By Haul Handbook editorial team· Updated Oct 4, 2026
Rhode Island sets both temporary credentials in statute. The DMV may sell a 72-hour IRP trip permit for a truck that must be IRP-registered but is not apportioned for Rhode Island, at $25 per vehicle. For fuel tax, an unlicensed carrier can get a temporary license from the Division of Taxation that covers one qualified vehicle for up to 10 days, with no fee, no fuel use tax and no bond. A $25, 30-day hunter's permit covers Rhode Island-based vehicles otherwise required to register under IRP.
The trip permit (registration side)
This credential answers for registration. Without it, a vehicle whose cab card does not list Rhode Island has no legal registration standing in the state.
- Who needs it
- A vehicle required to be registered under the International Registration Plan that has not been apportioned with Rhode Island. The DMV applies IRP to commercial vehicles over 26,000 pounds or with three or more axles that operate across state or provincial lines.
- Where to buy
- Rhode Island DMV International Registration Plan (IRP) Office, 150 Midway Rd Ste 153, Cranston, RI 02920, 401-946-0090, RIIRP@mcarrier.com. The DMV IRP page read does not describe how trip permits are ordered (in person, online or through a wire service), so confirm the method with the IRP Office before the trip.
The fuel permit (tax side)
This credential answers for the state's highway or fuel tax when there is no IFTA license (or, in the weight-distance states, no tax account) behind the truck.
- Fee
- $0 (No fee. R.I. Gen. Laws § 31-36.1-3(c) lets an unlicensed motor carrier obtain a temporary license, on application to the tax administrator, without paying the license fees, the fuel use tax imposed by § 31-36.1-5 or the bond required by § 31-36.1-6, and states there shall be no fee for this license.)
- Who needs it
- An unlicensed motor carrier running a qualified motor vehicle on Rhode Island highways: a vehicle with two axles and a gross or registered gross vehicle weight over 26,000 pounds, three or more axles regardless of weight, or a combination over 26,000 pounds. Each temporary license covers one qualified vehicle. The Division's IFTA manual says trip-by-trip fuel permits are meant only for occasional travel outside the business's typical travel, and a carrier that qualifies for IFTA but does not license must get trip permits in each member jurisdiction it enters.
- Where to buy
- Apply to the Rhode Island Division of Taxation, Excise Tax Section, One Capitol Hill, Providence, RI 02908, Tax.Excise@tax.ri.gov, (401) 574-8955. The Division's IFTA page and Compliance Manual do not publish a temporary license form or ordering method, so confirm how to apply with the Excise Tax Section before the trip.
Other temporary permits in Rhode Island
Short-term credentials Rhode Island issues beside the trip and fuel permits, for situations those two do not cover.
- Hunter's permit (IRP, 30 days)
- A $25 per-vehicle hunter's permit, valid 30 days, for motor vehicles based in Rhode Island and otherwise required to be registered in the International Registration Plan (R.I. Gen. Laws § 31-6-1(25)). (R.I. Gen. Laws § 31-6-1(25))
- Oversize and overweight permits
- Not a trip permit. A load over legal size or weight needs a separate permit from the RIDOT Oversize & Overweight Division through its online permit portal, and a RIDOT permit does not cover the Mount Hope or Newport bridges or city and town streets. (R.I. Gen. Laws § 31-25-21; 290-RICR-40-00-1)
Worth knowing
The IRP trip permit covers registration only and the temporary fuel license covers fuel tax only, so an unapportioned, unlicensed truck needs both. A carrier making regular Rhode Island trips should apportion and license for IFTA in its base jurisdiction instead.
Where these fit in the Rhode Island permit stack
Temporary permits are the exception path. The standing credentials they replace are IRP apportioned registration and the Rhode Island IFTA license. Oversize loads use a different permit family entirely, covered in Rhode Island oversize and overweight permits, and the full picture of every state permit lives in Rhode Island trucking permits.