855) 347-8371 weekdays, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. ET. Walk-ins are welcome but appointments take priority.
Visit an application center to:
  1. Provide required documentation and fingerprints. Bring your current U.S. passport or a driver’s license and birth certificate. See other acceptable documents.
  2. Pay a non-refundable fee valid for five years with a credit card, money order, company check or certified/cashier’s check.
    • New applicant: $86.50
    • New applicant reduced rate: $41.00*
  3. You can check your status online at any time.
 

Reduced rate applicant must already possess a valid TWIC card and be licensed in a state that accepts the TWIC threat assessment in place of the one for the HAZMAT endorsement.

Eligibility

You may apply if you are a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, naturalized citizen or a nonimmigrant alien, asylee or refugee who is in lawful status and have a CDL issued by a U.S. state. Remember to check with the state in which your license is issued for additional citizenship or lawful presence requirements stricter than TSA’s before applying.

Applicants may be inelgible due to:

HAZMAT FAQ

Section 1978 of the TSA Modernization Act passed in October 2018 allows states to issue a Hazardous Materials Endorsement (HME) on a state-issued commercial driver’s license (CDL) to a driver who holds a valid Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC®). This provision allows states to utilize the existing TWIC to verify the completion of the TSA security threat assessment. TSA has approved an exemption from certain portions of the current regulations. This exemption relieves states from requiring an additional HME application from individuals, and relieves them from having to submit certain information and fees to receive a state issued HME if they hold a valid TWIC. Per the approved exemption memo, the state must verify the validity of the TWIC using methods prescribed by TSA prior to issuing the HME. The expiration date of any HME issued through this process will not extend past the expiration date of the relevant TWIC. Check with your state for more details.

No. Applicants who apply for a TWIC do not have to pay the full price for the TWIC STA if they apply successful clearance results from their most recent HME STA, and as a result, the fee for the TWIC is reduced by $22.75. All TWIC applicants must pay the fees that cover the other components of the TWIC program, including enrollment and card issuance. Applicants are always offered the option to apply for a full-fee TWIC STA if they determine it is more cost effective to do so.

This rule applies only to drivers who hold a CDL issued by a state of the U.S. Generally, this would not include drivers from Canada and Mexico. There is a separate rule that addresses Canadian drivers hauling explosives into the U.S. Eventually, all drivers will have to meet threat assessment and eligibility standards that are comparable to the standards that now apply to Hazmat drivers in the U.S.

If you have completed a security threat assessment and you are transferring your HME to a new state, you may not have to go through a new threat assessment for the transfer, provided your new state can issue you an HME that expires within five years of your last assessment.

Generally, you must renew your HME every five years, although some states may require more frequent reviews based on shorter license cycles. You will be required to submit new fingerprints at the time of renewal of the endorsement. Per state requirements, you may be required to satisfactorily complete written competency tests as a prerequisite to the issuance of a new, renewed, or transferred HME.

Please contact the Vital Records department in the state you were born.

The HME will be issued with the same expiration date as the individual’s TWIC STA. Therefore, individuals should consider the expiration date of their current TWIC STA to determine if it is cost effective to apply for a comparable HME STA.

You are eligible to pay a reduced fee if you hold a TWIC security threat assessment at least one year remaining before expiration in the following states:

(Arizona, California, Delaware, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wyoming)

In addition, you are eligible to pay a reduced fee if you hold a TWIC security threat assessment at least four years remaining before expiration in the following states:

(Alabama, Colorado, Kansas, Minnesota, Montana, New Jersey, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Vermont)

Applicants in all States above, except Virginia, can confirm their eligibility online with TSA during the HME STA application process here. The State of Virginia will confirm the eligibility of applicants online with TSA.

CDL holders with an active HME security threat assessment, and who meet the eligibility requirements for the TSA PreCheck Application Program may be eligible for expedited screening.

In addition, CDL HME holders must:

  • Be a U.S. citizen, U.S. lawful permanent resident, or U.S. national
  • Be approved for an HME outside TSA’s waiver process
  • Not be under investigation as a result of TSA’s recurrent vetting

In order to participate in TSA PreCheck, HME holders should use the two-letter State abbreviation followed by the CDL number printed on their state-issued CDL and enter it in the known traveler number field of airline reservations made with a participating airline or in airline profiles. Visit TSA PreCheck for HME for more information.

TSA’s goal is to provide you with the status of your application within 60 days of receiving the information you provided at enrollment. This may take longer if there was difficulty capturing your fingerprints during enrollment or any data is missing.

If your licensing state is on the list below you cannot check your status online:

Florida, Kentucky, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, and Wisconsin. For these states, please check your application status with your state licensing agency or call 1-833-848-4759.

For other states, you may check the status of your application online. Go to TSA Enrollment and select Check My Service Status.

TSA does not send or issue approval letters. TSA sends official notification of your HME eligibility to your state of license only, and your state verifies your eligibility and provides your result when it issues you a CDL with HME. Please check with your state driver’s licensing agency on your CDL and HME issuance process and status.

The legal interpretation of the phrase “field of transportation” as it relates to fees covering the cost of vetting services can be found on the Federal Register as Docket ID TSA-2016-0001.

The rule is 49 CFR 1572. On May 5, 2003, TSA published the rule to secure the transportation of hazardous materials (hazmat), including explosives, by requiring threat assessments for all individuals who apply for, renew, or transfer a Hazardous Materials Endorsement (HME) on their commercial driver’s license (CDL). On January 25, 2007, TSA modified this rule to include additional disqualifiers and appeal mechanisms.

According to fee statute (6 U.S.C. 469(a)), the field of transportation includes any individual, activity, entity, facility, owner or operator that is subject to regulation by TSA, the Department of Transportation or the U.S. Coast Guard. This also includes individuals applying for trusted traveler programs, such as TSA PreCheck®.

If TSA finds potentially disqualifying information, we will send you a letter with instructions on how to proceed.

If your application was approved, TSA will not send you an approval letter. TSA sends official notification of your HME eligibility to your state of license only. Please check with your state driver’s licensing agency on your application status.

Contact HAZMAT

Application Program

(855) 347-8371
Weekdays:
8 a.m. to 10 p.m. ET

Customer Service

(833) 848-4759

News

HME Fee Change

Effective November 3, 2022, the fee for applicants with a comparable TWIC and are licensed in a state that accepts the TWIC threat assessment decreased from $67.00 to $41.00.

TSA PreCheck® for HME

Eligible HME holders may access TSA PreCheck® screening lanes by providing the identification number printed on their state-issued Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) during the reservation process.  HME holders must provide the two-letter state abbreviation and CDL identification number from a state-issued CDL in the appropriate KTN field.  Please visit the TSA PreCheck® page for more information.

Latest News

State Driver’s Licensing Agencies may now issue a Hazardous Materials Endorsement (HME) to applicants who present a valid Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC®).