By Evan Reid, Founder of Haul Handbook · Updated Sep 28, 2026
MDT Motor Carrier Services runs IRP apportioned registration for Montana-based carriers, which Montana joined in 1976. New fleets pay fees in all 59 jurisdictions on the average per vehicle distance chart; renewing fleets pay on actual distance. Fleets expire on a staggered quarterly schedule set when the fleet is created, and Montana adds its own GVW fees and fees in lieu of tax to the apportioned bill.
Montana IRP administration
- Agency
- Montana Department of Transportation, Motor Carrier Services Division (Licensing and Permitting Section)
- Office
- Motor Carrier Services, PO Box 4639, Helena, MT 59604-4639 (headquarters at 2701 Prospect Avenue, Helena)
- Process
- Send the IRP Schedule A and C, Schedule B (actual miles, or the average per vehicle distance chart for a new fleet), the signature page, a notarized power of attorney (a new one every year, no electronic signature), bills of sale, lease agreement certificates and Form 2290 proofs. New accounts, renewals and signature pages must be mailed because MCS needs original signatures. A temporary authority of up to 60 days can issue while the invoice is paid, with a deposit of $250 for 1 to 4 vehicles or $500 for 5 or more; once issued, the carrier owes the whole invoice. Since March 2025 the MCS Helena office also titles Montana power units and trailers that will be registered through IRP, and Montana's Department of Justice asks carriers to finish IRP registration with MCS before title work.
- Fee structure
- Fees follow the fleet's distance percentage in each jurisdiction and the registered weight. Montana's share combines its GVW fee (prorated by months and distance percentage), the fee in lieu of tax, and the heavy vehicle registration fee of $22.75, plus $2 for each plate, $2 for each registration decal, $2 for each cab card and $5 per unit for temporary registration. A 95-foot doubles permit issued on the IRP cab card is $75 and runs with the registration.
- Cab card
- Each vehicle gets one plate, a one-year sticker and one cab card listing every IRP jurisdiction at the weights requested; all 59 jurisdictions appear under the Full Reciprocity Plan. The cab card must be carried in the vehicle. Montana's maximum cab card weight is 138,000 pounds.
- Process: documents
- A USDOT number (kept active with biennial MCS-150 updates), FEIN, UCR paid before IRP credentials issue, proof of HVUT for vehicles registered at 55,000 pounds or more, the USDOT number and TIN of the motor carrier responsible for safety for each vehicle, and proof of established place of business or residency.
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 Montana IRP rules
- Temporary credentials: trip permit
- Vehicles not licensed for Montana may buy a temporary trip permit, valid for one trip of up to 72 hours and void on leaving the state, priced by weight and route miles ($10 to $20 up to 46,000 pounds; $20 to $40 from 46,001 to 80,000 pounds; $50 to $80 over 80,001 pounds; $60 to $100 for triples). An out-of-state carrier in Montana longer than 72 hours on permits, or gainfully employed there, must register through the county as Registration Purposes Only.
- Contact: office
- Montana Department of Transportation, Motor Carrier Services Division, Licensing and Permitting Section (IRP)
- Contact: note
- (406) 444-2998 is printed on the cover of MDT's IRP Instruction Manual as the MCS telephone and on MDT's Licenses & Registrations page as the Helena office line for IRP, Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. It is MDT's own line; the permit desk at (406) 444-7262 is a different queue. The email appears obfuscated in the static page source and was read from the rendered page.
Base jurisdiction, renewal, and audit in detail
The rules that decide whether Montana can be your base jurisdiction, what qualifies, and what happens at renewal and audit. Each one is sourced.
- Base jurisdiction rules: Summary
- Montana may be the base jurisdiction where the carrier has an established place of business, the fleet accrues distance, and records are kept or can be made available. The place of business must be a physical structure in Montana, owned, leased or rented on a lease of at least 12 months, open and staffed during regular hours by the registrant's own employees for its trucking business, with company signage and posted hours (temporary paper signs are refused). Third-party agent addresses, virtual offices and rent-an-address services do not qualify.
- Base jurisdiction rules: Residency alternative
- A carrier with no established place of business can base in Montana on residence, proved by at least three listed items, one of which must be Montana personal income tax, Montana real estate or personal property tax, or a Montana utility or internet bill; a resident account also submits a driver's license.
- Qualifying vehicles: Scope
- A power unit used in two or more member jurisdictions for passengers for hire or designed, used or maintained primarily for property, with two axles over 26,000 pounds, three or more axles regardless of weight, or a combination over 26,000 pounds.
- Qualifying vehicles: Optional
- Lighter power units may be apportioned at the registrant's option if the registrant has at least one apportionable vehicle.
- Qualifying vehicles: Exemptions
- Recreational vehicles, vehicles with restricted plates and government-owned vehicles are not apportionable. A carrier operating only within Montana is not eligible for IRP.
- Qualifying vehicles: Trailers
- Trailers may be registered through IRP only if used interstate and the owner has at least one IRP power unit; Montana also offers permanent registration of trailer fleets for a fixed $82.50.
- Renewal: Summary
- Registration is staggered by fleet: fleets created in January to March expire December 31, April to June expire March 31, July to September expire June 30, and October to December expire September 30. Renewals can be processed online in ePART, with 2290s, bills of sale, the signature sheet and the notarized power of attorney uploaded there. Proof of residency must be provided on request and at least every three years.
What the Montana 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 Montana inputs to that calculation, each with its official source.
Who needs apportioned plates
A power unit used in two or more member jurisdictions needs IRP registration when it hauls passengers for hire or property and crosses the axle or weight lines. Lighter units can be apportioned by choice if the fleet has one qualifying vehicle. A carrier running only inside Montana is not eligible, and registers through the county instead. Trailers can join IRP only if used interstate alongside an IRP power unit, and Montana also offers permanent trailer registration.
The Montana base rules
Montana can be your base when you have an established place of business there, the fleet runs Montana miles, and records are kept or available there. The office has to be a real structure in Montana under a lease that meets MDT's minimum term, open and staffed by your own employees with signage and posted hours. Third-party agent addresses and virtual offices do not count. Without an office, you can base on Montana residency with the listed proofs.
Opening an account
Send the IRP schedules, the signature page, a notarized power of attorney, bills of sale, lease certificates and Form 2290 proofs. You need a USDOT number, a FEIN, UCR paid first, and the USDOT number of the carrier responsible for safety on each vehicle. New accounts go by mail because MDT needs original signatures. A temporary authority can issue while the invoice is paid, against a deposit, and the Helena office now also titles Montana trucks and trailers headed for IRP.
Fees and the cab card
Fees follow the fleet's distance share in each jurisdiction and the registered weight. New fleets use the average per vehicle distance chart, and renewing fleets use actual miles. Montana's own share combines its GVW fee, prorated by month and distance, the fee in lieu of tax, and a heavy vehicle registration fee, plus small charges per plate, decal and cab card. The cab card lists every member jurisdiction at the requested weights and rides in the truck.
Renewals, trip permits, and audits
Montana staggers expirations by the quarter a fleet was created. Renewals run online in ePART with the supporting documents uploaded there. Trucks not licensed for Montana use a temporary trip permit instead. Keep the distance records behind each application for the current year and the prior years MDT names; if auditors must travel to your records, you cover their costs.
Reach the Montana 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.
- Office
- Montana Department of Transportation, Motor Carrier Services Division, Licensing and Permitting Section (IRP)
- Notes
- (406) 444-2998 is printed on the cover of MDT's IRP Instruction Manual as the MCS telephone and on MDT's Licenses & Registrations page as the Helena office line for IRP, Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. It is MDT's own line; the permit desk at (406) 444-7262 is a different queue. The email appears obfuscated in the static page source and was read from the rendered page.
What pairs with IRP
The same interstate operation that needs apportioned plates almost always needs an IFTA license through Montana, 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.