North Dakota Motorcycle Endorsement Guide

What Is a Motorcycle Endorsement?

North Dakota does not use a separate 'endorsement' code the way some states do. The motorcycle privilege is its own license class - Class M - which you must have, as a permit or a license, to operate any two- or three-wheeled motorcycle (ND manual p.i).

If you already hold a North Dakota driver license, you add Class M to it; if you hold no ND license, you must first earn a Class D permit by passing the Class D Noncommercial knowledge test before taking the Class M knowledge test (ND manual p.ii).

Endorsement vs. Motorcycle-Only License

How to Add the Endorsement — Steps

1. Hold (or first obtain) a valid Class D North Dakota license or permit, then study the North Dakota Motorcycle Operator Manual.
2. Pass a vision screening and the Class M knowledge test to receive your Class M permit.
3. Practice under the permit's restrictions - no riding after dark and no passengers.
4. Bring your own motorcycle for the on-cycle Rider Skill Test and submit it for an equipment inspection; pass to be issued the Class M license.
5. If you completed a director-approved motorcycle safety course within the last year, present the completion card to have the skill test waived.

MSF Course Waiver

North Dakota waives the on-cycle skill test - not the knowledge test - for riders who successfully completed an approved motorcycle safety course within the last one year. You must present the actual course completion card at the time of the skill test (ND manual p.ii).

Riders aged 14-15 must be enrolled in or have completed an approved motorcycle safety course just to receive a Class M learner's permit, and must hold that initial permit at least two months before taking the skill test (ND manual p.iii). Course information is available through the ND Motorcycle Safety Program at ndmsp.com.

Cost & Renewal

The Class M privilege is carried on your North Dakota driver license and renews together with it - there is no separate motorcycle renewal cycle. NDDOT sets the current permit and license fees; confirm them at a driver license office or dot.nd.gov.

Passing the skill test on an automatic-transmission motorcycle restricts your Class M to automatics, and passing on a three-wheeled motorcycle restricts it to three-wheeled motorcycles. Operating without the required Class M permit or license carries a $20 fine and a four-point assessment (ND manual p.i).

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