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Connecticut trucking

The Highway Use Fee

Connecticut is one of the few states that taxes trucks by weight and miles on top of fuel tax. Here is who owes it, the current rate table, and how registration and filing work, every fact sourced.

By Haul Handbook editorial team· Updated Sep 28, 2026

Since January 1, 2023, Connecticut has charged a Highway Use Fee to carriers for the privilege of operating heavy, multi-unit trucks on its public roads. The fee is figured per vehicle from its gross weight and the miles it runs in Connecticut. It applies to vehicles with a gross weight of 26,000 pounds or more in Federal Highway Administration vehicle Classes 8 through 13. Carriers register with the Department of Revenue Services in myconneCT and file a return every calendar quarter, including quarters with no Connecticut miles.

The Highway Use Fee is a separate return from IFTA. Connecticut still collects fuel tax on the same truck through IFTA, and no tax credit is allowed against the Highway Use Fee.

The basics

Tax name
Highway Use Fee
Credential required
Highway Use Fee Permit. DRS issues one permit to the carrier, not one per truck, once it accepts the carrier's electronic application in myconneCT, and the carrier keeps a copy of the permit in each eligible vehicle it runs in Connecticut. The permit does not expire and is not renewed.
Filing frequency
Quarterly since the calendar quarter beginning October 1, 2023; returns were monthly from January through September 2023. Every registered carrier files a return for every quarter, whether or not its vehicles ran in Connecticut that quarter, and files and pays electronically in myconneCT.
Quarterly filers due
The last day of the month after the quarter ends: April 30, July 31, October 31 and January 31.
Return form
Highway Use Fee Return in myconneCT, with Schedule 1 listing each vehicle's Connecticut miles and weight (Schedule 1 can be imported from a DRS-defined CSV file).
Registration
Register with DRS by filing the Highway Use Fee application electronically in myconneCT; DRS offers no paper application and charges no registration fee. A carrier already registered with DRS for IFTA or the motor carrier road tax adds a Highway Use Fee account in the same myconneCT login. No carrier may run an eligible vehicle in Connecticut without the permit.
Statute
Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 12-493a (Chapter 222a, Highway Use Tax), enacted by 2021 Conn. Pub. Acts 177, Section 1, effective for calendar months beginning on or after January 1, 2023, and amended by 2023 Conn. Pub. Acts 204, Section 366, which moved filing from monthly to quarterly for quarters beginning on or after October 1, 2023.

How the programme actually works

The rules that decide which rate you pay, which return you file, and what you can use instead of a full registration. Each one is sourced.

Also known as
Highway use tax: the name Chapter 222a of the Connecticut General Statutes and Section 12-493a give the same charge.
Thresholds: Gross weight lb
26000
Thresholds: Rule
An eligible motor vehicle has a gross weight of 26,000 pounds or more and carries a classification between Class 8 and Class 13, inclusive, under the Federal Highway Administration vehicle classification system. Those classes are the multi-unit combinations: a tractor or straight truck power unit pulling one or more trailers.
Thresholds: Exemptions
A vehicle carrying milk or dairy products to or from a dairy farm that holds a license to ship milk is not an eligible motor vehicle. The state, its political subdivisions and the federal government are not carriers under the fee.
Alternatives: Temporary permit
None. DRS issues no temporary Highway Use Fee permit for occasional trips, so a carrier that enters Connecticut only now and then with an eligible vehicle still needs the standing permit and quarterly returns.
Penalties: Late or incomplete return
10 percent of the fee due and unpaid, or $50, whichever is greater.
Penalties: Interest
1 percent per month or fraction of a month on fee paid after the due date, until paid in full.
Penalties: Knowing violation
A fine of $1,000 for knowingly violating a provision of C.G.S. 12-493a that carries no other penalty.
Penalties: Permit cancellation
A carrier whose returns show no Connecticut use for two successive quarters can be called to a hearing on whether its permit should be cancelled.

Current rate table

Rendered straight from the rate store, so it updates atomically when the state publishes a change. Each cell links its official source.

Highway Use Fee rate table.Source:Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 12-493a, Highway use tax. Permit applications. Returns. Protests, hearings and appeals (Chapter 222a, Highway Use Tax) (Connecticut General Assembly (cga.ct.gov))
Highway Use Fee rate table.
Weight bracketRateUnit and calculation
26,000 to 28,000 lb$0.0250USD per mile
28,001 to 30,000 lb$0.0279USD per mile
30,001 to 32,000 lb$0.0308USD per mile
32,001 to 34,000 lb$0.0337USD per mile
34,001 to 36,000 lb$0.0365USD per mile
36,001 to 38,000 lb$0.0394USD per mile
38,001 to 40,000 lb$0.0423USD per mile
40,001 to 42,000 lb$0.0452USD per mile
42,001 to 44,000 lb$0.0481USD per mile
44,001 to 46,000 lb$0.0510USD per mile
46,001 to 48,000 lb$0.0538USD per mile
48,001 to 50,000 lb$0.0567USD per mile
50,001 to 52,000 lb$0.0596USD per mile
52,001 to 54,000 lb$0.0625USD per mile
54,001 to 56,000 lb$0.0654USD per mile
56,001 to 58,000 lb$0.0683USD per mile
58,001 to 60,000 lb$0.0712USD per mile
60,001 to 62,000 lb$0.0740USD per mile
62,001 to 64,000 lb$0.0769USD per mile
64,001 to 66,000 lb$0.0798USD per mile
66,001 to 68,000 lb$0.0827USD per mile
68,001 to 70,000 lb$0.0856USD per mile
70,001 to 72,000 lb$0.0885USD per mile
72,001 to 74,000 lb$0.0913USD per mile
74,001 to 76,000 lb$0.0942USD per mile
76,001 to 78,000 lb$0.0971USD per mile
78,001 to 80,000 lb$0.1000USD per mile
80,001 lb and over$0.1750USD per mile

Scroll sideways to see every column.

Estimate a period's liability with the weight-distance tax calculator, or compare the levying states on the national weight-distance table.

Connecticut mileage-tax calculator

Enter taxable miles for Connecticut and select your published weight bracket. The estimate uses the same cited rates as the table above. Your inputs stay in this browser; the worked estimates below use fictional trips.

Highway Use Fee

Estimate only, not a return

Loading the calculator inputs…

Pick a state and weight bracket, then enter your taxable miles. The estimate appears here.

Worked mileage estimates

These fictional trips show the calculator math for the first published bracket: 26,000 to 28,000 lb. Each estimate multiplies taxable miles by the cited bracket rate. Choose the bracket that applies to your vehicle in the calculator above. The agency return handles exemptions, credits and filing rules.

Fictional mileage estimates for Highway Use Fee
Taxable milesCited bracket rateEstimated tax
1,000$0.0250$25.00
10,000$0.0250$250.00

Where it fits in the Connecticut stack

The weight-distance account sits alongside IRP apportioned plates and the IFTA license; interstate carriers based in Connecticut typically hold all three. The full launch order is in start a trucking company in Connecticut.

When a filing period comes due, follow the Connecticut weight distance tax filing walkthrough.

Frequently asked questions

Who owes the Connecticut weight-distance tax?

Carriers running vehicles over the state's weight threshold on Connecticut public highways owe the tax on the miles those vehicles run there. The tables on this page carry the thresholds and the current rates, each with the official source.

Is this the same as IFTA?

No. IFTA settles fuel tax across jurisdictions; a weight-distance tax charges for road use by weight and miles, on top of fuel tax. Only a handful of states levy one, and Connecticut is one of them.

Do I need a separate account or permit for it?

Yes, the tax has its own registration and credential, separate from your plates and IFTA license. The registration section on this page covers how Connecticut issues it, with the official source linked.

Where do the rates on this page come from?

Straight from the state's published rate schedule, stored once in our rate store and rendered from there, so a rate change updates this page and the calculator together. Each rate cell links the official source.

Haul Handbook publishes educational information about trucking registration and compliance requirements. This is not legal, financial, or tax advice. Rules, fees, and deadlines change; confirm with the agency before you file or pay.