National reference table
Trucking permits by state
Every state runs its own permit counter, and the paperwork a truck needs changes at the state line. This table covers all 51 US jurisdictions, DC included: the state operating credential where one is required, the office that issues oversize and overweight permits, and the fuel and mileage permits that ride alongside them. 28 jurisdictions require a state operating credential and 51 publish a named oversize permit office.
By Evan Reid, Founder of Haul Handbook · Updated Aug 9, 2026
The four permit families
“Trucking permit” is four different things, and mixing them up is how new carriers overbuy. A state operating credential is permission to haul for hire on trips that stay inside one state. An oversize or overweight permit is per move, bought when a load exceeds a legal limit. A trip permit stands in for apportioned registration and a fuel permit stands in for a fuel tax license, both bought only when you lack the annual credential.
48 of the 51 jurisdictions are IFTA members, so a single fuel tax license filed in your base state covers fuel reporting in almost every state you run. That is why the fuel permit column matters mostly to carriers who have not licensed yet.
Permits and issuing offices, all 50 states and DC
Each source marker opens the agency page we verified, with the date we checked it. A dash is an honest blank, never a guess.
| State | State operating permit | Oversize / overweight permit office | Fuel and mileage permits | State guide |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama (AL) | Intrastate Authority (certificate or permit under the Alabama Motor Carrier Act) | Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT), Vehicle Enforcement Office (ALPASS online permitting) | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Alaska (AK) | None | Alaska DOT&PF Division of Measurement Standards & Commercial Vehicle Compliance (Commercial Vehicle Customer Service Center) | Alaska is not an IFTA member jurisdiction (absent from the iftach.org member-jurisdiction list). | – |
| Arizona (AZ) | None | Arizona Department of Transportation, Motor Vehicle Division, Commercial Vehicle Permits (Enforcement Services) | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Arkansas (AR) | Arkansas Intrastate Operating Authority (Intrastate Permit) | ArDOT Arkansas Highway Police Division, Permit Section | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| California (CA) | Motor Carrier Permit (MCP) | Caltrans, Office of Commercial Vehicle Operations (Transportation Permits) | IFTA fuel permits | California truck permits |
| Colorado (CO) | None | Colorado Department of Transportation, Freight Mobility & Safety Branch (COOPR online permitting system) | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Connecticut (CT) | None | CTDOT Oversize / Overweight (OS/OW) Permit Office, Bureau of Highway Operations | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Delaware (DE) | None | Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT), Hauling Permit Office (OSOW Permit System) | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| District of Columbia (DC) | None | District Department of Transportation (DDOT), Public Space Permit Office, via the TOPS online permitting system (tops.ddot.dc.gov) | DC is not among the IFTA member jurisdictions (48 contiguous US states plus 10 Canadian provinces). DC DMV's IRP Carriers Manual states: 'The District of Columbia does not participate in the collection of motor fuel taxes.' | – |
| Florida (FL) | None | Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) Permits Office (Over-Weight Over-Dimension Permits / One Stop Permitting) | IFTA fuel permits | Florida truck permits |
| Georgia (GA) | None | Georgia Department of Public Safety, Oversize Permit Unit (GAPROS system) | IFTA fuel permits | Georgia truck permits |
| Hawaii (HI) | Motor Carrier Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) or Contract Carrier Permit, Property Classification | Hawaii Department of Transportation, Highways Division (district engineer offices on Oahu, Maui County, Hawaii Island, and Kauai) | Hawaii is not an IFTA member jurisdiction (absent from the iftach.org member-jurisdiction list; IFTA covers the 48 contiguous states and 10 Canadian provinces). | – |
| Idaho (ID) | None | Idaho Transportation Department, Commercial Vehicle Services (special permits) | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Illinois (IL) | Public Carrier Certificate | Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT), Oversize/Overweight Permit Office (ITAP system) | IFTA fuel permits | Illinois truck permits |
| Indiana (IN) | Intrastate Operating Authority (Form IOA-1 registration), plus a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity for carriers of passengers or household goods | Indiana Department of Revenue, Motor Carrier Services (permits issued by DOR MCS under INDOT rules) | IFTA fuel permits | Indiana truck permits |
| Iowa (IA) | Intrastate For-Hire Authority (Motor Carrier Permit for property, household goods, and liquid; Motor Carrier Certificate for passengers) | Iowa DOT Office of Vehicle and Motor Carrier Services (online via ia.gotpermits.com) | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Kansas (KS) | KCC intrastate operating authority (certificate of convenience and necessity or certificate of public service; private carrier permit for non-for-hire operations of 26,001 lb or more) | Kansas Department of Transportation (K-TRIPS permitting system) | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Kentucky (KY) | Kentucky Intrastate For-Hire Certificate | Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Division of Motor Carriers (Overweight/Over-Dimensional Permits, Kentucky Automated Permit System) | IFTA fuel permitsPlus Kentucky Weight Distance Tax (KYU) | Kentucky truck permits |
| Louisiana (LA) | None | Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD), Truck Permit Office | IFTA fuel permits | Louisiana truck permits |
| Maine (ME) | None | Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles, Motor Carrier Services (Overlimit Permits unit) | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Maryland (MD) | None | MDOT State Highway Administration, Office of Traffic and Safety, Motor Carrier Division, Hauling Permits Unit | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Massachusetts (MA) | None | MassDOT Highway Division (OASIS Oversize Overweight Permitting and Routing Application) | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Michigan (MI) | CVED Authority (intrastate operating authority under the Motor Carrier Act) | Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT), Transport Permits Unit (MiTRIP / MDOT Permit Gateway) | IFTA fuel permits | Michigan truck permits |
| Minnesota (MN) | Motor Carrier of Property Certificate of Registration (Intrastate Property Carrier Registration) | MnDOT Office of Freight and Commercial Vehicle Operations, Oversize/Overweight Permits | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Mississippi (MS) | Mississippi Intrastate General Freight Operating Authority (Restricted Motor Carrier registration, form MSR-1) | Mississippi Department of Transportation (ExpressPass permitting, permits.mdot.ms.gov) | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Missouri (MO) | Missouri Operating Authority (Intrastate Operations) | MoDOT Motor Carrier Services | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Montana (MT) | None | Montana Department of Transportation, Motor Carrier Services Division | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Nebraska (NE) | None | Nebraska Department of Transportation, Motor Carrier Permit Section | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Nevada (NV) | Intrastate Commerce Authority (Letter of Authority, Form MC 208) | Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT), Over-Dimensional Vehicle permit office | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| New Hampshire (NH) | None | New Hampshire Department of Transportation (NHDOT) permit office, via the NHDOT Oversize/Overweight permit portal (nhdotpermits.org; rules at NHDOT Administrative Rules Part Tra 304) | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| New Jersey (NJ) | None | New Jersey Department of Transportation (issuing oversize/overweight permits on behalf of the NJ Motor Vehicle Commission) via the NJPass/SUPERLOAD portal | IFTA fuel permits | New Jersey truck permits |
| New Mexico (NM) | Motor carrier operating authority (warrant for for-hire property carriers; certificate for household goods and passenger services) | New Mexico Department of Transportation, Ports of Entry / Permit Office (truckpermits.dot.nm.gov) | IFTA fuel permitsPlus Weight Distance Tax (WDT) | New Mexico truck permits |
| New York (NY) | Intrastate Operating Authority - Property, Except Household Goods | NYSDOT Special Hauling Permits (Central Permit Bureau) | IFTA fuel permitsPlus Highway Use Tax (HUT) | New York truck permits |
| North Carolina (NC) | None | NCDOT Oversize/Overweight Permit Unit | IFTA fuel permits | North Carolina truck permits |
| North Dakota (ND) | None | North Dakota Highway Patrol, Motor Carrier Operations (e-permits system) | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Ohio (OH) | Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) | Ohio Department of Transportation (special hauling permits under Ohio Adm.Code Chapter 5501:2-1) | IFTA fuel permits | Ohio truck permits |
| Oklahoma (OK) | Intrastate Motor Carrier License | Oklahoma Department of Transportation, Size and Weight Permits office | IFTA fuel permits | Oklahoma truck permits |
| Oregon (OR) | Motor Carrier Account with Oregon intrastate for-hire operating authority (For-Hire Certificate or Permit; Class 1A Permit for general commodities except household goods) | ODOT Commerce and Compliance Division, Over-Dimension Permit Unit (permits issued via the ORION online system) | IFTA fuel permitsPlus Oregon Weight-Mile Tax | Oregon truck permits |
| Pennsylvania (PA) | Certificate of Public Convenience, Motor Common Carrier of Property | PennDOT, special hauling permits issued through the Automated Permit Routing/Analysis System (APRAS) under 67 Pa. Code Chapter 179 | IFTA fuel permits | Pennsylvania truck permits |
| Rhode Island (RI) | Certificate of Operating Authority (Common Carrier of Property) | Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT), OSOW Permit Office | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| South Carolina (SC) | Certificate of Compliance (COC), Class E-L / Class E-LC | South Carolina Department of Transportation, Oversize/Overweight (OSOW) Permit Office, 955 Park Street, Columbia (SafeHaul online permitting) | IFTA fuel permits | South Carolina truck permits |
| South Dakota (SD) | None | South Dakota Highway Patrol Permit Center (South Dakota Automated Permitting System online at sdtruckinfo.sd.gov; also any Highway Patrol District Office, Highway Patrol Trooper, or Motor Carrier Inspector) | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Tennessee (TN) | Intrastate Authority | Tennessee Department of Transportation, Traffic Operations Division, OS/OW Permit Office | IFTA fuel permits | Tennessee truck permits |
| Texas (TX) | Motor Carrier Registration (TxDMV Number) | Texas Department of Motor Vehicles, Motor Carrier Division (Permits Office) | IFTA fuel permits | Texas truck permits |
| Utah (UT) | None | Utah Department of Transportation, Motor Carrier Division | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Vermont (VT) | None | Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles, Commercial Vehicle Operations | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Virginia (VA) | For-Hire Intrastate Operating Authority (property carriers are issued a Permit; household goods carriers a Certificate of Fitness) | Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) Hauling Permits (online ordering via EZ Haul, ezhaulvirginia.com) | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Washington (WA) | Common Carrier Permit | WSDOT Commercial Vehicle Services | IFTA fuel permits | Washington truck permits |
| West Virginia (WV) | None | WV Division of Highways, Operations Division, Central Permit Section | IFTA fuel permits | – |
| Wisconsin (WI) | Wisconsin Intrastate Local Cartage (LC) authority | Wisconsin Department of Transportation, Bureau of Highway Maintenance (Oversize-Overweight Permits, [email protected]) | IFTA fuel permits | Wisconsin truck permits |
| Wyoming (WY) | Wyoming Operating Authority (Letter of Authority) | Wyoming Highway Patrol (WYDOT ports of entry / highway shops; e-permitting at wydotpermits.wyo.gov) | IFTA fuel permits | – |
How to read the table
- State operating permitnames the credential a for-hire carrier needs for intrastate freight, where the state requires one. “None” means the state has no such credential to sell, which is the honest answer rather than an empty cell.
- Oversize / overweight permit office is the agency that issues per-move permits. It is the state DOT in most places, but several states route permits through public safety, revenue, or motor vehicle agencies instead.
- Fuel and mileage permits flags IFTA membership, which decides whether a temporary fuel permit is even a thing you can buy there, and names the mileage tax where the state levies one.
- State guide links the full permit walkthrough for the states this site covers in depth. The rest carry the sourced facts in the table itself.
What permits cost, and where the rest of the stack lives
This page answers which permits exist and who sells them. For the money, the oversize permit costs by state table carries single-trip base fees and the legal width and height limits that trigger a permit in the first place, and the oversize permit cost estimator prices a specific load state by state.
Permits sit on top of credentials, not instead of them. The state operating credential in column two is covered in full by the intrastate authority by state table, apportioned plates by IRP registration by state, fuel tax by IFTA rates by state, and the mileage tax by the weight-distance tax states page. Federal registration comes first for interstate carriers: how to get your own authority runs that sequence end to end.
State permit guides
For the states this site covers in depth, each guide walks the whole permit stack: which permits that state runs, who issues each one, and the temporary permits that stand in for annual credentials.
- California truck permits
- Florida truck permits
- Georgia truck permits
- Illinois truck permits
- Indiana truck permits
- Kentucky truck permits
- Louisiana truck permits
- Michigan truck permits
- New Jersey truck permits
- New Mexico truck permits
- New York truck permits
- North Carolina truck permits
- Ohio truck permits
- Oklahoma truck permits
- Oregon truck permits
- Pennsylvania truck permits
- South Carolina truck permits
- Tennessee truck permits
- Texas truck permits
- Washington truck permits
- Wisconsin truck permits
Frequently asked questions
What trucking permits do I need to run in another state?
- It depends on the load and the credentials you already hold. A truck inside legal size and weight limits, with apportioned plates and a fuel tax license that cover the state, needs no extra permit. Go over a size or weight limit and you need that state's oversize or overweight permit. Run without apportioned plates or a fuel license and you need its temporary trip and fuel permits instead. Haul for hire on trips that start and end inside one state and you may also need that state's own operating credential.
Are trucking permits the same in every state?
- No, and that is the point of this table. 28 of the 51 jurisdictions here require a state operating credential of their own before a for-hire carrier can run intrastate freight, and the office issuing oversize permits is the state DOT in most places but the Department of Public Safety, the revenue department, or the DMV in others. Each row names the office we verified.
Do I need a permit for every state I drive through?
- For oversize and overweight moves, yes: a permit is per state and per move, so a load crossing three states needs three permits. Fuel and registration credentials work differently. One IFTA license and one apportioned registration, filed in your base state, cover every member jurisdiction on your cab card, which is why temporary trip and fuel permits are the exception path rather than the norm.
Which states charge a mileage tax on top of permits?
- Kentucky, New Mexico, New York, Oregon levy a weight-distance or highway-use tax that runs alongside the permit stack, so a truck can hold every permit it needs and still owe a per-mile tax on the same trip. Our weight-distance tax page covers who owes it and how it is filed.
Where does a permit service fit in?
- Wire services and permit companies resell state permits with a markup, which is legitimate when you need a permit at 2am from the road. What they charge is not what the state charges. Every office in this table sells the permit directly, and the source link on each row opens the agency page we checked, so you can always see the state's own channel first.
Haul Handbook publishes educational information about trucking registration and compliance requirements. This is not legal, financial, or tax advice. Rules, fees, and deadlines change; confirm with the agency before you file or pay.