By Evan Reid, Founder of Haul Handbook · Updated Sep 28, 2026
Minnesota runs IFTA through Driver and Vehicle Services at the Department of Public Safety, the same office that handles IRP. New licenses are applied for online through e-Services for Business and processed only at the St. Paul central office. The yearly cost is a $28 license fee, a $12 filing fee, and $2.50 per vehicle for decals, so $40 per account plus decals ($41 at a deputy registrar). Quarterly returns are due April 30, July 31, October 31, and January 31.
Minnesota IFTA administration
- Agency
- Minnesota Department of Public Safety, Driver and Vehicle Services (IRP/IFTA office, also called Prorate)
- License fee
- $28 (The $28 license fee is two statutory charges billed as one line. Minn. Stat. 168D.06 (Fuel license fees, last amended 2023 c 68 art 7 s 12, no 2026 amendment) sets an annual fuel license fee of $15 and an annual application filing fee of $13 for quarterly reporting of fuel tax; $15 plus $13 is the $28 the DVS IFTA manual (April 2025) and MnDOT's 2026 Resource Book list as the license fee. The separate $12 filing fee is the general vehicle transaction filing fee in Minn. Stat. 168.33, subdivision 7, paragraph (a), clause (2), which names motor carrier fuel licenses under sections 168D.05 and 168D.06. Paragraph (f) of that subdivision adds a $1 surcharge when a deputy registrar processes the transaction. A carrier therefore pays $40 a year per account ($41 at a deputy registrar), plus $2.50 per vehicle for decals.)
- Decal fee
- $2.50 ($2.50 per vehicle for a set of two decals, set by Minn. Stat. 168D.07 by reference to the International Fuel Tax Agreement line of the section 168.12, subdivision 5 fee table. Decals are not transferable and unused decals are not refunded or exchanged.)
- Application
- IFTA license application in e-Services for Business (Minnesota DVS online services for business)
- Application: methods
- New IFTA licenses are applied for online through e-Services for Business and processed only at the DVS central office in St. Paul. All deputy registrar offices can process renewals and issue decals; the manual lists eleven IFTA deputy registrar offices outside St. Paul, by appointment only.
- Application: requirements
- The IFTA account number is the licensee's nine-digit FEIN. Credentials are denied if the carrier owes IRP registration taxes, has a prior registration or fuel tax delinquency in Minnesota, holds a suspended or revoked license in another IFTA jurisdiction, or misstates the application.
- Filing frequency
- Quarterly. Returns and full payment are due the last day of the month after the quarter ends: April 30, July 31, October 31, and January 31, moving to the next business day when the date falls on a weekend or legal holiday. A return is required even with no distance traveled or no taxable fuel used, and a separate return is filed for each fuel type. Returns can be filed from the first day of the month they are due.
- Base jurisdiction: summary
- Minnesota is the base jurisdiction when the qualified vehicles display Minnesota plates, their operational records are kept or can be made available at the Minnesota business address, and they accrue distance in Minnesota. A carrier with fleets registered in several jurisdictions may be allowed to pick one base and file a consolidated return.
- Base jurisdiction: qualified motor vehicle
- A power unit used, designed, or maintained for transporting persons or property with two axles and a gross or registered gross vehicle weight over 26,000 pounds (11,797 kilograms), three or more axles regardless of weight, or used in combination over 26,000 pounds. Recreational vehicles are exempt.
- Base jurisdiction: lease rule
- Short-term rentals of 29 days or less are reported by the lessor unless a written contract makes the lessee responsible and the lessor holds a copy of the lessee's IFTA license. Under long-term leases of 30 days or more the parties choose who reports; if the lease is silent, the lessee is responsible.
- Late-filing penalty
- Late filing, underpayment, or failure to file draws a penalty of $50 or 10 percent of the net tax liability, whichever is greater, plus interest on delinquent tax due each jurisdiction at two percentage points above the Internal Revenue Code rate, for each month or part of a month. The penalty may be waived for reasonable cause on appeal.
More Minnesota IFTA rules
- Filing portal: detail
- Available 24/7 after an access application. Licensees renew the fleet, print the license and decals, order extra decals, print free 30-day temporary decal permits, change addresses, file and pay quarterly returns, and request refunds. A paper return form is also available at drive.mn.gov by searching IFTA forms; mailed returns count as filed on the postmark date (a meter mark does not count).
- Qualified motor vehicle
- Two axles and over 26,000 pounds gross or registered gross vehicle weight, three or more axles regardless of weight, or a combination over 26,000 pounds. Recreational vehicles are exempt.
- License period
- Calendar year: all licenses expire December 31 (Minn. Stat. 168D.05, subd. 3). Renewed license and decals may be displayed from November 1.
- Credentials
- One license per account, with the original kept in the business records and a legible copy or electronic image in each qualified vehicle. Two decals per vehicle, one on the exterior of each side of the cab. Missing decals or license copy can bring a fuel trip permit purchase, a citation, or both.
- Renewal
- DVS sends renewal notices each October; renewals must be filed and paid before December 31. Renewal is denied for missing quarterly returns, delinquent fuel or registration tax, no travel in two or more jurisdictions for three consecutive quarters, or a revoked, suspended, or cancelled license. A licensee not renewed by February 1 gets a notice, is suspended 30 days later, and revoked 30 days after that. The IFTA renewal must be done before the IRP renewal.
- Grace period
- Two months (January and February) to display renewed credentials, if the renewal was filed by December 31. During the grace period carriers display the current or prior year license and decals, or a single-trip permit from the jurisdiction they are in.
- Bond requirement
- No bond for a first-time applicant. A bond may be required from carriers that failed to file returns, after an audit shows serious problems, or on reinstatement of a revoked license, in an amount up to $25,000 per year per vehicle.
- Recordkeeping
- Keep distance and fuel records for four years from the date the return was due or filed, whichever is later. GPS-based distance records must log a reading at least every 10 minutes with the engine on (date, time, latitude and longitude to four decimal places, ECM odometer) in a spreadsheet or delimited file; PDFs and images are not acceptable. MnDOT notes that ELD data may not meet IRP and IFTA distance record requirements.
Quarterly filing deadlines
Returns are due on the same schedule every year. Missing one draws the late-filing penalty above.
Licensing rules, records, and penalties
Which vehicles the licence covers, how long it runs, what Minnesota can ask you to post or produce, and what a late or wrong return costs. Each one is sourced.
- Qualified motor vehicle
- Two axles and over 26,000 pounds gross or registered gross vehicle weight, three or more axles regardless of weight, or a combination over 26,000 pounds. Recreational vehicles are exempt.
- Application: Form
- IFTA license application in e-Services for Business (Minnesota DVS online services for business)
- Application: Methods
- New IFTA licenses are applied for online through e-Services for Business and processed only at the DVS central office in St. Paul. All deputy registrar offices can process renewals and issue decals; the manual lists eleven IFTA deputy registrar offices outside St. Paul, by appointment only.
- Application: Requirements
- The IFTA account number is the licensee's nine-digit FEIN. Credentials are denied if the carrier owes IRP registration taxes, has a prior registration or fuel tax delinquency in Minnesota, holds a suspended or revoked license in another IFTA jurisdiction, or misstates the application.
- License period
- Calendar year: all licenses expire December 31 (Minn. Stat. 168D.05, subd. 3). Renewed license and decals may be displayed from November 1.
- Credentials
- One license per account, with the original kept in the business records and a legible copy or electronic image in each qualified vehicle. Two decals per vehicle, one on the exterior of each side of the cab. Missing decals or license copy can bring a fuel trip permit purchase, a citation, or both.
- Renewal
- DVS sends renewal notices each October; renewals must be filed and paid before December 31. Renewal is denied for missing quarterly returns, delinquent fuel or registration tax, no travel in two or more jurisdictions for three consecutive quarters, or a revoked, suspended, or cancelled license. A licensee not renewed by February 1 gets a notice, is suspended 30 days later, and revoked 30 days after that. The IFTA renewal must be done before the IRP renewal.
- Penalties: Audit
- Without verifiable records, auditors may cut the fleet MPG by 20 percent, apply a standard 4.0 MPG, deny tax-paid credits, or revoke the license; assessments may reach $25,000 per year per vehicle. Appeals must be requested in writing within 30 days of the notice.
- Bond requirement
- No bond for a first-time applicant. A bond may be required from carriers that failed to file returns, after an audit shows serious problems, or on reinstatement of a revoked license, in an amount up to $25,000 per year per vehicle.
- Recordkeeping
- Keep distance and fuel records for four years from the date the return was due or filed, whichever is later. GPS-based distance records must log a reading at least every 10 minutes with the engine on (date, time, latitude and longitude to four decimal places, ECM odometer) in a spreadsheet or delimited file; PDFs and images are not acceptable. MnDOT notes that ELD data may not meet IRP and IFTA distance record requirements.
Getting a Minnesota IFTA licence
New licences are applied for online through e-Services for Business and processed only at the DVS central office in St. Paul. Your account number is your nine-digit FEIN. Deputy registrar offices can handle renewals and decals, by appointment.
DVS denies credentials to a carrier that owes IRP taxes, has a past Minnesota fuel or registration delinquency, holds a suspended licence in another IFTA jurisdiction, or misstates the application. You need a licence when a qualified vehicle runs in Minnesota and at least one other member jurisdiction.
Quarterly returns and deadlines
Returns are due the last day of the month after each quarter, moving to the next business day on a weekend or holiday. File one even when you ran no miles, and a separate return for each fuel type. e-Services takes returns and payments around the clock; a mailed return counts on its postmark, and a postage meter mark does not.
Late or missing returns draw a penalty plus monthly interest on the tax due each jurisdiction, and a carrier not renewed by February is suspended and then revoked on a set schedule.
Records and audits
Keep distance and fuel records for four years. GPS distance records have to log readings at set intervals with the engine on, in a spreadsheet or delimited file; PDFs and images are not accepted, and MnDOT warns that ELD data may not meet the distance record rules.
Without usable records, auditors can cut your fleet MPG, apply a standard MPG, deny tax-paid credits or revoke the licence. Appeals go in writing within 30 days of the notice.
The tax rates live in the quarterly matrix
IFTA rates change every quarter, so we keep them in one refreshed store instead of copying them onto every state page. The current quarter is 4Q 2026, effective Oct 1, 2026 through Dec 31, 2026, provisional until Dec 4, 2026. Use the IFTA rates by state table for the full matrix, or the IFTA calculator to run your miles and gallons against the current rates.
For the registration-to-return process in order, follow the Minnesota IFTA filing walkthrough.
What pairs with IFTA
IFTA and IRP travel together: the same interstate operation that needs a fuel tax license usually needs apportioned plates through Minnesota IRP. If you are still setting up, the full order of operations is in start a trucking company in Minnesota.