Received my hazmat and tanker endorsements today, Carrie should be taking her tests this week. She had to reschedule her passport appointment as she needs to have her birth certificate to get the endorsements on her license. I thought it kind of odd since we both have Enhanced Driver's Licenses from Michigan which should have sufficed for proof of citizenship (TSA accepted them for proof for hazmat background checks, go figure). Oh, and my wallet is $43.00 lighter after adding the endorsements. Every time I turn around seems like someone is reaching in there for more money lately. Tomorrow, TSA again, for TWIC. I think that should lighten my wallet by another $250.00 or so. The way we look at it, one load could possibly pay for all the money we have paid out for endorsements and credentials, well worth it we believe.
You've Been Researching This How Long?
- Thread starter sanbomi1
- Start date
Third time was a charm with TSA. Got our TWIC card appointments completed. The agent said about 30 days to get our cards, we'll see. Don't know if Carrie will be able to get her hazmat and tanker testing done this week due to the holiday but, if not, I'm sure she'll get it done next week. She wasn't able to submit her passport application because I found out when I went to do my hazmat/tanker tests the Secretary of State office (Michigan) still wanted to see my birth certificate and social security card. I was more than a little surprised at that since I have an enhanced CDL and had my letter from TSA (thankfully I had all that information with me). I don't know, sometimes I don't think they even know what they need.
Regards,
Mike
Regards,
Mike
Have you looked into getting a FAST card rather than passport? Cheaper ($50 for 5 years), much easier to carry in your wallet, and opens up more freight opportunities as well as FAST lanes at border crossings. The only downside is you'll still need a passport for travel outside of Canada/US
It's also a requirement for most automotive parts cross border loads.
Crossing into or out of Canada the border patrol prefer the FAST card over the enhanced license mainly because they have done a thourgh background check.
5 weeks from online app to getting it in the mail for my son this year
We will be checking into it. Sounds like it could be especially challenging to coordinate the interview if we are on the road. Somehow we'll work it out though.
Received our TWIC cards in the mail today, wow, that was quick!
So, we've only told a couple of people, outside of this forum and You Tube, about our plans on becoming Expediters. We are having a family pizza and pool party this Sunday and will inform everyone at that time of our plans. I haven't put in my retirement notice yet, that will be coming as soon as we have finalized our start date. Things are coming along. We are hoping that this will not come as a complete shock to the family, we are hoping for their support and to share in our excitement. The main reason for our You Tube channel is to communicate our travels and experiences with friends and family, now we can begin the sharing. What we have shared on our channel so far is our steps and the process we are going through to prepare for this lifestyle change. We hope to increase our subscribers by a few (family members) once everyone is informed.
It's been somewhat difficult for us not to share this information. We just felt there were too many things that we needed to accomplish, too many tasks that needed to be finished and too many "what if's" in the process so we didn't want to cause any additional concerns for our family while we were making our way through this ever changing road that we have been on to towards our new careers. Now that we are in the final stages of this process, we feel comfortable sharing this exciting news with friends and family.
The saga continues. Each day we are getting closer.
Regards,
Mike and Carrie
It's been somewhat difficult for us not to share this information. We just felt there were too many things that we needed to accomplish, too many tasks that needed to be finished and too many "what if's" in the process so we didn't want to cause any additional concerns for our family while we were making our way through this ever changing road that we have been on to towards our new careers. Now that we are in the final stages of this process, we feel comfortable sharing this exciting news with friends and family.
The saga continues. Each day we are getting closer.
Regards,
Mike and Carrie
It is so refreshing to follow somebody that is actually preparing themselves to enter this industry, instead of reading...... "i bought a truck, now what? ".
Good luck in this endeavor.
Good luck in this endeavor.
Thanks Ragman, we appreciate it. We're sure it's gonna be challenging enough for us, so much to learn once we get out there on the road.
Regards,
Mike
We have a new hazmat and tanker endorsement holder!!! Carrie just called me to let me know she passed both of her tests and now has her endorsments!!! So happy for her, she did a great job! 
Thanks. We are very excited. Carrie was sure relieved when she passed. Now she is finally able to submit her passport application, I believe she is doing that today. Even though she has an enhanced CDL, our Secretary of State office (Michigan) still required her to show her birth certificate, marriage license and social security card (along with her letter from TSA) before she could get her endorsements. Now she can submit what documents are needed for her passport without the concern of needing them for hazmat.
