Starting a trucking business takes more than a truck. You need a legal business, a USDOT number and operating authority from FMCSA, insurance and a BOC-3 on file, the right tax registrations, and a safety program before your first load.
Our trucking startup services cover those steps in order and stay with you through your first safety audit.
An interstate for-hire carrier goes through six stages, and each one depends on the one before. Here is what each stage covers and where our team comes in.
| Stage | What it includes | How we help |
|---|---|---|
| Company setup | An LLC or corporation formed with your secretary of state, if you choose one, then an EIN from the IRS | You file these directly; the IRS never charges for an EIN |
| Federal registration | A USDOT number and operating authority (the MC number), applied for in FMCSA’s Motus system | Our authority package files the USDOT number, MC authority, BOC-3, authority letter, and UCR |
| Insurance and process agent | Your insurer’s liability filing and a BOC-3, both due within 20 days of FMCSA’s public notice of your application | Insurance quotes for new ventures; the BOC-3 is part of the authority package |
| Taxes and registrations | UCR every year, plus Form 2290, IRP plates, IFTA, and state permits when your trucks and routes require them | Permit and tax filings for carriers and owner-operators |
| Safety program | Drug and alcohol testing and Clearinghouse queries for CDL drivers, driver qualification files, and an ELD for drivers who must log hours | Testing arrangements, driver qualification files, and Simplex ELD |
| First 18 months | FMCSA’s New Entrant Safety Assurance Program, including a safety audit | New entrant audit preparation and ongoing compliance programs |
Not every carrier needs every item. Private carriers that haul only their own cargo, and for-hire carriers that haul only exempt commodities, need a USDOT number but not operating authority. For the full walk-through with fees and deadlines, read our guide on how to start a trucking company.
Most delays at the start come from paperwork, not the truck. FMCSA’s rules spell out what happens when a filing is off:
The truck itself has to be ready too: your legal name and USDOT number on both sides of the power unit, as our guide to marking a commercial motor vehicle explains, and a mounted fire extinguisher with the right rating, covered in which fire extinguisher DOT requires.
If you are starting a small trucking business with one truck and driving it yourself, there are two ways to run it, and they carry different obligations.
You hold the USDOT number and MC authority and take on every stage in the checklist. In the Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse, you must register as an employer, designate a consortium or third-party administrator before you can act, buy your own query plan, and query every CDL driver you employ, including yourself, at least once a year.
You drive under that carrier’s authority. FMCSA requires a written lease that gives the carrier exclusive possession, control, and use of your truck for the lease term (49 CFR 376.12), and the Clearinghouse employer duties stay with that carrier.
If your trucks never leave one state, you don’t need FMCSA operating authority, but your state may require its own registration. FMCSA lists 38 states plus Puerto Rico that require intrastate carriers to get a USDOT number.
In Texas, carriers that run a vehicle over 26,000 pounds, among others, register with the TxDMV Motor Carrier Division. You get a USDOT number registered as intrastate, apply in TxMCCS, and have your insurer file Form E; private and for-hire carriers over 26,000 pounds need at least $500,000 in liability coverage. Our Texas DOT compliance page covers the state rules, and drivers can prepare with our Texas commercial driver handbook guide.
If you are comparing companies that help you start a trucking business, ask which of the six stages they cover. Here is what our team handles.
An honest caveat: FMCSA controls the review and the protest period, and it is still settling into its Motus system, so no one can promise a grant date. What we control is a complete application with matching names and filings that arrive on time.
Use the form below with your USDOT number (or tell us you don’t have one yet), how many trucks you plan to run, and your state. Our team will recommend where to start.
They handle the filings a new carrier needs: the USDOT number, operating authority, BOC-3, and UCR, and often insurance, tax registrations, and the safety program. Ours covers each of those stages and supports you through the new entrant safety audit.
FMCSA doesn’t require one; sole proprietors register too, but their home address, phone, and email become public on FMCSA websites when used as business contacts. If you form an LLC or corporation, do it with your secretary of state before you apply for your free EIN, and use the same legal name on every FMCSA filing.
First decide whether you will run under your own authority or lease onto another carrier. Under your own, you need the full set: USDOT number, MC authority, an insurance filing, a BOC-3, UCR, and a drug and alcohol program in which you are both employer and driver.
FMCSA charges $300 for each type of operating authority. UCR for 2027 is $55 for 0 to 2 vehicles, and Form 2290 runs from $100 to $550 a year per truck with a taxable gross weight of 55,000 pounds or more. Insurance, the truck, and state fees are separate.
The rules and figures on this page come from these official sources, checked on October 5, 2026.