Does Kentucky require intrastate operating authority?

Yes, for for-hire carriers. A business that transports another party's property inside Kentucky for payment must hold an intrastate authority certificate from the Division of Motor Carriers. Private carriers hauling their own freight are treated differently.

What insurance does Kentucky require?

Liability coverage that meets KRS 281.655, filed by your insurer on a Form E. Kentucky sets split limits rather than one figure: a per-person amount, a per-accident total that is higher for heavier trucks, and a property damage amount. Hazardous materials haulers need a larger single limit. The coverage rows below list every amount.

Does Kentucky issue a state carrier number?

No. Kentucky assigns no state carrier number of its own. Carriers are identified by their USDOT number, their KYU number where the weight distance tax applies, and their intrastate authority certificate.

How much does the certificate cost?

KRS 281.630 sets the fee for a property certificate, and the same amount is due each year when you renew. Household goods and other certificate types pay a higher application fee. The fee rows below show the amounts.

Kentucky Intrastate Operating Authority: Who Needs It

By Haul Handbook editorial team· Updated Oct 6, 2026

The Kentucky requirements table

Authority required: Yes
Agency: Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Division of Motor Carriers
Program name: Kentucky Intrastate Authority Certificate (Intrastate For-Hire)
State carrier number: Kentucky issues no CA#, TxDMV#, or NY DOT# analog. Carriers are identified by their USDOT number, their KYU number (for weight distance tax at 60,000 lbs and over), and their intrastate authority certificate. A USDOT number is required for vehicles over 10,001 lbs GVWR.
Application: Application filed through the Motor Carrier Portal (apps.transportation.ky.gov/MotorCarrierPortal). The division publishes step-by-step Motor Carrier Portal instructions for the Intrastate Carrier Authority (ICA) application. Consumer complaints against carriers use form TC 95-622.
Recorded fee: From $25; every charge is listed below
Renewal: Every certificate must be renewed each year (KRS 281.630(4)(a)), and a certificate not renewed within one calendar year after its renewal date becomes void (KRS 281.630(4)(b)). Renewal runs through the Motor Carrier Portal. The insurance filing must stay on file: under KRS 281.655(9), operating rights end as soon as the required bond or policy is canceled.
Statute: KRS Chapter 281 (motor carriers); KRS 281.630 (certificates, fees and renewal); KRS 281.655 (bonds or insurance policies).

Authority fee schedule

Kentucky charges a fixed amount per filing rather than pricing registration by term. Each charge below is set by its own statute or rule section.

Kentucky motor carrier authority fees by charge
Charge	Fee	Set by
Property certificate, application fee	$25	KRS 281.630(3)(b)
Property certificate, annual renewal fee	$25	KRS 281.630(4)(d)
Any other certificate type (for example household goods), application fee	$250	KRS 281.630(3)(b)

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Who the requirement covers

GVWR threshold: NoneAuthority is triggered by the for-hire nature of the operation (transporting another party's property within Kentucky for compensation), not by a single GVWR figure. A USDOT number is separately required for vehicles over 10,001 lbs GVWR, and a KYU weight distance license for vehicles at or above 60,000 lbs combined license weight.
For-hire only: Yes
Property carriers: Yes
Passenger carriers: Separate regime passenger vehicle authority
Household goods: Separate regime household goods authority
Hazmat: Additional federal/state hazmat requirements apply

Kentucky insurance minimums

State minimums can differ from the federal filing levels; the federal side is covered in our insurance filings guide.

Liability minimum: Kentucky states its minimum as split limits by vehicle weight, not one figure, so no single amount is shown here. Under KRS 281.655(4), a property vehicle of 18,000 lbs or less needs 100,000 dollars for death or injury to one person, 300,000 dollars total for death or injury, and 50,000 dollars for property damage. A property vehicle over 18,000 lbs needs 100,000, 600,000 and 50,000 dollars. A hazardous materials vehicle needs a 1,000,000-dollar single limit under KRS 281.655(6), except bulk petroleum loads under 10,000 lbs, which use the lower 100,000, 300,000 and 50,000 dollar limits in KRS 281.655(5). An insurer authorized in Kentucky files the Form E (Uniform Motor Carrier Bodily Injury and Property Damage Liability Certificate) for this coverage.
By operation type: See the operation-type table below
Cargo minimum: KRS 281.655 sets no cargo minimum for a general property carrier. A household goods carrier must file cargo coverage in the amounts 49 CFR 387.303(c) sets for interstate household goods carriers (KRS 281.655(7)).
Differs from federal: Yes

Minimum liability by operation type

General freight is not the floor for every carrier. Hazmat and larger passenger operations carry higher minimums; buy against the row that matches what you haul.

Kentucky minimum liability coverage by operation type
Operation type	Minimum liability	Set by	Notes
Property vehicle, gross weight 18,000 lbs or less: death or injury to any one person	$100,000	KRS 281.655(4)
Property vehicle, gross weight 18,000 lbs or less: total for death or injury, per accident	$300,000	KRS 281.655(4)
Property vehicle, gross weight 18,000 lbs or less: property damage	$50,000	KRS 281.655(4)
Property vehicle, gross weight more than 18,000 lbs: death or injury to any one person	$100,000	KRS 281.655(4)
Property vehicle, gross weight more than 18,000 lbs: total for death or injury, per accident	$600,000	KRS 281.655(4)
Property vehicle, gross weight more than 18,000 lbs: property damage	$50,000	KRS 281.655(4)
Hazardous materials vehicle (as defined in KRS 174.405), single limit for bodily injury and property damage	$1,000,000	KRS 281.655(6)	Does not apply to petroleum or petroleum products hauled in bulk in amounts under 10,000 lbs; those vehicles carry 100,000 dollars per person, 300,000 dollars total and 50,000 dollars property damage under KRS 281.655(5).

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Other Kentucky insurance requirements

Form e required: Yes

More Kentucky authority rules

Agency contact: email: qp.dmc@ky.gov
Agency contact: phone: (502) 564-1257
Agency contact: hours: Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. ET
Agency contact: address: 200 Mero Street, Frankfort, KY 40622

Who needs Kentucky intrastate authority

The trigger is the nature of the work, not a single weight figure. If you transport another party's goods within Kentucky for compensation, you need the intrastate for-hire certificate. Private carriers hauling their own goods, passenger operations, and household goods movers follow different rules, with passenger and household goods carriers handled as separate authority regimes by the same division.

Kentucky does not issue a state carrier number of its own. You are identified by your USDOT number, your KYU number where the weight distance tax applies, and the authority certificate itself.

Insurance and how you apply

Your insurance company makes the state filing, not you. An insurer authorized in Kentucky files a Form E to prove liability coverage that meets KRS 281.655. The application itself goes through the Motor Carrier Portal, and the division publishes step-by-step instructions for the intrastate carrier authority application.

The statute sets the liability minimum as three split limits, not one number: a per-person amount, a total for injuries in one accident, and a property damage amount. The per-accident total is higher for heavier trucks, and hazardous materials loads need a much larger single limit. The coverage rows below list each amount. The certificate fee comes from KRS 281.630, which charges a property carrier a small flat application fee and the same amount again at each yearly renewal.

Keeping the certificate current

A Kentucky certificate is renewed every year, through the same Motor Carrier Portal you applied in. Let it go a full calendar year past its renewal date and it becomes void, so a late renewal means starting over. Keep your insurance filing active too: the statute ends your operating rights the moment the required policy is canceled.

Where this fits in the Kentucky launch

A cell reading "Not confirmed" means the stored record does not confirm the value. It does not establish that the agency publishes none. Read the field note and source for scope and exceptions. For the full launch order, work through start a trucking company in Kentucky, then line up IRP registration and IFTA if you run beyond state lines. To compare every state at once, see the national intrastate authority table.