By Evan Reid, Founder of Haul Handbook · Updated Sep 27, 2026
North Dakota Highway Patrol issues oversize and overweight permits through its online E-Permits system (24/7 automated routing), the Permit Office in Bismarck (701-328-2621), or any trooper or motor carrier inspector. A single-trip permit costs 20 dollars plus an 8 dollar service and routing fee, graduated from 30 to 70 dollars above 150,000 pounds, with 5 cents per ton per mile on weight above 200,000 pounds. Annual over-width (to 14 feet 6 inches) and over-length (to 120 feet) permits cost 150 dollars each. Legal limits are 8 feet 6 inches wide, 14 feet high, 53 foot trailers, and 80,000 pounds on the interstate but 105,500 pounds on state highways, where North Dakota's own bridge formula governs.
North Dakota legal limits (no permit needed at or under these)
- Width
- 8.5 ft8 feet 6 inches on all highways, including load. Exceptions include construction and building contractors' equipment up to 10 feet moved by contractors or resident carriers, implements of husbandry moved by resident farmers, ranchers, dealers, or manufacturers (daylight, or at night off the interstate), and commercial hay, fertilizer spreader, and chemical applicator moves under a seasonal permit.
- Height
- 14 ft14 feet loaded or unloaded; the limit does not require existing bridges and underpasses to clear 14 feet, and several state and city underpasses are lower (the handbook lists clearances as low as 12 feet 7 inches in Jamestown). Implements of husbandry moved by resident farmers, ranchers, dealers, or manufacturers may reach 15 feet 6 inches for trips of 60 miles or less, between sunrise and sunset, off the interstate.
- Gross weight
- 80,000 lb80,000 pounds is the interstate cap (NDCC 39-12-05), with 20,000 pounds per single axle, 17,000 pounds per axle for axles spaced over 40 inches and under 8 feet apart, 550 pounds per inch of tire width (not applied to steering axles, which are capped at 20,000 pounds or the manufacturer rating), and the federal bridge formula. An interstate permit (10 dollars per trip, 300 dollars a year) lets a legal-size divisible load run up to 105,500 pounds on I-94 and I-29.
- Length: Note
- A single unit vehicle with two or more axles is limited to 50 feet including load. A trailer or semitrailer is limited to 53 feet, or 60 feet for trailers and semitrailers titled and registered in North Dakota before July 1, 1987 and for towed vehicles. Combinations of two, three, or four units are limited to 75 feet overall, except on four-lane divided highways and highways designated by the director and local authorities, where they may reach 110 feet subject to DOT safety rules. Building moving equipment, emergency tow trucks, military vehicles, and utility structural material are exempt from length limits.
- Off interstate limits
- On highways other than the interstate, gross weight is set by the exterior bridge formula W = 500 (LN/(N-1) + 12N + 36) and may not exceed 105,500 pounds on state highways unless posted, and 80,000 pounds on other highways unless local authorities designate them for up to 105,500 pounds. Axle limits: 20,000 pounds single, 19,000 pounds per axle for axles over 40 inches and under 8 feet apart, 34,000 pounds tandem, 48,000 pounds on any group of three or more axles, and 550 pounds per inch of tire width (NDCC 39-12-05.3).
Axle weight limits
Gross weight is one ceiling; each axle group carries its own limit, and a load can be legal on gross weight yet overweight on an axle. Exceeding any of these needs an overweight permit.
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Permit fees
- Single trip
- $20 (NDCC 39-12-02(3)(f) sets 20 dollars per single-trip permit, and the handbook adds an 8 dollar service and routing fee for each single-trip permit (trip and fuel permits excluded). The E-Permits page lists a 10 dollar routing fee on the single-trip interstate and 129,000 pound network permits. The statute caps the online electronic permit fee at 15 dollars per permit.)
- Annual eligibility
- Annual over-width permits (over-width only, up to 14 feet 6 inches, all other dimensions and weights legal) and annual over-length permits (over-length only, up to 120 feet) cost 150 dollars each and run 365 days or to December 31; the same classes sell monthly at 50 dollars or per trip at 20 dollars. An annual interstate permit (divisible loads to 105,500 pounds on the interstate) costs 300 dollars, or 50 dollars a month. An annual bridge length permit costs 150 dollars. The 129,000 pound Primary Network permit costs 100 dollars for 30 days or 700 dollars annually. A noncommercial fish house trailer moved by its owner pays 20 dollars a year for over-width to 14 feet 6 inches.
Single-trip permit fee schedule
A single-trip permit stacks a base fee with a weight-tiered maintenance fee, and the heaviest loads add a supervision fee.
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To price a specific load, try the oversize permit cost estimator, or compare every state on the national oversize permit table.
To see how these fees combine on real loads, walk through North Dakota oversize permit cost worked examples.
Escort thresholds
What the escort itself has to be
Hitting the threshold is only half of it. The escort vehicle, its equipment, its driver's certification and where it rides are all regulated, and the carrier is the one holding the permit when they are not met.
- Pilot car requirements
- A pilot car must be a passenger vehicle or two-axle truck driven by a licensed driver 18 or older, carry a yellow OVERSIZE LOAD sign at least 12 by 60 inches with 8 inch black letters on its highest part, with flashing amber lights at both ends of the sign or one revolving amber light on top, and keep radio contact with the escorted vehicle. Pilot cars not registered in North Dakota must buy temporary registration when escorting intrastate movements.
Liability cover the permit itself requires
Distinct from your operating-authority minimums: this is the cover North Dakota attaches to the permit, banded by the dimension you are permitted for. Each one is sourced.
- Permit insurance groups
- No general insurance tier applies to ordinary oversize or overweight permits in the checked rules. Specific permits carry their own minimums: seasonal permits require 300,000 dollars proof of financial responsibility (NDCC 39-12-04(1)(d)), and manufactured home permits require 100,000 dollars bodily injury per person, 300,000 dollars per accident, and 50,000 dollars property damage on the power unit (E-Permits page).
Escort rules beyond the thresholds
Knowing when you need an escort is half of it. These are the North Dakota rules on who may run one, what the vehicle has to carry, and how the move is conducted.
- Pilot car requirements
- A pilot car must be a passenger vehicle or two-axle truck driven by a licensed driver 18 or older, carry a yellow OVERSIZE LOAD sign at least 12 by 60 inches with 8 inch black letters on its highest part, with flashing amber lights at both ends of the sign or one revolving amber light on top, and keep radio contact with the escorted vehicle. Pilot cars not registered in North Dakota must buy temporary registration when escorting intrastate movements.
Conditions attached to every permit
The standing conditions North Dakota writes into the permit itself, which apply whether or not they are printed on your copy.
- Carried in vehicle
- The permit must be carried in the vehicle in printed or electronic form and opened to inspection by a peace officer on request; violating its terms is a violation of chapter 39-12 (NDCC 39-12-02(1)(a)).
- Non divisible
- Overweight permits are issued only for single-piece loads and self-propelled non-reducible vehicles; a dozer with its blade attached is one piece, but a detached blade cannot ride on the same load. No overweight permit issues unless the vehicle is registered for the gross weight it can legally carry without a permit.
- Marking
- Over-dimensional vehicles and loads display 18 by 18 inch red or bright orange flags front and rear on the traffic side, and a 12 by 60 inch OVERSIZE LOAD sign front and rear when over 75 feet long or 8 feet 6 inches wide.
Travel restrictions
- Daylight only
- Yes (Over-dimensional loads move from half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset. Night travel is allowed for movements 12 feet or less wide and 120 feet or less long with proper lighting (NDCC 39-12-02(5)), and the handbook allows night travel for loads 10 feet or less wide and legal on all other dimensions.)
- Weekend / holiday
- Over-width permits exceeding 16 feet are not issued for Saturday after 12 noon, all day Sunday, or New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day, and are not valid from 12 noon the day before a holiday until sunrise the day after.
- Wind / weather
- No movement in inclement weather, on slippery highways, or with visibility of half a mile or less. Overweight permits are not valid on flexible (bituminous) pavement when the air temperature is 90 degrees F or above. Manufactured housing may not move when wind exceeds 25 miles per hour.
- Daylight hours rule
- Over-dimensional loads move from half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset. Night travel is allowed for movements 12 feet or less wide and 120 feet or less long with proper lighting (NDCC 39-12-02(5)), and the handbook allows night travel for loads 10 feet or less wide and legal on all other dimensions.
Superload and beyond-permit review
Loads past the standard single-trip permit thresholds get individual state review rather than an off-the-shelf permit.
Loads over 200,000 pounds gross vehicle weight fall under the Heavy Load Permit Policy (Policy 9-6 Annex E): the load must be non-reducible and shown to have no means of movement other than a state highway, and NDHP and NDDOT may reject any movement that could damage highways. Weight above 200,000 pounds pays 5 cents per ton per mile on top of the graduated single-trip fee.
NDDOT engineers guide the permit; a track width diagram (vehicle loading diagram) is required above 250,000 pounds, and the E-Permits page requires the diagram above 200,000 pounds or with 8 tires on an axle. Permits may not be issued during spring road restrictions or when rain or heat raise the risk of highway damage. Above 150,000 pounds GVW, tandem axles are capped at 40,000 pounds and single axles at 22,000 pounds.
More North Dakota permit rules
- Single trip fee note
- NDCC 39-12-02(3)(f) sets 20 dollars per single-trip permit, and the handbook adds an 8 dollar service and routing fee for each single-trip permit (trip and fuel permits excluded). The E-Permits page lists a 10 dollar routing fee on the single-trip interstate and 129,000 pound network permits. The statute caps the online electronic permit fee at 15 dollars per permit.
- Annual permit eligibility
- Annual over-width permits (over-width only, up to 14 feet 6 inches, all other dimensions and weights legal) and annual over-length permits (over-length only, up to 120 feet) cost 150 dollars each and run 365 days or to December 31; the same classes sell monthly at 50 dollars or per trip at 20 dollars. An annual interstate permit (divisible loads to 105,500 pounds on the interstate) costs 300 dollars, or 50 dollars a month. An annual bridge length permit costs 150 dollars. The 129,000 pound Primary Network permit costs 100 dollars for 30 days or 700 dollars annually. A noncommercial fish house trailer moved by its owner pays 20 dollars a year for over-width to 14 feet 6 inches.
- Escort notes: pilot car requirements
- A pilot car must be a passenger vehicle or two-axle truck driven by a licensed driver 18 or older, carry a yellow OVERSIZE LOAD sign at least 12 by 60 inches with 8 inch black letters on its highest part, with flashing amber lights at both ends of the sign or one revolving amber light on top, and keep radio contact with the escorted vehicle. Pilot cars not registered in North Dakota must buy temporary registration when escorting intrastate movements.
- Escort notes: overweight
- Self-propelled earthmoving equipment over legal axle weights needs a following pilot car on all highways (20 mph maximum), and DOT engineers may require one or two pilot cars on other overweight moves beyond normal permittable weights.
- Escort notes: convoys
- Units in a convoy must stay at least 1,000 feet apart; no additional pilot cars are then required.
- Permit conditions: carried in vehicle
- The permit must be carried in the vehicle in printed or electronic form and opened to inspection by a peace officer on request; violating its terms is a violation of chapter 39-12 (NDCC 39-12-02(1)(a)).
- Permit conditions: non divisible
- Overweight permits are issued only for single-piece loads and self-propelled non-reducible vehicles; a dozer with its blade attached is one piece, but a detached blade cannot ride on the same load. No overweight permit issues unless the vehicle is registered for the gross weight it can legally carry without a permit.
- Permit conditions: marking
- Over-dimensional vehicles and loads display 18 by 18 inch red or bright orange flags front and rear on the traffic side, and a 12 by 60 inch OVERSIZE LOAD sign front and rear when over 75 feet long or 8 feet 6 inches wide.
- Permit conditions: vertical clearance
- All vertical clearances are the permittee's responsibility; permits are not issued for movements exceeding the clearance under structures unless a bypass or ramp exists.
- Permit conditions: spring load restrictions
- Overweight permits are not issued during spring road restrictions or on year-round restricted highways except under the Road Restriction Permit Policy (9-17), and overweight moves on state highways other than the interstate then pay ton mile fees.
- Permit insurance groups
- No general insurance tier applies to ordinary oversize or overweight permits in the checked rules. Specific permits carry their own minimums: seasonal permits require 300,000 dollars proof of financial responsibility (NDCC 39-12-04(1)(d)), and manufactured home permits require 100,000 dollars bodily injury per person, 300,000 dollars per accident, and 50,000 dollars property damage on the power unit (E-Permits page).
| Name |
|---|
| Harvest 10 percent weight exemption (July 15 to November 30), 50 dollars per 30 days: 10 percent over legal axle or bridge weights for harvested product from field to first storage or sale, and for solid waste, sugar beets, and potatoes; no interstate, county, township, or city travel; 105,500 lb maximum |
| Wintertime 10 percent weight exemption (December 1 to March 7, ends early if spring restrictions start), 50 dollars per 30 days, divisible loads to 105,500 lb |
| Combination harvest and winter (durational) 10 percent exemption, July 15 to March 7, 250 dollars, sold only through October 31 |
| Seasonal permit for commercial hay, forage harvester, grain cleaner, hay grinder, fertilizer spreader, and chemical applicator moves, 50 dollars per year, with 300,000 dollars proof of financial responsibility |
| Longer combination vehicle permit (December 1 to March 7), 20 dollars single trip or 100 dollars per 30 days, divisible loads to 131,000 lb off the interstate |
| Resident custom combine permit, 25 dollars per calendar year, in lieu of commercial registration and over-width and over-height permits |
| Annual interstate permit (divisible loads to 105,500 lb on I-94 and I-29), 300 dollars |
The North Dakota permit office
- Apply or log in (NDHP E-Permits (automated permit routing system, most single-trip permits issued in real time 24/7))
- statepatrol.nd.gov/e-permits
Legal limits before you need a permit
Legal width covers the load, with exceptions for contractors' equipment, farm implements moved by residents, and seasonal permit moves. Legal height includes the load, but the limit does not guarantee clearance: the handbook lists state and city underpasses below it. Length depends on configuration, from single units through semitrailers and multi-unit combinations, with longer combinations allowed on four-lane divided and designated highways.
Weight is where North Dakota stands apart. The interstate keeps the federal gross cap and bridge formula. Other state highways use North Dakota's exterior bridge formula up to a much higher gross, with a cap on groups of three or more axles, while local roads stay at the lower gross unless local authorities designate them higher.
Single-trip permits and the fee ladder
A single-trip permit covers one load movement within five days. The base fee is set in statute, a service and routing fee rides on top, and graduated fees replace the base as gross weight climbs through the upper bands. Above the heaviest line, each ton over it pays a per-mile charge on top of the graduated fee.
Other single-trip lines carry their own prices: self-propelled special mobile equipment, workover rigs, bridge length permits, and an engineering fee where engineers review the route. Moves on spring-restricted or year-round restricted highways add ton mile fees by gross weight and restriction class.
Heavier divisible loads
North Dakota sells extra weight to divisible loads through several permits. The interstate permit lets a legal-size load run up to the state highway gross on the interstate. The large truck network permit allows heavier combinations on designated routes, and the longer combination vehicle permit goes heavier again off the interstate, in winter only.
North Dakota registered vehicles must be licensed for the state highway gross to use the network or longer combination permits. Harvest and winter exemptions add a set percentage over legal axle weights for harvested product in late summer and fall and for divisible loads in winter, and both are barred from the interstate and local roads.
Escort requirements
Pilot cars start at the wider width lines. One pilot car leads over-width loads on two-lane highways past the first line, with an amber warning light allowed in its place, and none is required on four-lane divided highways at that width. Wider loads take a lead and a trailing pilot car, and the widest may draw a Highway Patrol escort at the regional commander's call, billed per hour and per mile.
Length and height carry their own triggers, and tall loads need written authority from utility companies to pass under wires. Pilot cars need a licensed adult driver, an OVERSIZE LOAD sign, amber lights, and radio contact, and convoy units keep set spacing.
When oversize loads can move
Over-dimensional loads run from half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset. The statute allows night travel for loads within set width and length lines with proper lighting, and the handbook allows it for narrower loads legal on every other dimension.
The widest loads face a weekend and holiday moratorium: no Saturday afternoon, Sunday, or listed holiday moves, and no travel from noon the day before a holiday until sunrise after it. No city or rush-hour curfew list is published. Weather rules stop moves in inclement weather, on slippery roads, and in low visibility, and manufactured housing stays parked in high wind.
The heaviest loads
Loads above the top gross line fall under the Heavy Load Permit Policy. The load must be non-reducible, with no way to move except a state highway, and the Highway Patrol and NDDOT may reject any move that could damage the road.
NDDOT engineers guide these permits, and heavy moves need a vehicle loading diagram showing track width. Heavy load permits do not issue during spring restrictions or when rain or heat raise the risk of damage, and above a set gross weight, tandem and single axle weights are capped.
How to read this page
A value reading "Not confirmed" means we could not verify the figure on an official agency page at review time, so it stays open rather than guessed. Superload moves above the standard permit thresholds get individual review by the state; contact the permit office named on this page. For the rest of the North Dakota permit stack, see North Dakota trucking permits.