FMCSA Clearinghouse Requirements: What Owner-Operators Must Do Every Year
If you hired a CDL driver in the last three years without querying the Clearinghouse, you are currently out of compliance. Here's what the law requires and what happens if you miss it.
What Is the Clearinghouse?
The FMCSA Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse is a secure, online database administered by FMCSA that contains real-time information about CDL and CLP holders who have violated DOT drug and alcohol testing requirements.
It was established under the rule codified at 49 CFR Part 382 Subpart G, effective January 6, 2020.
Before the Clearinghouse existed, a driver who failed a drug test at one carrier could simply move to another carrier and start fresh. The Clearinghouse closes that gap.
Who Must Register
- Employers of CDL drivers — any motor carrier that employs CDL drivers in safety-sensitive functions must register with the Clearinghouse.
- Owner-operators — if you drive your own CDL-required CMV, you must register as both an employer and a driver. You are your own employee for Clearinghouse purposes.
- Medical Review Officers (MROs), Substance Abuse Professionals (SAPs), and Consortia and TPAs must also register.
Registration is free. Go to clearinghouse.fmcsa.dot.gov to create your account.
Pre-Employment Queries: Required Before Every New Hire
Before allowing any CDL driver to operate a CMV in a safety-sensitive function, you must conduct a pre-employment query of the Clearinghouse. This is required under 49 CFR § 382.701(a).
Two types of pre-employment queries:
- Full query — provides complete violation history. Requires the driver's electronic consent through the Clearinghouse.
- Limited query — tells you only whether there is any information on file for the driver (yes/no). Does not require driver consent. If the result comes back as “record exists,” you must then conduct a full query with driver consent before the driver operates.
You cannot hire a driver with a prohibited status in the Clearinghouse. A driver with an unresolved violation must complete the return-to-duty process before they can legally operate a CMV for any employer.
Annual Queries: Required for All Current Drivers
For every CDL driver currently employed, you must conduct at least one annual full query per calendar year under 49 CFR § 382.701(b).
This is a rolling 365-day requirement. You must query each driver at least once in every 12-month period. You cannot batch all your annual queries on January 1 and consider yourself compliant for the year — the queries must be within 12 months for each individual driver.
Keep records of every query — date conducted, driver queried, result.
What Gets Reported to the Clearinghouse
- Positive drug test results
- Alcohol test results of 0.04 BAC or higher
- Refusals to test
- Actual knowledge of a violation
- Return-to-duty (RTD) test results
- Follow-up testing completion
Employers must report within 3 business days of determining that a driver violated the drug and alcohol prohibitions. Failure to report is a separate violation.
How Violations Are Resolved
A violation in the Clearinghouse is not permanent. Once a driver completes the return-to-duty process:
- Driver is immediately removed from safety-sensitive functions
- Driver undergoes evaluation by a qualified Substance Abuse Professional (SAP)
- Driver completes the prescribed program
- SAP clears the driver for a return-to-duty test
- Driver passes a negative return-to-duty drug or alcohol test
- SAP prescribes follow-up testing (minimum 6 tests in 12 months)
- Employer reports the negative RTD result to the Clearinghouse
Until the driver's status shows as “not prohibited,” no employer can allow them to operate a CDL-required CMV.
What Auditors Look For
| Item | What They Check |
|---|---|
| Employer registration | Your Clearinghouse account is active |
| Pre-employment queries | Query on file for every CDL driver before first day |
| Annual queries | One full query per driver per 12-month period |
| Violation reporting | Any violations reported within 3 business days |
| Prohibited driver check | No driver with prohibited status currently operating |
Common Mistakes
- Treating the Clearinghouse as a one-time setup. The annual query requirement is ongoing. It requires attention every month to make sure no driver's 12-month window is expiring.
- Not conducting the pre-employment query before the driver's first trip. Running the query after the first trip — even by one day — is a violation.
- Not reporting violations within 3 business days. Missed reporting is a separate violation from the testing violation itself.
- Not understanding the owner-operator dual registration. If you're an owner-operator, you must register as both an employer and a driver.
- Confusing Clearinghouse queries with pre-employment drug tests. These are two separate requirements. Both are required before a driver's first day.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Clearinghouse free to use?
Employer registration and unlimited limited queries are free. Full queries have a fee — currently $1.25 per query for carriers conducting fewer than 25 queries per year.
What if a driver refuses to consent to a full query?
You cannot hire them. Refusal to consent to a pre-employment full query means you cannot verify their Clearinghouse status and are prohibited from allowing them to operate.
Can a driver see their own Clearinghouse record?
Yes. Drivers can log in to clearinghouse.fmcsa.dot.gov to view their own record, grant consent for employer queries, and see which employers have queried their record.
How long do violations stay in the Clearinghouse?
Violations remain in the Clearinghouse for five years from the date the violation was reported, or until the driver completes the return-to-duty process — whichever is later.
Do I need to query owner-operators I hire as independent contractors?
Yes. If you allow an owner-operator to operate a CMV under your authority, you must conduct a pre-employment Clearinghouse query before they operate for you.
DOT Drug & Alcohol Testing Compliance Guide ($19)
Covers the full Clearinghouse query process, annual query tracking worksheet, reporting obligations, and the return-to-duty process — everything you need to stay compliant on both the testing and Clearinghouse sides of drug and alcohol requirements.
Download the Drug & Alcohol Compliance Guide →Manage compliance the smart way
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