IFTA and IRP for owner-operators with authority

IFTA and IRP apply to heavy trucks running in two or more jurisdictions

If your truck has three or more axles, or two axles and more than 26,000 pounds, and runs in two or more member jurisdictions, you need both. IFTA covers fuel tax. IRP covers plates.

Both programs work the same way at heart. You deal with one base state. That state collects what you owe the others and sends them their share. You carry one license and one set of plates instead of dozens.

Leased on, the carrier often holds these accounts. On your own authority, they become yours. The lease page explains how a lease allocates fuel taxes and plates.

26,000 poundsAn IFTA qualified motor vehicle has two axles and more than 26,000 pounds, or three or more axles regardless of weight. — International Fuel Tax Association, retrieved 2026-09-27

A carrier needs an IFTA license to operate a qualified motor vehicle in two or more member jurisdictions. — International Fuel Tax Association, retrieved 2026-09-27

IFTA is one fuel tax license and one quarterly return

Under IFTA your base state issues one license and two decals per truck. You file one quarterly return covering the miles and fuel in every member jurisdiction.

The return is simple arithmetic on good records. Miles driven in each state and province, and gallons bought in each. The base state works out what you owe or are owed in each place and nets it.

Records are the whole job. Keep every fuel receipt and a mile log by jurisdiction. Your ELD's state-line data helps, but match it to the receipts every week, not every quarter.

The base jurisdiction issues an IFTA license and two decals for each qualified motor vehicle. — International Fuel Tax Association, retrieved 2026-09-27

The Maine example, decals, deadlines and trip permits

A Maine-based carrier pays $5 per set of IFTA decals, which expire each December 31. Quarterly returns are due within one month after each quarter closes.

That puts the returns at the end of April, July, October, and January. Mark them next to your UCR and Form 2290 dates.

Maine also sells a 72-hour fuel trip permit for $50. It covers a qualified truck without IFTA credentials entering Maine for a short run. Owner-operators sometimes use trip permits while an IFTA license is pending. For a truck running every week across state lines, the license is cheaper.

$5.00Maine charges $5.00 per set of IFTA decals, and the decals expire on December 31. — Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles, retrieved 2026-09-27

One monthMaine IFTA quarterly reports must be filed within one month of the close of the quarter. — Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles, retrieved 2026-09-27

$50Maine's 72 consecutive hour fuel trip permit costs $50. — Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles, retrieved 2026-09-27

IRP puts every state on one apportioned plate

IRP gives an interstate truck one apportioned plate and a cab card listing the jurisdictions it may run in. Registration fees are split by the share of miles in each.

Maine defines an apportionable vehicle much like IFTA's qualified vehicle. A power unit used in two or more member jurisdictions with more than 26,000 pounds on two axles, or three or more axles at any weight, or a combination over 26,000 pounds.

The cab card is the proof. A truck from another IRP state must have Maine listed on it, or carry a Maine IRP trip permit, before entering Maine. The same logic runs the other way in every member state.

26,000 poundsIn Maine, an apportionable vehicle is a power unit used in two or more member jurisdictions over 26,000 pounds on two axles, or with three or more axles. — Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles, retrieved 2026-09-27

A qualified vehicle from another IRP jurisdiction must have Maine on its cab card or a valid Maine IRP trip permit before entering Maine. — Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles, retrieved 2026-09-27

What IRP asks for before it issues plates

Before a base state plates a truck of 55,000 pounds or more, it wants the stamped Schedule 1 from Form 2290 as proof the heavy vehicle use tax is paid.

That creates a chain. You need an EIN to file Form 2290, and the IRS asks new EIN holders to wait about four weeks before e-filing it. Then the Schedule 1 goes to the base state with the IRP application.

Plan the order so the truck is not parked waiting. Form 2290 explains the tax, and the filing sequence shows where IRP sits.

The stamped Schedule 1 of Form 2290 serves as proof of payment to register vehicles in any state. — Internal Revenue Service, Instructions for Form 2290, retrieved 2026-09-27

four weeksThe IRS advises new EIN applicants to wait four weeks before e-filing Form 2290. — Internal Revenue Service, retrieved 2026-09-27

Choosing the right base state

Your base state is where your business is established, not where you fuel most or where the plates are cheapest. It handles your IFTA license, your IRP account, and your UCR payment.

UCR follows the same rule. The fee goes to the state of your principal place of business. Registering in a state where you have no real place of business invites an audit you will not enjoy.

For most owner-operators the answer is simply where you live and park the truck. If your LLC is formed in one state and you live in another, sort that out before applying. The business setup guide covers forming in the right place.

Under UCR, carriers pay fees to their base state, generally the state of their principal place of business. — 49 U.S.C. 14504a, Legal Information Institute, retrieved 2026-09-27

Questions