Maine Oversize Permit Cost: Worked Examples

How Maine's BMV prices oversize and overweight permits by bracket, worked through an 11 ft wide load and a 130 ft escorted move.

By Haul Handbook editorial team· Updated Oct 4, 2026 · 11 min read

Maine prices an oversize or overweight permit by how far the load runs past the legal limit, one bracket table per dimension, and then charges you for only one of them: the dimension that draws the higher fee. The permit comes from the Secretary of State's Bureau of Motor Vehicles, not the DOT, and the fees are small. Escorts and the travel calendar shape most moves more than the fee does. Every fee this guide works through renders with its source on the Maine oversize and overweight permits page. To see which states treat your load as oversize at all, run it through the oversize permit cost estimator.

Sources for the fees below: Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles, 29-250 C.M.R. ch. 156, Fee Structure for Over Dimensional and Overweight Loads, Along With State Police Escort Fee, accessed September 28, 2026, maine.gov; and Maine State Legislature, 29-A M.R.S. sec. 2382: Overlimit movement permits, accessed October 4, 2026, legislature.maine.gov.

How Maine builds the number

Start with the legal envelope. A vehicle may be 102 inches wide under 29-A M.R.S. sec. 2380. No structural part may top 13 feet 6 inches, and the load may rise another 6 inches above that, so the permit rule reads legal height with load as 14 feet everywhere except the Maine Turnpike. Section 2390 sets 45 feet for a single vehicle and 65 feet overall for a combination. Section 2353 allows 80,000 pounds on a combination of five or more axles on general law highways.

Once a load breaks one of those lines, the fee comes from Table 1 of 29-250 C.M.R. ch. 156. Each dimension has nine brackets. Here is how the rule turns them into one price:

Measure how far the load runs over the legal limit in each dimension it breaks.
Find the bracket for each one. Weight steps every 5,000 pounds, length every 5 feet after the first 10, width every foot after the first 2, and height every foot after the first 5.
Pay the single bracket that draws the higher fee. The rule does not add them together.
Multiply by loaded moves. A permit that covers two or more loaded moves is charged per loaded move.

The bottom bracket in every dimension costs the same. A load up to 2 feet over the width limit pays $6.00. The top bracket is the same in every dimension too: a load more than 9 feet over the width limit pays $27.50. Section 2382(2) lets the Secretary of State set single-trip fees only inside a statutory floor and ceiling, based on weight, height, length and width, and every bracket in the table sits inside that range. Permits issued to a municipality or a government agency are free.

You apply through MoveMEMaine, the BMV's online permitting system, or at the Overlimit Permit Unit at 101 Hospital Street in Augusta.

Worked example 1: an 11 foot wide load

Start with the simplest move. A piece of equipment on a trailer measures 11 feet wide, at legal height, legal length and legal weight. Width is the only line it breaks.

Eleven feet is 2 feet 6 inches over the 8 foot 6 inch limit. That lands in the second width bracket, so the single-trip permit is $8.00. The table prices the overage, not the miles, so a long trip and a short one land in the same bracket.

The load needs no escort. Table 1 of ch. 157 calls for a pilot vehicle only above 12 feet wide on a Maine-only permit.

If you move this load often, look at the long-term permit. Maine sells long-term overdimensional permits by the month, from 1 to 12 months, rather than a flat annual permit. The envelope is legal height, up to 11 feet 6 inches wide, and up to 45 feet for a single unit or 75 feet for a combination, so an 11 foot load fits. Twelve months costs $300.00. The towing vehicle must be registered, apportioned or prorated for Maine. The apportioned side of that is on the Maine IRP registration page.

Worked example 2: wide, long and heavy at once

This one shows the rule at work. A five-axle tractor and lowboy carry a machine. The combination is 14 feet wide, 90 feet long and 112,000 pounds gross, at legal height.

Let's break it down, one dimension at a time.

Weight. The legal gross for a five-axle combination on a general law highway is 80,000 pounds, so this load runs 32,000 pounds over. The weight bracket for that overage is $21.00.

Width. At 14 feet, the load runs 5 feet 6 inches over the limit. The width bracket is $15.00.

Length. At 90 feet against the 65 foot combination limit, the load runs 25 feet over. The length bracket is $12.50.

The price. Ch. 156 charges the one that draws the higher fee, which here is the weight bracket of $21.00. You do not pay the width or length brackets on top. Section 2390 has its own length allowances for some trailer setups, so take the overage MoveMEMaine works out if it differs from yours. Here the weight bracket wins either way.

Escorts for this load

Escorts follow the dimensions, not the fee. Under ch. 157 Table 1, a Maine-only permit needs one pilot vehicle for a load more than 12 feet and less than 16 feet wide, and one for a load more than 80 feet and less than 125 feet long. The pilot runs in front on an undivided highway and behind on a divided one. The rule lists the conditions row by row, so read the escort count on the issued permit before you book.

Weight review and the regional permit

At 112,000 pounds the load stays under the 130,000-pound ceiling ch. 157 sets for a five-axle tractor-semitrailer before MaineDOT needs a detailed engineering review. Above that, allow two to five business days.

Maine also belongs to the New England Transportation Consortium. One multi-state permit there covers combinations up to 108,000 pounds on five axles, 90 feet long, 13 feet 6 inches high and 14 feet wide. This load matches the width and length caps but is 4,000 pounds too heavy, so it needs the Maine permit. Note that the multi-state permit also tightens the escort line: a pilot is required at 12 feet wide or more, and at 80 feet long or more.

Worked example 3: a 130 foot load with a police escort

Now a long one. A precast beam on a steerable trailer makes a combination 130 feet long and 13 feet wide, at legal height and legal weight.

The length overage against the 65 foot combination limit is 65 feet, well past the top length bracket, so the permit is $27.50. The width overage of 4 feet 6 inches sits in a lower bracket and adds nothing.

The fee is the simple part of this move. Here is why:

Police escort. 29-A M.R.S. sec. 2382(9-A) requires a police escort for any vehicle or combination 125 feet or more long or 16 feet or more wide. Ch. 157 sets the crew at one pilot vehicle plus one police escort from 125 feet up to 150 feet, or two police escorts when the State Police, MaineDOT or the BMV deems it necessary.
State Police only on the Interstate. Only the Maine State Police may escort on the Interstate. Book them directly at least three working days ahead. Permits needing State Police escorts generally are not issued for Saturdays.
Escort billing. Ch. 156 Section 3 bills State Police escorts at actual cost with a four-hour minimum. The rule publishes no hourly rate, so ask the Department of Public Safety for the figure.
Extreme load review. Ch. 157 presumes a load 125 feet or more long to be an extreme load that may need added safety measures. At 150 feet or longer, the move needs utility and town notification, daytime movement outside commuter and school bus hours, and public outreach by the permittee.

The Maine Turnpike is a separate permit

A BMV permit covers MaineDOT-maintained ways only. The Maine Turnpike issues its own permit at its toll plazas, priced on top of the toll, and you still need the BMV permit for every road off the Turnpike. Town roads need local permission.

Height works differently there too. The Turnpike allows no extra 6 inches of load above 13 feet 6 inches, and many of its bridges sit at 13 feet 6 inches. Overlimit loads must also leave the Turnpike when speeds are reduced to 45 miles per hour.

The calendar

Maine's travel windows shape the schedule more than the fee does (Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles, 2026 Holiday Letter: To All Applicants for Permits to Move Loads Exceeding Legal Limits, accessed September 28, 2026, maine.gov):

Permitted moves run in daylight only, from half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset. Overweight-only loads that keep up with traffic may move at any time.
From April 22 to November 18, Saturday travel ends at noon. From June 3 to August 26, it ends at 9 a.m. on I-95.
Sunday permits in July and August need MaineDOT Traffic Engineering pre-clearance with at least two working days' notice.
No overdimensional travel on legal holidays or holiday weekends, all year. The 2026 list runs from New Year's Day through Christmas and includes Patriots' Day, Juneteenth and the Friday after Thanksgiving.
No movement in adverse weather. Check newengland511.org or call 511 before you roll.

What to check before quoting

Next steps, in order:

Measure each dimension the load breaks, and work out the overage against the legal limit.
Find the bracket for each overage in ch. 156 Table 1 and keep only the one that draws the higher fee.
Count loaded moves. The fee applies to each one.
Check the escort rows in ch. 157 Table 1, and book the State Police three working days ahead at 125 feet or 16 feet.
If the route uses the Turnpike, buy its permit at the toll plaza and keep the load at 13 feet 6 inches.
Check the date against the holiday list and the Saturday cutoff.

The Overlimit Permit Unit answers at 207-624-9000 ext. 52134 and overpermits@maine.gov, Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Compare your quote against the same move elsewhere on the oversize permit costs by state table, and see the rest of the credential stack at Maine trucking permits.

FAQ

How much does a Maine oversize permit cost?

A single-trip permit is priced from the brackets in 29-250 C.M.R. ch. 156. Each dimension (weight, length, width and height) has nine brackets based on how far the load runs over the legal limit. When a load breaks more than one limit, you pay only the bracket that draws the higher fee, and a permit covering more than one loaded move is charged per loaded move. 29-A M.R.S. sec. 2382(2) sets a floor and a ceiling on single-trip fees. The current figures render with their source on the Maine oversize and overweight permits page.

When does a Maine oversize load need a pilot car or police escort?

Under 29-250 C.M.R. ch. 157, a Maine-only permit needs one pilot vehicle over 12 feet wide or over 80 feet long, two pilot vehicles for rear overhang over 5 feet and under 15 feet 1 inch, and a pole car over 15 feet high. 29-A M.R.S. sec. 2382(9-A) requires a police escort at 125 feet long or 16 feet wide, and only the Maine State Police may escort on the Interstate. State Police escorts are billed at actual cost with a four-hour minimum.

Does a BMV permit cover the Maine Turnpike?

No. The Maine Turnpike issues its own permit at its toll plazas, and the BMV permit is still needed for every road off the Turnpike. The Turnpike also allows no extra 6 inches of load height above 13 feet 6 inches, and overlimit loads must leave it when speeds drop to 45 miles per hour.