How to get a DOT number

Who needs a DOT number

You need one if you operate in interstate commerce with a vehicle that (FMCSA):

• has a gross vehicle weight rating, gross combination weight rating, or actual weight of 10,001 pounds or more; or
• is designed or used to carry more than 8 passengers, including the driver, for compensation; or
• is designed or used to carry more than 15 passengers, including the driver;

or if you carry hazardous materials, in any commerce, in the types and quantities that require a safety permit.

Interstate commerce means trade or transport between a place in one state and a place outside it, between two places in a state through another state or country, or between two places in a state as part of a trip that starts or ends outside the state or the country.

Many states also require a USDOT number from carriers that stay inside the state. FMCSA lists 38 States and Puerto Rico, from Alabama to Wyoming; check with your state if you run only intrastate.

Step by step, in Motus

1. Create a user profile. Go to motus.dot.gov, sign in with Login.gov and complete identity verification. A profile belongs to one person.
2. Create a company account. This is where the company's registrations live and where you control who else may act for it.
3. Apply. Apply for a USDOT number, and for operating authority too if you need it. Not sure which you need? FMCSA's USDOT Wizard asks a few questions and tells you; the Motus application follows the same flow.

Already have a USDOT number from before Motus? Don't apply again: the company official claims the existing number in Motus with the same Login.gov email used in the FMCSA Portal (FMCSA). Our guide how to update MCS-150 online walks through claiming.

What it costs

• USDOT number: free. "There is no charge to get a USDOT number" (FMCSA).
• Operating authority (MC number): 300 dollars for each type of authority you apply for (FMCSA). You need it if you are a for-hire interstate carrier, a broker or a freight forwarder; private carriers hauling their own goods do not.
• MCS-150 updates: no fee.

Be careful with sites that charge to "get your DOT number" or to file your update: both can be done in Motus, and the number itself is free. See biennial update scams.

After you get it

• Mark your trucks. Each self-propelled commercial vehicle must show your name and "USDOT" followed by the number on both sides (49 CFR 390.21T).
• File the MCS-150 every 24 months. The last digit of your number sets the month, the next-to-last digit odd or even years (49 CFR 390.19T). See your due date.
• For-hire carriers: your authority also needs a process agent on file, a BOC-3.