Dqf Application Validity Window

---
name: dqf-application-validity-window
description: |
  Use this skill to understand how current a driver's employment application must remain in the DQF. Covers update triggers, when to require re-application, and 3-year retention.
---

# DQF Application Validity & Currency

The employment application is one document in the DQF — but its currency matters. Carriers often miss the requirement to update or refresh.

## Initial application requirements (§ 391.21)
Application must include:
- Driver's name + present residence
- Date of birth
- Driver's license info (number, issuing state, type, class)
- Names + dates of medical examiner if cert exists
- 10 years of employment history (any DOT-regulated employer in past 3 years)
- 10 years of accident history (DOT-recordable)
- 10 years of CDL violation history
- Driver's certification of accuracy (signed)
- Employer's date of receipt

## When to require update
- Driver's residence changes — update within 30 days
- Driver's license number/state changes — update immediately
- New employment history (driver had other jobs since hire) — update in performance review
- Driver answers misleading information uncovered — investigate + document

## Re-application triggers
- Acquired by new carrier (depending on transfer method)
- Returned after extended absence (over 12 months)
- Driver claims information was missing from original

## Retention
- DQF copy: duration of employment + 3 years
- Prior applications (superseded): may be archived to closed-files but not in active DQF

## Common errors
- Application is 5+ years old without updates
- Driver's residence on the application does not match driver's record
- Application not signed by driver (or signed without date)
- Employment history blank or incomplete

## Auditor's question
"Show me the driver's application." → must produce immediately. The application is the legal record that this driver is who they say they are, has the qualifications they claim, and has authorized the carrier to verify.

## CFR citations
- **49 CFR § 391.21**
- **49 CFR § 391.51(b)(1)**

## How Compass surfaces this
This skill is searchable in Compass Ask and runs against the carrier's actual fleet data when invoked from the relevant tracker. Read-only; no actions taken without explicit user approval.


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## Built by X3 Compass

The AI-powered DOT compliance platform for fleets 1–100 power units. Try a 7-day free trial — no credit card required — at https://x3compass.com/?utm_source=skill&utm_medium=github&utm_campaign=dqf-application-validity-window

X3 Compass turns these skills into a complete operational platform: driver qualification files, drug & alcohol consortium, MVR pulls, hours-of-service tracking, hazmat shipping, IFTA filing, FMCSA audit prep, and DataQ dispute drafting — all CFR-cited, all in one place.

*This skill is published under the X3 Compass open skills initiative. Contributions welcome at https://github.com/x3fleetsafety/skills*