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Medical Certification Requirements

​​​​​Commercial drivers operating in certain types of commerce are required to obtain a "certified" medical status and maintain the status to avoid losing their commercial driver license.

There are four commerce types, two of which require a certified medical status.

To self-certify or change your self-certification, submit a CDL-Med-1 Medical Certification form by emailing it to CDLmedical@ncdot.gov or mailing it to:

N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles
CDL Medical Certification Unit
3126 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27697-3126​​

For DOT medical examiner's certificates that are only valid with a vision, diabetes or a skills performance evaluation variance, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Association will provide a copy of that variance to NCDMV.

​Medical Certification Requirements 

Effective June 28, 2025, North Carolina will no longer accept Medical Examiner Certificates (MECs) directly from commercial drivers. In compliance with federal regulations, all Medical Examiner Certificates must be submitted by their medical examiner provider electronically through the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners (NRII) portal. 

The paper format of Form MCSA-5876 will no longer be accepted as proof of medical certification. 

For DOT medical examiner's certificates that are only valid with a skills performance evaluation variance, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Association will provide a copy of that variance to NCDMV.

For more information on how to locate a medical examiner who is on the registry, refer to the FMCSA National Registry​.

Determining Commerce Type

Detailed information for determining whether a driver is required to have a certified medical status can be found in Section 1.3 of the Commercial Driver Manual.

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Last updated Jun. 16, 2025

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