By Haul Handbook editorial team· Updated Sep 28, 2026
Maine's Bureau of Motor Vehicles runs IRP out of Augusta on staggered registrations: each fleet expires at the end of the month one year from issue, not on a single statewide date. A qualifying Maine truck that travels to another IRP jurisdiction must be apportioned. Fees follow the fleet's distance share in each jurisdiction under full reciprocity, every cab card lists all member jurisdictions, and Maine adds its own municipal excise tax, paid to the town where the truck is based before registration.
Maine IRP administration
- Agency
- Maine Department of the Secretary of State, Bureau of Motor Vehicles, Motor Carrier Services, IRP Unit
- Office
- IRP Unit, Bureau of Motor Vehicles, 101 Hospital Street, Augusta (mailing address 29 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333-0029). All IRP applications are processed only through this unit in Augusta.
- Process
- Contact the IRP Unit (207-624-9000 ext. 52135) to open a new account and get the forms. First registration needs proof of Maine sales or use tax payment or exemption, municipal excise tax paid, title or MSO, IRS Form 2290 proof for vehicles registered at 55,000 pounds or more, evidence of insurance (or an active FMCSA insurance filing), the USDOT number of the carrier responsible for safety, and a lease where the registrant is not the titled owner or relies on a carrier's insurance. New registrants pay the invoice in full before receiving temporary authority.
- Fee structure
- Each jurisdiction's full-year fee for the requested weight is multiplied by the fleet's distance percentage in that jurisdiction; a fleet with no distance in the reporting period is billed on Maine's average per-vehicle distance and pays all jurisdictions. Vehicles added mid-year are prorated from the first of the month added. Maine has continuous registration: a late renewal still pays a full year from the prior issue month.
- Fees: miscellaneous fees
- Cab card $5; replacement plate $5; transfer fee $8; reinstatement $50; 72-hour IRP trip permit $25; Hunter's (unladen) permit $25 for 30 days; fax fee $3; replacement month or year decal $0.25.
- Fees: excise tax
- Maine law requires an annual municipal excise tax before registering or re-registering, paid to the municipality where the vehicle is routinely based. A vehicle base-registered elsewhere but garaged in Maine also owes excise tax. A commercial vehicle placed in interstate use within 30 days of purchase and used in interstate commerce on at least 80 percent of days for two years is exempt from Maine sales and use tax.
- Cab card
- Credentials are a cab card, plate(s) and month and year decals. Since full reciprocity took effect January 1, 2015, every member jurisdiction appears on the cab card. The original cab card or a legible electronic copy must be kept with the vehicle. A temporary authority (TVR) is valid up to 45 days pending permanent credentials and is honored in all member jurisdictions.
To work through your mileage inputs, calculate each jurisdiction’s share of your fleet miles. The estimator apportions any full-year fees you enter; it does not contain state fee schedules or issue an official quote.
More Maine IRP rules
- Temporary credentials: trip permit
- Maine's 72 consecutive hour IRP trip permit is $25, the IFTA fuel trip permit $50 and the combined permit $75, each plus a $3 fax fee that is waived if the permit is emailed (Form MV-208, Rev. 11/2025). A copy of the vehicle's valid registration is required.
- Temporary credentials: hunters permit
- An unladen (Hunter's) permit lets an owner-operator move an empty vehicle while looking for a carrier to lease to, $25.
- Contact: address
- 29 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333-0029 (walk-in at 101 Hospital Street, Augusta)
- Contact: note
- 207-624-9000 ext. 52135 is printed on the BMV International Registration Plan page itself, repeated in rule 29-250 C.M.R. ch. 162 Section 3 and on the IRP Unit's forms. It is the Bureau's main number with the IRP extension, not a permit vendor's line. The IRP page lists fax 207-624-9062; the rule also lists 207-624-9086.
Base jurisdiction, renewal, and audit in detail
The rules that decide whether Maine can be your base jurisdiction, what qualifies, and what happens at renewal and audit. Each one is sourced.
- Base jurisdiction rules: Summary
- To base in Maine the fleet must accrue distance in Maine, keep its operational records in Maine or make them available there, and either have an established place of business in Maine (an owned or leased physical structure open for business and staffed by one or more permanent employees during normal hours managing the trucking business) or demonstrate Maine residence with at least three documents. Renewing registrants certify this each year on Form MV-205, and a registration later found ineligible may be cancelled without refund.
- Qualifying vehicles: Scope
- A power unit used or intended for use in two or more member jurisdictions, used for passengers for hire or designed, used or maintained primarily for property, that has two axles and a gross or registered gross weight over 26,000 pounds, or three or more axles regardless of weight, or is used in a combination over 26,000 pounds.
- Qualifying vehicles: Trip permits
- Out-of-state qualifying vehicles need Maine on the cab card or a valid Maine IRP trip permit before entering. Non-apportioned vehicles operating intrastate must register in Maine or buy trip permits. Vehicles from non-IRP jurisdictions may enter only in interstate commerce.
- Renewal: Summary
- Staggered: registrations expire on the last day of the month one year from the month of issue, and a registrant's vehicles are consolidated into one expiration month unless multiple fleets are approved. Maine has no grace period after expiration. New registrants pay in full first; existing registrants have up to 45 days to pay an invoice. HVUT proof for the tax year is required before renewal credentials issue.
- Audit: Detail
- IRP distance records must be kept at least six years (the reporting period through the end of its registration year plus three years). A vehicle tracking system must log position at least every 15 minutes for IRP. Inadequate records bring an assessment of 20 percent of fees paid on the first audit, 50 percent on the second and 100 percent on the third or later. Maine conducts combined IFTA and IRP audits where appropriate.
What the Maine share of the fee is built from
An IRP bill is the base jurisdiction's own registration fee for the vehicle, apportioned by mileage, plus the same for every other jurisdiction on the cab card. These are the Maine inputs to that calculation, each with its official source.
- Miscellaneous fees
- Cab card $5; replacement plate $5; transfer fee $8; reinstatement $50; 72-hour IRP trip permit $25; Hunter's (unladen) permit $25 for 30 days; fax fee $3; replacement month or year decal $0.25.
- Excise tax
- Maine law requires an annual municipal excise tax before registering or re-registering, paid to the municipality where the vehicle is routinely based. A vehicle base-registered elsewhere but garaged in Maine also owes excise tax. A commercial vehicle placed in interstate use within 30 days of purchase and used in interstate commerce on at least 80 percent of days for two years is exempt from Maine sales and use tax.
Who must apportion in Maine
IRP covers a power unit used in two or more member jurisdictions that carries passengers for hire or is built to haul property and has two axles over the IRP weight line, three or more axles at any weight, or runs in a heavy combination. Out-of-state trucks that qualify need Maine on the cab card or a Maine trip permit before entering.
To base in Maine, the fleet must run miles in Maine, keep its records there or make them available, and have an established place of business with a staffed physical site, or prove Maine residence. Renewing registrants certify this each year.
Opening an account
Call the IRP Unit to open a new account and get the forms. A first registration needs proof of Maine sales or use tax paid or exempt, the town excise tax paid, the title, heavy vehicle use tax proof for heavier trucks, evidence of insurance, the USDOT number of the carrier responsible for safety, and a lease where the registrant is not the owner. New registrants pay the invoice in full before receiving temporary authority.
After that, renewals, weight changes and fleet additions run online through Maine Motor Carrier Connect.
Fees and the town excise tax
Each jurisdiction's full-year fee for your weight is multiplied by your fleet's distance share there. A new fleet with no distance history is billed on Maine's average per-vehicle distance. Trucks added mid-year are prorated from the first of the month added.
On top of IRP fees, Maine law requires the annual municipal excise tax, paid to the town where the truck is based, before registering. A truck placed in interstate use soon after purchase and kept mostly interstate can be exempt from Maine sales and use tax.
Renewal, credentials and audits
Registrations expire at the end of the month one year from issue, with a fleet's trucks consolidated into one month, and Maine has no grace period. A late renewal still pays a full year. Keep the cab card or a legible electronic copy in the truck. Temporary authority covers a truck while permanent credentials are issued.
Keep distance records for the retention period, with tracking systems logging position at the required interval. Poor records draw a percentage assessment that rises with each audit, and Maine can combine IRP and IFTA audits.
Reach the Maine IRP office
Account problems, supplement filings and credential replacements all route through the office that holds the account. Everything below is the agency's own published channel; where it publishes no phone line, the note says so rather than pointing at a permit vendor's number.
- Mailing address
- 29 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333-0029 (walk-in at 101 Hospital Street, Augusta)
- Notes
- 207-624-9000 ext. 52135 is printed on the BMV International Registration Plan page itself, repeated in rule 29-250 C.M.R. ch. 162 Section 3 and on the IRP Unit's forms. It is the Bureau's main number with the IRP extension, not a permit vendor's line. The IRP page lists fax 207-624-9062; the rule also lists 207-624-9086.
What pairs with IRP
The same interstate operation that needs apportioned plates almost always needs an IFTA license through Maine, and heavy power units owe the federal Form 2290 heavy vehicle use tax before plates renew. To compare how other states run IRP, see the national IRP registration table.