Free guide · New authority

Your MC is live. Here are the next 30 days.

What has to be in place before you haul, the accounts and taxes that come next, how to get your first loads, and what the first year checks. Federal fees and rules link to their official source.

8 minute read · Updated October 22, 2026
Read this first

The calls start now. Most of them aren’t FMCSA.

  • FMCSA publishes your name, address and phone number, so sales calls, texts and emails tend to start within days of your grant.
  • FMCSA says it will not call you right after you apply, will not contact you through telemarketers or robocalls, and will not ask for a credit card number.
  • Real FMCSA email comes from a @dot.gov address. To check your registration, type motus.dot.gov into your browser yourself instead of clicking a link.
  • Never buy, rent or lease an MC or USDOT number. Renting authority is illegal, and FMCSA can revoke it.
  • Report anyone posing as FMCSA at reportfraud.ftc.gov.

Source: FMCSA: Fraud alerts

01 · On file

What has to be in place before you haul.

FMCSA won’t grant authority until insurance and a process agent are filed, and both have to stay on file or the authority is suspended. The drug and alcohol program is just as required before your first load, but nobody checks it on day one, so it’s the one new carriers miss.

  1. Insurance, filed by your insurer

    The federal minimum for for-hire general freight in a truck over 10,001 lbs is $750,000 in liability. Your insurer files it with FMCSA (form BMC-91 or BMC-91X). You don’t file it yourself.

    Minimum: $750,000 liabilityFMCSA: Insurance filing requirements ↗
  2. The coverage brokers actually ask for

    Many large brokers want more than the minimum: $1,000,000 in auto liability and $100,000 in cargo coverage is the common ask. Price your policy at that level, or you’ll be turned away from loads you could otherwise haul.

    Common ask: $1M auto liability, $100K cargoC.H. Robinson: Carrier FAQ ↗
  3. BOC-3 process agent

    A BOC-3 names an agent in each state who can accept legal papers for you. Blanket process agent companies file it for all states at once; FMCSA lists the registered ones.

    Typical vendor price: $25 to $100FMCSA: Process agents (BOC-3) ↗
  4. Drug and alcohol program

    As an owner-operator you are your own employer here. Join a consortium (a C/TPA) so you’re in a random testing pool, register in the FMCSA Clearinghouse and designate that C/TPA, pass a pre-employment drug test, and run a full Clearinghouse query on yourself, all before your first load. After that, query yourself at least once a year.

    FMCSA Clearinghouse: Owner-operators ↗
02 · Accounts & taxes

The accounts and taxes that come with running interstate.

  1. UCR registration

    Every for-hire interstate carrier registers with UCR each year. Registration for 2027 opened October 1, so a carrier starting now may owe both 2026 and 2027.

    0 to 2 trucks: $46 for 2026, $55 for 2027UCR: Fee brackets ↗
  2. IRP apportioned plates

    A truck that runs in two or more states and weighs over 26,000 lbs (or has three or more axles) needs apportioned plates. You apply in your base state, where you have an established place of business.

    IRP, Inc. ↗
  3. IFTA fuel tax license

    Same trucks, same threshold. You get one license from your base state and file one return with it each quarter, covering every state you drove in. File it even in a quarter with no miles. Keep every fuel receipt and your miles by state from day one.

    Returns due Jan 31, Apr 30, Jul 31, Oct 31IFTA, Inc. ↗
  4. Heavy vehicle use tax (Form 2290)

    Trucks at 55,000 lbs taxable gross weight or more owe this federal tax. It’s due by the last day of the month after the month you first put the truck on the road, and it’s prorated if that’s partway through the July to June year.

    Up to $550 a yearIRS: Instructions for Form 2290 ↗
  5. A few states charge their own road taxes

    Kentucky, New Mexico, New York, Oregon and Connecticut charge heavy trucks their own highway use or weight-distance taxes, and most need you registered before you enter. Until your apportioned plates and IFTA license arrive, buy trip and fuel permits for each state you cross.

  6. ELD

    If you have to keep logs, you need an electronic logging device. The main exceptions are trucks with engines older than model year 2000 and drivers who keep logs 8 days or fewer in any 30.

    49 CFR 395.8: Driver’s record of duty status ↗
03 · First loads

Getting loads, and getting paid for them.

  1. The new-authority wall

    Many brokers won’t book a carrier whose authority is under 90 days old, and some want six months. It’s each broker’s policy, not a law, and some are much shorter: C.H. Robinson’s FAQ says your authority has to be active for at least 7 days. Start with the brokers that say yes, and build a record with them.

    Industry practice, not a ruleC.H. Robinson: Carrier FAQ ↗
  2. Have your carrier packet ready

    Brokers won’t book you until setup is done. Keep these in one folder, ready to send: your W-9, your authority letter, a certificate of insurance listing your coverage, your banking or factoring details, and a signed broker-carrier agreement when they send one.

  3. Read every rate con before you sign

    Check the rate, the pickup and delivery windows, the detention and layover terms, the TONU (truck ordered, not used) fee, which you’re owed only if it’s written in the rate con, and the payment terms. If any of it is blank, or doesn’t match what you agreed on the phone, fix it before you sign.

  4. Factoring, read the contract first

    Factoring gets you paid in days instead of waiting 30 or more, for a fee. Before you sign, know whether it’s recourse (you owe it back if the broker never pays) or non-recourse, whether there are monthly minimums, and what it costs to leave. Some contracts make you factor every load and put a lien on your receivables; spot factoring doesn’t. Non-recourse usually covers only a broker going out of business, not a disputed invoice.

04 · First year

What the first year checks.

  1. The new entrant safety audit

    FMCSA audits new carriers within 12 months of starting operations. Some findings fail the audit on their own, like having no drug and alcohol testing program or no required insurance. Keep these in one place from the first load: your logs, maintenance records and annual truck inspection, your driver qualification file on yourself (application, driving record, medical card, CDL copy), and your testing records.

    Within 12 months of startingFMCSA: New Entrant Safety Assurance Program ↗
  2. Keep your registration current

    Your USDOT registration (the MCS-150) has to be updated every two years, in a month set by your USDOT number’s last digit. FMCSA has paused inactivations for missed updates since June 1, 2026 while it moves to its new system, Motus, so watch for its notice that the pause has ended.

    FMCSA: Temporary suspension of USDOT inactivation ↗
  3. Know your cost per mile

    Add up your fixed costs (truck payment, insurance, permits) and your running costs (fuel, maintenance, tires), then divide by the miles you ran. Count every mile, deadhead included, and redo it every month. Without it you can’t tell a good rate from a bad one.

Questions

The short answers.

What does it cost to get set up?

Before insurance: $300 for the authority, about $25 to $100 for the BOC-3, $46 or $55 for UCR, plus a consortium membership, a drug test and IRP plates, which vary by state and truck weight. Form 2290 adds up to $550 a year for a heavy truck. Insurance is the biggest cost by far, and it varies too much by state, truck and driving record to quote here.

How soon will brokers work with me?

Some within days, many after 90 days, a few not until six months. It’s each broker’s policy, so ask during setup instead of guessing.

Someone called saying my authority will be suspended unless I pay today. Is that real?

Treat it as a scam. FMCSA says it doesn’t contact carriers through telemarketers and won’t ask for a credit card number. Hang up and check your status yourself at motus.dot.gov, or call FMCSA at 1-800-832-5660.

Do I need a dispatcher?

No. Plenty of carriers book their own loads. A dispatcher or dispatch service saves you the hours on the phone in exchange for a share of each load. Whatever you choose, read the agreement for what they take and how you can leave.

When the broker emails start piling up.

Freigent reads the broker replies about your loads, recommends a counter, and drafts the reply. It works inside ChatGPT or Claude and sends only replies you approve. 10 negotiations a month are free, no card.

See how it works · Been driving for years? Read the version for experienced drivers

Sources

Fees and rules change. We check these against the official pages below; if one disagrees with this guide, the official page wins.