By Evan Reid, Founder of Haul Handbook · Updated Sep 27, 2026
The Maryland requirements table
- Agency
- Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration, Motor Carrier Division (intrastate motor carrier identification numbers); Maryland Public Service Commission, Transportation Division (intrastate for-hire passenger permits)
- Program name
- Maryland intrastate motor carrier identification number (Maryland USDOT Number), plus PSC permits for intrastate for-hire passenger carriers
- State carrier number
- Maryland USDOT Number (MD DOT #), an intrastate motor carrier identification number issued through FMCSA
- Application
- Online only through FMCSA: the Motor Carrier Handbook and the SHA page state that all interstate and intrastate USDOT numbers are issued online at FMCSA's website (first-time applicants register through the Unified Registration System at portal.fmcsa.dot.gov). FMCSA contact center 1-800-832-5660. There is no Maryland paper application for the intrastate number on the agency pages we checked.
- Filing fee
- No Maryland state fee for the intrastate identification number is published on the SHA Maryland DOT Numbers page or in the Motor Carrier Handbook, so none is recorded. The Handbook notes FMCSA charges a fee for the interstate MC Number (operating authority), which is a different credential; the Maryland page describing the intrastate number names no fee.
- Renewal
- No Maryland renewal cycle for the intrastate identification number is described on the pages we checked. The Handbook notes the federal URS biannual USDOT Number update duty, which applies to the underlying number.
- Statute
- The SHA Maryland DOT Numbers page cites only the federal marking rule and names no Maryland statute, and the Maryland General Assembly StatuteText pages print no section catchlines, so no verified-heading provenance can be recorded for a Maryland section citation here. Related authority verified in section text at mgaleg.maryland.gov during this pass (recorded as text-verified references, not heading-verified citations): Transportation 24-112 (SHA oversize and overweight permits, fee floors) and 24-113.2 (exceptional hauling permits), Tax-General 9-219 (motor carrier identification markers and trip permits) and 9-305 (CPI-indexed motor fuel tax rates), Transportation 22-402(c)(3) (5-minute idling limit, as cited in the Motor Carrier Handbook).
Who the requirement covers
- GVWR threshold
- 10,001 lbThe Motor Carrier Handbook states a USDOT number is required for a vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating, gross combination weight rating, gross vehicle weight or gross combination weight of 10,001 pounds or more, whichever is greater, in intrastate or interstate commerce. The SHA Maryland DOT Numbers page frames the display duty as applying to every registered truck over 10,000 pounds, truck tractor and bus operated on public roads.
- For-hire only
- NoThe identification-number duty is written by vehicle criteria, not by for-hire status. Only the Public Service Commission passenger permit is tied to for-hire operation.
- Passenger carriers
- A vehicle designed or used to transport more than 8 passengers including the driver for compensation, or designed to transport more than 15 passengers including the driver and not for compensation, triggers the USDOT number requirement.
- Hazmat
- A vehicle used to transport the types and quantities of hazardous materials requiring a safety permit (49 CFR 385.403) triggers the USDOT number requirement.
- Intrastate-only carriers
- The Maryland identification number exists specifically for carriers that operate only in Maryland and do not handle interstate cargo. Interstate or interstate-and-intrastate carriers use the ordinary FMCSA-issued USDOT Number. Vehicles exempt from obtaining a Maryland DOT number when operated only intrastate: vehicles already displaying a USDOT Number, vehicles registered as farm trucks and farm truck tractors, farm area vehicles, emergency vehicles, vehicles used primarily to transport money or commercial paper, vehicles owned or operated by the State or local government, and vehicles within 15 days of purchase.
- Carriers already filed under UCR
- Maryland does not participate in the Unified Carrier Registration Act, so there is no Maryland UCR office; Maryland motor carriers, brokers, freight forwarders and persons leasing trucks, truck tractors and buses over 10,000 pounds used in interstate commerce must still register under UCR through the national system.
Maryland insurance minimums
State minimums can differ from the federal filing levels; the federal side is covered in our insurance filings guide.
- Liability minimum
- $750,000 (Maryland adopts the federal minimum levels of financial responsibility for motor carriers by incorporating 49 CFR 387 with no amendments or exemptions (COMAR 11.21.01.04-5), so the federal schedule in 49 CFR 387.303 applies: $750,000 for freight vehicles of 10,001 pounds or more GVWR carrying non-hazardous property, $300,000 for small freight fleets under 10,001 pounds GVWR, $1,000,000 for oil and listed hazardous materials, and $5,000,000 for the bulk explosives and high-risk classes. Scope caution: under COMAR 11.21.01.03, the incorporated federal rules apply in full to intrastate carriers only when they transport placardable hazardous materials or operate vehicles designed for 16 or more passengers including the driver; other intrastate carriers are covered by the chapter with the amendments and exemptions in its regulations .05 through .08 and .11 through .14. Separately, Maryland vehicle registration (including IRP registration) requires proof of Maryland insurance at $30,000/$60,000 public liability and $15,000 property damage.)
More Maryland authority rules
- Answer summary: text
- Maryland does not issue a general intrastate operating authority for freight carriers, and the interstate MC Number exists only at FMCSA for interstate for-hire carriers. What Maryland does require of an intrastate-only carrier is a number: every registered truck over 10,000 pounds, truck tractor and bus operated on public roads must display a USDOT Number or an intrastate motor carrier identification number, and a carrier whose vehicles never leave Maryland and never touch interstate cargo obtains a Maryland USDOT Number. All DOT numbers, interstate and intrastate, are issued online by FMCSA. Intrastate for-hire passenger operators are the exception: any motor vehicle transporting passengers for hire within Maryland must secure a permit from the Public Service Commission.
- State number marking: format
- Every truck, truck tractor and bus operated on Maryland highways in either intrastate or interstate commerce, except as provided, shall be identified on both sides of the vehicle with the name or trade name of its owner, operator or lessee and the identification number issued by FMCSA, preceded by the letters USDOT.
- State number marking: rule reference
- The Motor Carrier Handbook cites the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations Part 390.21 for the display requirement and states that carriers not in compliance are subject to fines. The SHA Maryland DOT Numbers web page cites the same display duty as FMCSR part 391.21; the handbook's Part 390.21 citation is the marking rule that actually governs vehicle identification, and the web page's 391.21 citation appears to be a typographical error for it.
- USDOT prerequisite: note
- The Maryland intrastate credential IS a USDOT number issued through FMCSA with Maryland intrastate designation, so the federal registration step is the program itself rather than a prerequisite.
- Certificate required for: passenger
- Intrastate operators of any motor vehicle transporting passengers for hire must secure a permit from the Maryland Public Service Commission. The Commission's jurisdiction extends to most intrastate for-hire passenger carriers by motor vehicle (sedan, van, limousine and motor coach services), with taxicabs carved out for Baltimore City, Baltimore County, Charles County, Cumberland and Hagerstown where the Commission licenses drivers. PSC Transportation Division, William Donald Schaefer Tower, 6 St. Paul Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21202; 1-410-767-8128 (Handbook), 410-767-8060 (SHA contact list).
- Certificate required for: household goods
- No Maryland intrastate household goods carrier certificate appears on any checked primary source (SHA, MVA, Comptroller, PSC). The PSC transportation pages regulate passenger-for-hire only, and no freight or household goods authority program is described. Recorded as a sourced absence on the checked agency set, not as a verified statutory deregulation.
- Certificate required for: towing
- Not addressed as an authority class on the pages we checked. The MVA operates a tow truck portal for tow business licensing, which is outside the operating-authority question.
- Intrastate safety rules: detail
- Maryland incorporates the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations for commercial motor vehicles through COMAR 11.21.01. The incorporated parts are 49 CFR 40, 382, 383, 384, 387, 390 through 393, 395 through 399 and 1572. Under the application regulation, the full set applies to all interstate carriers and to intrastate carriers transporting placardable hazardous materials or operating vehicles designed for 16 or more passengers including the driver; for other intrastate carriers the parts apply subject to the Maryland-specific amendments and exemptions in regulations .05 through .08 and .11 through .14. A DOT physical is required for drivers of commercial motor vehicles of 10,001 pounds or greater in either interstate or intrastate commerce.
| Title | Detail |
|---|---|
| No authority does not mean no number | Maryland has no intrastate freight operating authority, but an intrastate-only carrier still must obtain a Maryland USDOT Number through FMCSA and display it with the carrier name on both sides of every truck, truck tractor and bus. Non-compliance brings fines. |
| The intrastate number comes from FMCSA, not from a Maryland office | Carriers often hunt for a state application. The SHA page and Handbook are explicit that all DOT numbers, interstate and intrastate, are issued online at FMCSA's website; Maryland's role is the display requirement and enforcement. |
| Passenger for hire is the one real state authority | Any intrastate motor vehicle transporting passengers for hire needs a Public Service Commission permit. A carrier that adds a van or shuttle to a freight operation has entered a different regulatory regime without changing weight class. |
Who needs the Maryland USDOT Number
The trigger is written by vehicle, not by for-hire status. A commercial vehicle at or above the weight line the Handbook publishes needs the number whether or not the operation is for hire. Separate triggers cover vehicles built or used for larger passenger groups and vehicles hauling the kinds and quantities of hazardous materials that require a federal safety permit.
The intrastate number exists for carriers that operate only in Maryland and never touch interstate cargo. The exemption list is short and specific: vehicles already displaying a USDOT Number, farm trucks and farm tractors, farm area vehicles, emergency vehicles, money transport, government vehicles and vehicles within days of purchase. The trigger block below carries the SHA's own wording so you can judge your vehicles against the source.
The number and the display duty
All DOT numbers, interstate and intrastate, are issued online by FMCSA. There is no Maryland paper application and no state fee published for the identification number; Maryland's role is the marking rule and enforcement. The Handbook notes a fee for the interstate MC Number, which is a different credential an intrastate-only carrier does not owe.
The marking rule reaches both sides of every truck, tractor and bus: carrier name or trade name plus the identification number preceded by the letters USDOT. Non-compliance brings fines, so the number on the door is the state's version of an authority certificate.
The one real state authority: passengers
Any motor vehicle transporting passengers for hire within Maryland must secure a permit from the Public Service Commission. The Commission's Transportation Division covers sedan, van, limousine and motor coach services, with taxicabs carved out for a handful of jurisdictions that license drivers locally. A freight carrier that adds a shuttle or a van has entered a different regime without changing weight class.
Household goods and towing show no freight authority program on any checked state source. Those absences are recorded as sourced findings on this page's data, not as verified deregulation, because the agency pages simply do not describe one.
Insurance and the incorporated safety rules
Maryland adopts the federal minimum levels of financial responsibility by incorporating the federal insurance regulation with no amendments, so the federal schedule sets the floor where the incorporated rules apply in full. Read the scope before you quote it: the full federal set binds intrastate carriers that move placardable hazardous materials or operate the largest passenger vehicles, while other intrastate carriers answer to the chapter with Maryland's own amendments and exemptions. The practical registration floor is the Maryland insurance proof the MVA requires to title and plate a truck.
The same pattern governs safety rules: driver files, hours and vehicle rules follow the incorporated federal regulations, with a DOT physical required for drivers of commercial vehicles at or above the weight line in either commerce.
Renewal, federal updates and UCR
No Maryland renewal cycle for the identification number is described on the pages we checked; what recurs is the federal biennial update of the underlying USDOT registration, which applies to the number Maryland builds on.
One trap worth its own paragraph: Maryland does not participate in the Unified Carrier Registration Act. Interstate carriers based in Maryland still owe UCR and register through the national system, so do not wait for a state invoice that will never arrive.
About the statute citation
The SHA pages cite the federal marking rule and name no Maryland statute, and the General Assembly's statute pages print no section catchlines, so a heading-verified citation cannot be recorded here the way this site records one for a COMAR regulation. Related authority was read in section text during the research pass and those references are recorded in the data notes with their URLs. When an official source publishes a citable heading, the statute field gets filled and dated.
Where this fits in the Maryland launch
A cell reading "Not confirmed" means the agency did not publish a figure we could verify, so we left it open rather than guessed. For the full launch order, work through start a trucking company in Maryland, 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.