New Jersey CDL New Jersey Passenger and School Bus Qualification

P is required for covered passenger vehicles and requires a passenger-vehicle skills test. Every New Jersey school-bus driver needs both P and S; S requires its own knowledge and road testing. Vehicle class still depends on weight and passenger design, so P/S does not by itself make the credential Class B.

New Jersey requires a P or S applicant to be at least 21 and to document three years of driving experience. The applicant must meet 20/40 vision in each eye, 70 degrees of peripheral vision in each eye, color recognition, physical fitness, and the applicable background standards.

Passenger applicants undergo the New Jersey background process and fingerprinting. School-bus applicants under Department of Education jurisdiction require state and federal checks managed through the employer or district; non-DOE school-bus employment has its own New Jersey fingerprint requirement. Employment changes can trigger new declarations or checks.

Every P or P/S holder must maintain an electronic medical examiner certification even in an otherwise excepted commerce category. School-bus applicants also provide the required employment-history or approval document and declarations. Keeping an endorsement after leaving the work keeps the holder responsible for its continuing requirements.

New Jersey adds a state medical-examination process for certain school-bus drivers beginning at age 70. The frequency and required state form depend on the driver's age and current MVC instructions, and these requirements are in addition to the federal medical examiner certification.

Apply the rule to the exact New Jersey vehicle, credential, endorsement, age, commerce category, date, test stage, and operating facts. Current NJMVC instructions, controlling law, federal requirements, and the current official manual govern when an older form or brochure conflicts.