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Taxes, registrations, safety rules and the numbers that decide profit — what applies to you, when it's due, and help getting it done. Built on IRS, FMCSA, UCR, IFTA and state rules, with the source for every item.
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Answer a few questions. Get a dated checklist — “you have 7 things to take care of” — with costs and sources.
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The assistant answers from your compliance profile and the rules behind it — not a generic chatbot guess.
Much bigger than a 2290 filing site
Form 2290, IFTA, state weight-distance taxes, quarterly estimates — and the credits and refunds you're owed.
UCR, IRP apportioned plates, USDOT, operating authority, BOC-3 and the state registrations your lanes trigger.
MCS-150, driver files, drug & alcohol testing, annual inspections, ELD — and a checklist for audit day.
Cost per mile, break-even rate, profit per truck — the numbers that decide whether a load, a lane or a new truck pays.
From “what do I owe?” to handled
- 1Tell us about your businessBase state, trucks, weight, authority, and what's changing — a new truck, a move, a new carrier.
- 2Get your checklistThe rules engine returns every tax, registration and safety requirement that applies, with due dates, costs and the official source.
- 3Keep it handledAdd the deadlines to your calendar, ask the AI about any item, and let Pro send reminders, track every truck and prepare the filings — you submit.
Something just changed?
Step-by-step guides for the moments that trigger new filings.
Yes — you file a separate Form 2290 for the newly added vehicle, and the tax is prorated based on its month of first use, not the full annual amount. The deadline is the last day of the month after the month you first used the new truck on a public highway, and your original filing stays as it is.
When you add a truck: file Form 2290 for it by the last day of the month after its first month on the road (if it's 55,000 lbs or more), add it to your IRP account with a supplemental application, order IFTA decals for it, put it on your insurance policy, get its annual inspection on file, and update your MCS-150 power-unit count. Adding trucks can move you into a higher UCR bracket for next year — the brackets break at 3, 6, 21 and 101 power units.
To get a new truck legally on the road, you generally need a USDOT number (and operating authority/MC number if you haul for hire across state lines), Form 2290 Heavy Vehicle Use Tax with a stamped Schedule 1, BOC-3 process agents for interstate authority, UCR registration, IRP apportioned plates and IFTA if you run interstate, and a current MCS-150 on file. The exact list depends on whether you run interstate or intrastate, for hire or private, and your truck's weight.
If you fail a new-entrant safety audit, FMCSA's notice gives you a deadline to submit evidence of corrective action. Fix each cited violation, document the fix, and submit a corrective action plan before that date — if FMCSA doesn't accept it in time, your new-entrant registration can be revoked. Common automatic failures include having no drug & alcohol testing program, using a driver without a valid CDL or medical certificate, and operating without required insurance.
If you reasonably expect a taxable heavy vehicle to be used 5,000 miles or less on public highways during the tax period (7,500 miles or less for agricultural vehicles), you can file Form 2290 as a suspended Category W vehicle and owe no HVUT — but you still must file the form, list the VIN, and get a stamped Schedule 1. The mileage limit is the total for the period regardless of how many owners drive it; if you exceed it, the full year's tax becomes due.
If you haul freight or passengers across state lines, or carry goods that are part of an interstate journey, you generally need federal interstate authority — a USDOT number plus FMCSA operating authority (MC number) for for-hire carriers — registered through FMCSA. If you operate entirely within one state and never cross the interstate-commerce line, you typically only need your state's intrastate authority and registrations. The deciding factor is the nature of the trip and the freight, not just where your truck physically drives.
You don't have to refile or pay HVUT again to replace a lost stamped Schedule 1 — you can retrieve a copy from your e-file provider's records, your IRS online account, or by contacting the IRS, since the proof is tied to a return you already filed. If you e-filed, the watermarked Schedule 1 is usually re-downloadable in minutes; paper filers can request a copy from the IRS.
To fix a deactivated USDOT number caused by a missed MCS-150 update, you file the MCS-150 biennial update with FMCSA to bring your record current — in most cases this reactivates the number once the filing is processed. There is no FMCSA fee for the MCS-150 itself; gather your correct mileage, vehicle counts, and operation details first, then verify your status in SAFER after filing.
When your base state changes, you open new IRP and IFTA accounts in the new state (you need an established place of business there) and close the old ones, update your address with FMCSA through an MCS-150 update and with the IRS on Form 8822-B, and check the new state's own rules — intrastate USDOT requirements, state operating authority, and weight-distance taxes like Oregon's, New Mexico's, Kentucky's, New York's or Connecticut's.
After selling a heavy truck: claim a credit for the Form 2290 tax you prepaid for the rest of the period (if it was sold, destroyed or stolen before June 1), remove it from your IRP account and handle the plate and cab card as your base state requires, update your IFTA fleet, take it off your insurance, and update your MCS-150 power units if your fleet size changed.
If you used the truck on a public highway at any point during the current tax period (July 1–June 30), you generally still owe Form 2290 HVUT for that vehicle — even though you later sold it — and you must file by the deadline. If the buyer is taking over, you can prorate or claim a credit on a future 2290, but you cannot simply skip the filing because the truck is gone.
To start an interstate for-hire trucking company you generally need, in order: an EIN, a USDOT number and operating authority (MC) from FMCSA, a BOC-3 process-agent filing, liability insurance filed with FMCSA ($750,000 minimum for general freight over 10,000 lbs), Form 2290 for trucks of 55,000 lbs or more, IRP apportioned plates, an IFTA license, UCR registration, and a DOT drug & alcohol program for CDL drivers. You'll then get a new-entrant safety audit, typically within the first 12 months.
When you switch carriers: end the old lease in writing and sign a new written lease that meets FMCSA's truth-in-leasing rules (49 CFR Part 376), remove the old carrier's identification and return its credentials, complete the new carrier's pre-employment drug test and Clearinghouse query, and confirm who handles IFTA and IRP under the new lease. Form 2290 stays your responsibility as the truck's registered owner.
If your UCR has expired, renew it right away for the current registration year — UCR has no separate late penalty for paying after the deadline, but operating interstate without a current UCR can lead to state fines and roadside enforcement, so you simply pay the current year's fee based on your fleet size to get compliant. UCR renews each year (the registration year matches the calendar year), and enrollment typically opens the prior October, so file for the current year and confirm your fleet count is correct.

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UCR fee, MCS-150 date and 2290 deadline from your public FMCSA record. No signup to see it.
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Trucking compliance by state
UCR, IFTA, IRP, weight-distance taxes, intrastate authority and permits where you're based and where you run.

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Learn
A USDOT number is a unique ID issued by the FMCSA that identifies your commercial vehicle operation for safety records, inspections, and audits. You likely need one if you operate a vehicle over 10,000 pounds, haul certain hazardous materials, or transport passengers across state lines.
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