391.21 — Driver application for employment incomplete
49 CFR 391 • Driver Fitness BASIC • Severity 1/10
What this violation means
DQ File application missing required fields per 391.21 — 3-year employment history, accidents, driving record, etc. 1 SMS point.
Why this gets cited
Carrier didn't use a compliant application form. Driver left fields blank.
How to fix / prevent
Use the J.J. Keller or DAT-compliant DOT application. Don't accept incomplete returns.
Out-of-service criteria
No — this violation is not typically out-of-service eligible. The inspector will note 391.21 on the inspection report (form MCS-63), but the truck/driver can usually continue after the inspection ends. It still counts against the carrier in CSA scoring (severity 1/10 weight, time-weighted over 24 months) and shows on the driver's PSP record. A pattern of these non-OOS violations across multiple inspections is what triggers FMCSA intervention — a single citation rarely does.
CSA / SMS impact
391.21 carries a severity weight of 1/10 in FMCSA's Safety Measurement System (SMS). Higher weights mean faster CSA percentile movement. Combined with a time-weighting factor (1× for citations within the last 6 months, decaying over 24 months), this violation can move your Driver Fitness BASIC percentile significantly if it stacks with similar citations across your fleet. The threshold for FMCSA intervention is the 65th percentile for most BASICs (50th for Hazmat and Passenger Carrier). Once you cross that, FMCSA can send a Warning Letter, Off-Site Investigation, or full Compliance Review.
How to read this: a single citation rarely puts you over threshold — it's the pattern. Track your inspection rate per power unit and aim for OOS rate under 5% (industry average is 21%).