Trucking Industry News - Page 2
FMCSA Clearinghouse Registration for Owner-Operators, Step by Step
If you run your own truck under your own USDOT number, FMCSA treats you as two people in the Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse: the employer and the driver. Both have to be registered, and a consortium or third-party administrator (C/TPA) has to be designated in your account before you can run a single query. Here […]
New Jersey Corporation Code Is Now Called an EIN: What NJ MVC Actually Issues
Short answer New Jersey stopped calling it a Corporation Code. The NJ Motor Vehicle Commission now issues a 15-digit Entity Identification Number (EIN), formerly Corpcode, and your business needs it before you can title or register a vehicle in the company name. It is not the federal IRS EIN, but you must have the federal […]
After MC, 2290 and EIN: the last compliance steps before you can run your first load
Your MC number is active, your EIN is issued, and your 2290 is filed. What is left before you can legally take a load is the same short list for almost every new interstate carrier: BOC-3 process agents, UCR, apportioned plates and fuel tax, a drug and alcohol program, driver records, and insurance filed with […]
Filing Form 2290 right before the August 31 deadline: a last-minute checklist
If it is the last week of August and your Form 2290 is not filed, you can still be done today, and you should e-file rather than mail it. The deadline is August 31 for any truck in service in July, and an accepted e-filed return returns your stamped Schedule 1 the same day. What […]
IFTA decals and license: getting set up before you cross state lines
Before you run a qualified truck across a state line, you need an International Fuel Tax Agreement (IFTA) license from your base state and two decals for that truck. The license renews yearly; the decals are per vehicle, per year, and what an officer looks for from outside the cab. Applying is a base-state process, […]
Your 2290 Schedule 1: when you get it and why you cannot register plates without it
Your Schedule 1 is the receipt page of Form 2290, and it is the document your state wants before it will put plates on the truck. When you e-file, the IRS sends it back stamped with a digital watermark on the day the return is accepted; on paper it comes back with an ink stamp […]
Form 2290 for a truck you bought mid-year: how partial-period HVUT works
Buy a truck after July and you do not owe the full year of Heavy Vehicle Use Tax (HVUT), nor do you file by August 31. Your Form 2290 is due by the last day of the month after the month you first put the truck on a public highway, and the tax is prorated […]
Form 2290 e-file vs paper: which one gets your Schedule 1 before August 31
If you need a stamped Schedule 1 before August 31, e-file. The IRS returns the watermarked Schedule 1 on the same day it accepts an e-filed Form 2290, usually within the hour. A paper 2290 comes back stamped in roughly six weeks, well past the deadline if you mail it in August. Paper is still […]
MVR vs PSP vs Clearinghouse: which driver record is which, and when each applies
MVR, PSP, and Clearinghouse are three different driver records: state license, federal roadside and crash history, and drug and alcohol standing. Here is which is which and when each applies.
What a missed MVR or driver-screening step actually costs before your first hire
A skipped MVR or pre-employment screening is not a one-time fine. Here is what it actually costs at the roadside, at claim time, and at audit, and how to close the gap.