Kentucky IFTA Filing Walkthrough (Quarterly)

Kentucky runs IFTA through the Transportation Cabinet's Division of Motor Carriers with one distinctive wrinkle: its rate has two lines, a base diesel rate and a surcharge reported on the return. The sourced facts live on the Kentucky IFTA page; this walkthrough puts them in filing order.

Step 1: confirm Kentucky is your base

A Kentucky IFTA license fits Kentucky-based carriers running qualified vehicles into other jurisdictions. Kentucky-only carriers over the fuel-tax weight threshold take the KIT license instead, and carriers passing through without credentials buy temporary permits through the cabinet's portal, covered on the trip and fuel permits page.

Step 2: file the Kentucky Trucking Application (TC 95-1)

One application covers the cabinet's whole credential set: IFTA, KYU, KIT, and IRP. Filing online through the Motor Carrier Portal is much faster than the paper route, which takes roughly two business weeks to process. No IFTA license fee is published on the cabinet's IFTA page, and this site records none rather than guessing.

Step 3: track miles and gallons, and remember the second line

Keep miles and gallons per jurisdiction all quarter. For Kentucky miles specifically, the return carries both the base diesel line, currently $0.2200IFTA Fuel Tax Rate Matrix, 3rd Quarter 2026 (International Fuel Tax Association, Inc. (IFTA, Inc.))Verified Jul 18, 2026 per gallon, and the surcharge line, currently $0.1050IFTA Fuel Tax Rate Matrix, 3rd Quarter 2026 (International Fuel Tax Association, Inc. (IFTA, Inc.))Verified Jul 18, 2026 per gallon, which is collected on the return rather than at the pump. Forgetting the surcharge line is the classic Kentucky filing mistake.

Step 4: file the quarter in Motor Carrier Connect

Kentucky quarters file through the Motor Carrier Connect E-File platform, due even with no travel. When the state changes its fuel tax mid-quarter, as its fuel-tax emergency did, the affected quarter files in split reporting periods at each applicable rate; the cabinet's page carries the current instructions. Check the math with the IFTA calculator and scan every jurisdiction's lines on the IFTA rates by state table.

Step 5: renew and reconcile with KYU

Renew annually and remember that IFTA is only one of Kentucky's mileage-based accounts: the KYU weight-distance tax files separately on the same miles for heavy vehicles, walked through in the Kentucky weight distance tax filing guide. The national how to file IFTA guide covers the audit-ready record set behind both.

FAQ

Who administers IFTA in Kentucky?

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet's Division of Motor Carriers. One application, the Kentucky Trucking Application (TC 95-1), covers IFTA along with KYU, KIT, and IRP, and quarters file through the Motor Carrier Connect E-File platform.

What is the Kentucky IFTA surcharge?

Kentucky publishes a separate surcharge line in the IFTA rate matrix on top of its base diesel rate. The surcharge is reported on the return rather than paid at the pump, so Kentucky miles carry two rate lines instead of one.

Why did a recent Kentucky quarter file in split periods?

A state fuel-tax emergency changed the motor-fuel tax rate mid-quarter, so the affected quarter had to be reported in separate periods at the different applicable rates. The standard quarterly cadence itself did not change.