In this article:
- On duty not driving, defined
- The nine things 49 CFR 395.2 counts as on-duty time
- On duty not driving examples
- How on-duty not driving time counts against the HOS limits
- When waiting is not on duty
- Off duty driving rules
- HOS compliance checklist for on-duty not driving time
- Why a rewards company is named after the logbook
On duty not driving (ON) is time a truck driver is working, or must be ready to work, but isn't driving. As of October 2026, 49 CFR 395.2 includes inspections, loading, waiting to be dispatched, attending a broken-down truck and carrier-directed drug and alcohol tests. ON time counts toward the 14-hour window and 60/70-hour limit, not the 11-hour driving limit.
This page goes deep on that one status: the full regulation list, 14 everyday examples, how ON time hits each limit, and a logging checklist. For all four duty statuses side by side, see our guide to off duty not driving and the four HOS duty statuses.
Off Duty Not Driving Rewards is a rewards program for trucking fleets. Contact our team to learn more.
On duty not driving, defined
On duty not driving is on-duty time that isn't driving time. The regulation doesn't define it as a separate term. It comes from two definitions in 395.2 that sit side by side:
- On-duty time "means all time from the time a driver begins to work or is required to be in readiness to work until the time the driver is relieved from work and all responsibility for performing work."
- Driving time "means all time spent at the driving controls of a commercial motor vehicle in operation."
Take driving time out of on-duty time and what's left is on duty not driving. 49 CFR 395.8(b) names it as one of the four statuses a driver records: "Off duty" or "OFF", "Sleeper berth" or "SB", "Driving" or "D", and "On-duty not driving" or "ON".
The test that matters is the end of the definition. A driver stays on duty until relieved from work and all responsibility for performing work. Sitting still is not the same as being off duty.
The nine things 49 CFR 395.2 counts as on-duty time
As of October 2026 (status: final, in effect), the definition of on-duty time lists nine items. Item 3 is driving. The other eight are where ON time comes from.
| # | What 395.2 includes (summarized) | Logged as |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Time at a carrier or shipper facility, or on public property, waiting to be dispatched, unless the carrier has relieved the driver from duty | ON |
| 2 | "All time inspecting, servicing, or conditioning any commercial motor vehicle at any time" | ON |
| 3 | All driving time | D |
| 4 | All time in or on a commercial motor vehicle, except resting in a parked vehicle, resting in a sleeper berth, or up to 3 hours in the passenger seat right before or after at least 7 consecutive hours in the sleeper | ON (exceptions are OFF or SB) |
| 5 | Loading or unloading, supervising or helping, attending a vehicle being loaded or unloaded, staying ready to operate it, or giving or receiving shipping receipts | ON |
| 6 | Repairing, getting help for, or staying with a disabled vehicle | ON |
| 7 | Giving a breath or urine sample for random, reasonable-suspicion, post-crash or follow-up testing under Part 382 when the carrier directs it, including travel to and from the collection site | ON |
| 8 | Any other work for a motor carrier | ON |
| 9 | Any paid work for someone who isn't a motor carrier | ON |
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On duty not driving examples
These examples apply the list above to common days on the road. Each one cites the item it comes from.
| Situation | Status | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-trip inspection before leaving the yard | ON | Item 2: inspecting a CMV |
| Post-trip inspection and writing up a defect | ON | Item 2 |
| Waiting at the shipper's dock while the trailer is loaded | ON | Item 5: attending a vehicle being loaded |
| Signing bills of lading at delivery | ON | Item 5: giving or receiving receipts |
| Sitting at the terminal waiting for a dispatch, not released | ON | Item 1 |
| Same wait, but the carrier has relieved the driver from duty | OFF | Item 1's exception |
| Waiting on the shoulder for a tow after a breakdown | ON | Item 6: attending a disabled vehicle |
| Driving to a clinic for a random drug test, and the test itself | ON | Item 7 |
| A safety meeting or orientation at the terminal | ON | Item 8: other work for the carrier |
| A weekend shift at a warehouse that pays the driver | ON | Item 9: paid work for a non-carrier |
| Team co-driver riding awake in the passenger seat | ON | Item 4, unless it fits the 3-hour sleeper exception |
| Up to 3 hours in the passenger seat right after 7 hours in the sleeper | OFF | Item 4(iii) exception |
| Sleeping in the sleeper berth | SB | Item 4(ii) exception |
| Eating a meal in the parked truck, relieved of all duties | OFF | Item 4(i): resting in a parked vehicle |
The pattern: if the driver is working, guarding the load or waiting because the job requires it, the time is on duty. If the driver is resting and free of responsibility, it isn't.
How on-duty not driving time counts against the HOS limits
ON time is not "free" time. Here is how it counts against each property-carrying limit in 395.3, as of October 2026.
| Limit | Does ON time count? | Citation |
|---|---|---|
| 11 hours of driving | No. Only driving time counts | 395.3(a)(3)(i) |
| 14-hour window | Yes. The window runs on the clock from coming on duty | 395.3(a)(2) |
| 30-minute break after 8 hours of driving | ON time can be the break | 395.3(a)(3)(ii) |
| 60 hours in 7 days / 70 in 8 | Yes. These are on-duty limits | 395.3(b) |
| 34-hour restart | ON time interrupts it. A restart needs 34 or more consecutive hours off duty | 395.3(c) |
Two consequences drivers run into:
- ON work can continue after hour 14. The 14-hour rule stops driving, not work. Unloading or a post-trip inspection after hour 14 is legal, but it is still logged as ON and still counts toward 60/70.
- Detention eats the window. Three hours at a shipper is three hours of the 14 gone, even though the truck didn't move. FMCSA has proposed a pilot (90 FR 44872, September 2025) that would let about 256 drivers pause the window for 30 minutes to 3 hours, including on-duty-not-driving time at a pickup or delivery location. As of October 2026 it is proposed, not launched. Our post on the new 14-hour rule has the full status.
When waiting is not on duty
Some waiting is off duty. The regulation text gives three cases:
- Relieved from duty. Item 1 excludes waiting time if "the driver has been relieved from duty by the motor carrier". The relief has to be real: free of all responsibility for the truck and load.
- Resting in a parked vehicle or in the sleeper. Item 4's exceptions. For how sleeper time differs from off duty, see off duty vs sleeper berth.
- Oilfield waiting time. For specially trained drivers of vehicles specially built to service oil wells, waiting time at a gas or oil well site is not on-duty time. Under 395.1(d)(2) it is recorded as off duty, with remarks or a separate "waiting time" line, and it is not counted in the 14-hour period. Those drivers can't use the 150 air-mile short-haul exception.
Oilfield crews have one more provision. Under 395.1(d)(1), drivers of vehicles used only to move oilfield equipment or service oil and gas field operations may end an 8-day period with any off-duty period of 24 or more hours.
Off duty driving rules
Driving a commercial motor vehicle is normally logged as driving. The one recognized case where CMV movement is logged as off duty is personal conveyance. FMCSA's 2018 guidance (83 FR 26377) allows it "only when the driver is relieved from work and all responsibility for performing work by the motor carrier." It can apply even when the truck is loaded, and a carrier may restrict or ban it. It is guidance, not regulation text. The 2018 notice said the guidance "expires June 7, 2023", yet FMCSA still cited it as current in a June 2026 notice (91 FR 38075), so check its status on FMCSA's guidance portal before relying on it. Our personal conveyance guide covers the details.
HOS compliance checklist for on-duty not driving time
Use this as a pre-shift and end-of-day check for drivers, and as a spot-check list for the fleet's log reviews.
Driver, before and during the shift
- Pre-trip inspection logged as ON, not OFF or D (395.2, item 2).
- Every dock wait logged as ON unless dispatch has clearly relieved you of all duties.
- Each change of duty status has its location: city, town or village, with the state abbreviation, or the highway and nearest milepost when it happens elsewhere (395.8(c)).
- A 30-minute non-driving period taken before 8 hours of cumulative driving. ON time counts (395.3(a)(3)(ii)).
- Driving stops at the end of the 14-hour window, even if ON work continues.
- Breakdown time, drug-test trips and terminal meetings logged as ON.
Oilfield drivers, before the shift
- Confirm you are a specially trained driver of a specially built well-servicing vehicle before logging well-site waiting as off duty (395.1(d)(2)).
- Annotate waiting time in remarks or on a separate waiting-time line.
- Don't combine that waiting-time rule with the 150 air-mile short-haul exception.
Fleet, at log review
- Look for long OFF blocks at shippers and receivers. Were the drivers actually relieved?
- Look for missing ON time around pickups and deliveries.
- Look for paid second jobs that weren't logged as ON (item 9).
- Keep records of duty status and supporting documents for 6 months (395.8(k)(1)).
Why a rewards company is named after the logbook
Off Duty Not Driving Rewards plays on the logbook statuses, but "off duty not driving" is not an FMCSA duty status, and we are not affiliated with FMCSA. The four legal statuses are the ones in 395.8(b) above. The name refers to the moment at the end of a shift done right: logged off, truck parked, nothing to fix.
Off Duty Not Driving Rewards is a rewards program for trucking fleets. Contact our team to learn more.
This article is general information, not legal advice. Confirm requirements against the current regulation text and with your compliance counsel.
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