How to Start a Trucking Company in California in 2026: LLC, USDOT, CA Number, MCP, CARB and What It Really Costs

Published October 30, 2026 | TruckerNavi Inc | 34 min read

By the TruckerNavi compliance team, led by Dmitry Borovoy, a New Jersey-licensed insurance producer and author of "Safety Manager: From Zero to Expert".

Short answer: start with an LLC at the California Secretary of State ($70 online, then a $20 Statement of Information within 90 days and the $800 FTB annual tax by the 15th day of the fourth month after filing). Get an EIN, then register in FMCSA Motus for a USDOT number and MC authority ($300 per authority, 20-25 business days; your insurer files the $750,000 liability certificate within 20 days of publication, a process agent files BOC-3, and you pay UCR, $55 for the 2027 registration year). In parallel, apply to the CHP for a CA Number (form CHP 362, about 5 business days) and to the DMV for a Motor Carrier Permit ($250 for one for-hire truck, prorated for interstate carriers). Before you register the truck, report it to CARB Clean Truck Check ($32.13 per truck in 2026) and make sure it is a 2011 or newer model. Crossing state lines adds IRP through the DMV (26,001 lbs and up) and IFTA through the CDTFA ($10 plus $2 per decal set).

The part most guides skip: in California a federal MC number does not let you roll. The state runs its own permit on top of FMCSA, and brokers are legally barred from loading you without it.

What do you need to start a trucking company in California?

Four layers, not two. Most states are done after the company and the federal registration. California adds a state carrier layer and an air-quality layer, and the DMV will not register your truck until both are clean.

1. Company and tax: an LLC at the Secretary of State, then the Franchise Tax Board's $800 annual tax.
2. Federal: USDOT number, MC authority, BOC-3 and UCR, all through FMCSA's Motus system.
3. State carrier: a CA Number from the California Highway Patrol and a Motor Carrier Permit from the DMV. Interstate carriers need both too.
4. CARB: Clean Truck Check reporting and testing, plus a truck that passes the Truck and Bus rule.

A fifth layer, IRP plates and an IFTA license, applies only if you leave the state. Here is the whole map with the agency, the fee and the clock for each item. If you are comparing states before you commit, the state-by-state hub has the same layout for Texas, Georgia, New Jersey and the rest.

How much does it cost to start a trucking company in California in 2026?

Counting only what the state and federal government take, and not the truck, the trailer or insurance, here are three configurations. The interstate column assumes an 80,000-lb tractor; the intrastate box truck sits at 26,000 lbs GVWR, which keeps it out of IRP, IFTA and Form 2290.

Two things move these numbers. First, once California-source income passes $250,000 the FTB adds an LLC fee on top of the $800: $900 for $250,000-$499,999, $2,500 for $500,000-$999,999, $6,000 from $1 million, per the Franchise Tax Board. A single tractor grossing $300,000 hits the first bracket in year one. Second, insurance is the largest line and the one we deliberately leave blank: the law sets the limit, the market sets the price, and only a quote tells you yours. Run your own configuration through the startup cost calculator.

How do I register an LLC in California for a trucking company?

Everything at the Secretary of State is online now. Articles of Organization (Form LLC-1) cost $70 and are filed through bizfile Online only, per the SOS fee schedule. Within 90 days you file the Statement of Information (LLC-12, $20, then every two years). Miss it and the FTB collects a $250 penalty on the SOS's behalf. Business Entities can be reached at (916) 653-6814.

Then the tax everyone underestimates. Every LLC organized in California pays an $800 annual tax, whether or not it has done any business, until it is cancelled. The first payment is due by the 15th day of the 4th month after you file with the SOS, on form FTB 3522. The first-year waiver you may have read about applied only to tax years 2021 through 2023; an LLC formed in 2024 or later pays from year one, per the FTB. The only way out is the short form cancellation (LLC-4/8) within a year of organizing, in which case the first-year $800 is not assessed. The annual return is Form 568, and the LLC fee above $250,000 of income is estimated and paid by the 15th day of the 6th month on FTB 3536. Questions go to the FTB at 800-852-5711, weekdays 8 to 5.

Three practical points before you click submit. The company name and address on the LLC-1 must match, character for character, what you later enter in Motus: FMCSA's insurance filing page warns that any deviation between the secretary of state record and the FMCSA application delays the grant of authority. Use a physical address where you can be found and where records live: the DMV IRP unit and the CDTFA both reject a P.O. box or an agent's address as a place of business, and what does work is covered in the address guide for USDOT and LLC filings. Get the EIN only after the SOS accepts the filing: the IRS issues it online in minutes at no charge and says an application made before the entity exists with the state may be delayed, per the IRS EIN page. A registered agent service from TruckerNavi is $149 a year if you do not want your home address on the public record.

Do you need a USDOT number and MC authority in California?

Interstate: both. Since May 14, 2026 all FMCSA registration runs through Motus, with login through Login.gov and an identity check (a government ID plus a selfie), and FMCSA has not accepted paper transactions since September 30, 2025. The fee is $300 per type of authority, non-refundable even for a mistaken application, and new applicants wait 20-25 business days, longer if the file is pulled for further review, per FMCSA's fee and timeline page. How the new system behaves day to day is in our Motus registration guide.

After you file, three things have to land while FMCSA's clock runs:

• Insurance filing. Your insurer, not you, files the BMC-91X for at least $750,000 bodily injury and property damage (GVWR 10,001 lbs and up; $300,000 under that; $1,000,000 or $5,000,000 for hazmat). FMCSA expects it within 20 days of publication in the FMCSA Register; otherwise it serves a notice and gives 60 more days before dismissal. In practice an application with no insurance and no BOC-3 dies at roughly 90 days, and the $300 goes with it.
• BOC-3. Only a process agent can file it on your behalf, per FMCSA's BOC-3 page; one blanket filing covers every state, and you keep a copy at your principal place of business. About $35.
• UCR. For 0-2 trucks the 2027 fee is $55, effective October 1, 2026; the 2026 fee is $46 if you also register for what is left of this year, per plan.ucr.gov. UCR is owed only by carriers engaged in interstate commerce, and California is a participating base state, per the UCR Plan FAQ; an intrastate-only carrier skips it. Details in the UCR guide.

Once active, two federal clocks keep running. The MCS-150 biennial update is due every 24 months on the schedule in 49 CFR 390.19T (month by the last digit of your USDOT number, odd or even year by the second-to-last); FMCSA has paused deactivations for missed updates since June 1, 2026 while Motus stabilizes, but the duty itself stands. And under 49 CFR 385.307 you are a New Entrant for 18 months, with a safety audit that generally comes no earlier than three months in.

Intrastate only: no MC, but you still need a USDOT number. The CHP's New Carrier Guidance cites CVC 34507.5(a)(1): a USDOT number must exist before a CA Number is issued, and the CA Number is the key to the MCP. So even a box truck that never leaves Los Angeles County starts in Motus. If you are unsure which side of the line you fall on, interstate vs intrastate authority walks through the tests. The whole federal layer, LLC included, is what our Authority Bundle for $499 covers.

What is a CA Number and how do you get one from the CHP?

The CA Number is California's carrier identifier, issued only by the California Highway Patrol, and it doubles as your Motor Carrier Permit number. Per the CHP's FAQ, anyone who is paid to transport property in a motor vehicle needs one regardless of the vehicle's size or weight, and so does anyone operating a commercial vehicle of 10,001 lbs GVWR or more for any purpose, including private carriage of your own goods.

To get it you submit form CHP 362, the Motor Carrier Profile, to your nearest Motor Carrier Safety Unit by mail, fax or in person, or online at canumber.chp.ca.gov. The CHP says to allow five business days, after which the unit contacts you with the number. The form asks for your USDOT number, so that comes first. Neither the CHP pages nor the DMV FAQ list a separate charge for the number itself; the money is collected later with the MCP.

Contacts: CHP Commercial Vehicle Section, (916) 843-3400, P.O. Box 942898, Sacramento, CA 94298-0001, weekdays 8 to 5, per the Commercial Vehicle Section page. Bay Area carriers deal with the Golden Gate Division unit at 1551 Benicia Road, Vallejo, (707) 648-4180. One rule to remember for later: if the business entity changes in any way, a new LLC, a new owner structure, the DMV says you must obtain a new CA Number and file a new MCP application. The number follows the entity, not the person.

What is a California Motor Carrier Permit (MCP) and who needs it?

The MCP is the state's operating permit under the Motor Carriers of Property Permit Act. Per the DMV's MCP page it is required for any person paid to transport property regardless of vehicle size, any commercial vehicle of 10,001 lbs GVWR or more (private carriers included), hazmat, combinations over 40 feet, and anything that needs a CDL. It is not required for household goods carriers under PUC 5109 (those are licensed elsewhere, see the mistakes section), for non-commercial pickups up to 11,500 lbs GVWR, or for carriers under USPS contract hauling only mail or hauling only freight containers.

New carriers must apply before they begin operations, online or by mail, and only to the Registration Operations Division in Sacramento: no DMV field office will take it. The packet is the application MC 706 M, the CA Number, the insurance certificate MC 65 M, proof of workers' compensation or a signed statement that you have no employees, an Employer Pull Notice requester code if you employ CDL drivers, and the fees. Mail goes to P.O. Box 932370, MS H875, Sacramento, CA 94232-3700; the drop box is at 2570 24th Street, Sacramento; the MCP Unit answers at 916-657-8153. The term is 12 months from the first day of the month you apply, and the permit is not issued until every requirement is met.

Fees are from the DMV's BIT and CIF fee sheet; trailers do not count toward fleet size, but every unit's plate and VIN go on the application. The compliance items that follow the fees are where most first-time applicants stumble:

• Insurance. The DMV describes liability levels from $300,000 to $5,000,000 combined single limit depending on the vehicles and cargo. The statute, CVC 34631.5, sets $750,000 for a motor carrier of property, $300,000 only if every vehicle is 10,000 lbs GVWR or under, $1,200,000 for petroleum products, and the 49 CFR 387 amounts for hazmat. The insurer cannot cancel the certificate sooner than 30 days after notifying the DMV, and on the cancellation date the MCP is suspended automatically. Operating on a suspended MCP is prohibited by CVC 34623(h).
• Workers' compensation. Required proof, or a signed statement that you have no employees. The DMV FAQ is explicit that a carrier employing only family members still needs the policy. Questions: Department of Industrial Relations, 1-800-736-7401.
• Drug and alcohol (CSAT). CVC 34520 makes every California carrier follow 49 CFR Part 382; at application and every renewal you self-certify enrollment in a consortium or your exemption. TruckerNavi's consortium is $150 a year.
• Employer Pull Notice. Under CVC 1808.1 any employer of Class A, Class B, or endorsed Class C drivers needs a requester code; the EPN unit is (916) 657-6346.

The DMV suspends an MCP for a failed BIT inspection, a lapse in CSAT, a missing EPN, a cancelled liability or workers' comp policy, using vehicles of a carrier whose MCP is suspended, or an owner-operator losing his own driver license. Operating without an MCP is a state misdemeanor: the DMV FAQ cites a fine of up to $2,500, up to three months in county jail, or both, plus vehicle impoundment and the late penalties above when you finally apply. If you want the state layer handled with the federal one, TruckerNavi files the CA Number, MCP, IRP, IFTA and CARB reporting as permits from $200.

Interstate vs intrastate in California: which permits do you actually need?

The same three configurations from the cost table, now as a yes-or-no matrix. Read down your column before you file anything.

Two nuances for the interstate column. First, the DMV's MCP FAQ confirms that interstate carriers pay base fees prorated to actual California mileage, pay the CIF in full, and receive a non-expiring permit: you file once, you do not renew, but you do file. Second, the exceptions are narrow: only carriers under USPS contract hauling exclusively mail, and carriers hauling exclusively freight containers, fall outside the MCP. Everyone else with a California base gets the permit, and the state's 55 mph limit for tractors and any truck pulling a trailer under CVC 22406 applies to all of them.

What is the BIT program and will the CHP inspect my terminal?

BIT stands for Basic Inspection of Terminals under CVC 34501.12. Older guides still call it "Biennial" and promise an inspection every two years; that ended with AB 529 in 2013. Per the DMV's BIT fee sheet, the CHP now inspects terminals at any time, selecting carriers by safety performance data or by the type of cargo. You maintain the vehicles and the records at the terminal and make them available when the officer arrives.

Who is in the program, per the CHP FAQ: any truck with three or more axles over 10,000 lbs GVWR, every truck tractor, the trailers pulled by those vehicles, hazmat carriers, and any truck over 10,000 lbs pulling a trailer where the combination exceeds 40 feet. Not every MCP holder is in BIT; a two-axle box truck without a trailer usually is not. The Carrier Inspection Fee that funds the program ($130 for one truck, $152 for two to four) has been collected by the DMV with the MCP since January 1, 2016 and is never prorated, so an interstate carrier with one California-based tractor still pays it in full.

What the officer opens: the maintenance file (CVC 34505.5 requires documented preventive maintenance every 90 days, form CHP 108), driver hours records, driver qualification files, drug and alcohol program records, and the vehicles themselves. The CHP's own onboarding forms, CHP 800H "Welcome to BIT" and the CHP 800D terminal manager checklist, are the study guide. A failed BIT is a listed ground for the DMV to suspend the MCP. Our Safety Compliance plans (pricing on request) keep the 90-day maintenance, DQ files and drug testing in the shape the CHP wants; a Mock DOT Audit for $399 is the dress rehearsal.

CARB Clean Truck Check and the Truck and Bus rule: which trucks can you even register?

Two CARB programs decide whether the DMV will put a plate on your truck. Clean Truck Check applies to nearly all diesel and alternative-fuel vehicles over 14,000 lbs GVWR that operate on California roads, even if they are registered in another state, per CARB's overview fact sheet. Compliance is four things: report the vehicle in the CTC-VIS system, pay the annual compliance fee, submit passing emissions tests on schedule, and have no open violations. The fee is $32.13 per vehicle for compliance deadlines from January 1, 2026 ($31.18 in 2025), indexed annually, per CARB's fee update.

The Truck and Bus Regulation is the older rule and the harder wall. Diesel trucks over 14,000 lbs GVWR of model year 2010 and older (2009 and older engines) had to be replaced or repowered on CARB's schedule; since Senate Bill 1 (2017) the DMV must deny registration to non-compliant diesels, has verified with CARB since January 1, 2020, and has checked all model year 2010 and older trucks since January 1, 2023, per CARB's DMV verification sheet and the DMV's commercial registration page.

How do IRP apportioned plates work through the California DMV?

If your truck leaves the state at a gross or combined weight of 26,001 lbs or more, you need apportioned plates under the International Registration Plan or trip permits for each trip, per the DMV's IRP page. Trucks under that weight can often run on reciprocity. The packet for a first application: Schedule A/B (MC 2117 I), Schedule C (MC 2118 I), the USDOT number of whoever is responsible for safety with an MCS-150 updated within the last 12 months, your FEIN or SSN, proof of a California business address, a California driver license, a mileage record form (MC 522 I), a VIN verification (REG 31), and for trucks over 54,999 lbs proof of paid HVUT, the stamped Schedule 1 from Form 2290.

That last item trips up new carriers every July: the 2290 period runs July 1 to June 30, a truck first used in July is due August 31, and an 80,000-lb tractor pays $550 for the full year, per the IRS instructions. The 2290 deadline guide and the 2290 calculator cover partial-year math. Fees on the original IRP application are due the month the truck begins interstate operations and are valid for 13 months; the balance on the billing notice is due within 20 days. Instead of waiting for a full apportioned calculation, the DMV lets you pay 100% California fees, or a flat $250 per vehicle per month for the months until expiration ($300 if the truck cost $200,000 or more). Late penalties bite: 40% on an original application up to a year late, 10% to 60% on renewals depending on the delay.

The established place of business has to be a physical California address with a phone in the registrant's name and records on site; a registration agent's address is rejected, but an owner-operator may use a home address. IRP Operations is at P.O. Box 932320, MS H160, Sacramento, CA 94232-3200, (916) 657-7971. For trucks that never leave the state, the DMV issues regular commercial registration instead: vehicles of 10,001 lbs and up pay Commercial Vehicle Registration Act fees rather than weight fees, declare their gross or combined weight on REG 4008, and carry CVRA weight decals on both sides; trailers go under the Permanent Trailer Identification program with a service fee every five years. How IRP, IFTA and 2290 fit together is laid out in IRP vs IFTA vs NY HUT vs 2290.

How do you get an IFTA license from the CDTFA?

IFTA is fuel tax, and in California it belongs to the Department of Tax and Fee Administration, not the DMV. You qualify for a California license when you operate a qualified motor vehicle (three or more axles, or two axles over 26,000 lbs, or a combination over 26,000 lbs) in California and at least one other IFTA jurisdiction, your vehicles are based and registered here, you run from an established physical place of business in the state (again, no P.O. box, no mail drop, no agent's address), and your records are kept here, per the CDTFA's IFTA guide. If the truck's travel is restricted to California, no IFTA license is required.

The cost is small: a $10 annual license and $2 per set of decals per truck, per the CDTFA's getting started page. You apply through CDTFA online services with the vehicle data, your FEIN (mandatory for an LLC), your driver license number and your USDOT number, and you can print temporary decals while the permanent ones are in the mail. The obligation that costs money is the quarterly return: due the last day of the month after each quarter, required even for a quarter with zero miles, with a penalty of $50 or 10% of the tax due, whichever is greater, and records kept four years. Renewal opens December 1; if you renew online by December 31, the old decals stay valid through the last day of February. If you lease a truck for 30 days or more, the written lease decides who files IFTA, and if it says nothing, the lessee, meaning the carrier, is responsible. CDTFA customer service: 1-800-400-7115. The filing mechanics are in our IFTA filing guide.

Step by step: the order that saves you weeks in California

The order matters because each agency asks for the previous one's number. Do it in this sequence and the 20-25 FMCSA business days overlap with everything the state needs.

1. File the LLC-1 online ($70), get the free EIN from irs.gov once the SOS accepts the filing, and decide the physical business address.
2. Create the Motus profile through Login.gov, pass the identity check, apply for the USDOT number and, if interstate, MC authority ($300).
3. The same week: insurer files the BMC-91X ($750,000), the process agent files BOC-3, you pay UCR ($55 for 2027). All within 20 days of publication.
4. Submit CHP 362 online with the USDOT number; expect the CA Number in about five business days.
5. Have the insurer issue the state certificate MC 65 M and sign the workers' comp statement; enroll in a drug and alcohol consortium and register in the Clearinghouse.
6. File MC 706 M with the DMV Registration Operations Division with the CA Number, MC 65 M, workers' comp proof, CSAT self-certification, EPN code if needed, and the fees ($250 for one for-hire truck; interstate: CIF $130 plus prorated base).
7. Report the truck in CARB CTC-VIS (a temporary plate is fine) and pay $32.13; confirm the model year passes Truck and Bus.
8. Register the truck: CVRA commercial registration with REG 4008 if intrastate, or IRP with the Schedule 1 from Form 2290 and a current MCS-150 if interstate.
9. Apply for IFTA online at the CDTFA ($10 plus $2), print temporary decals.
10. Build the driver qualification file and the 90-day maintenance schedule (CHP 108) before the first load.
11. Watch Motus: authority goes Active around business day 20-25; the MCP arrives by mail.
12. Calendar the $800 FTB payment (15th day of month 4), the $20 Statement of Information (within 90 days), the first IFTA quarter and the CARB test deadline.

How long each federal stage really takes, including where applications stall, is tracked in the MC authority activation timeline.

What mistakes do new California carriers make?

1. "I have an MC, so I do not need an MCP." CVC 34620 says otherwise, and the broker's compliance desk is required to ask for the permit. Interstate carriers file once for a non-expiring MCP, but they file.
2. Budgeting zero for the FTB in year one. The $800 first-year waiver ended with tax year 2023. An LLC formed today pays $800 by the 15th day of the fourth month.
3. Applying to the DMV for a moving company. Household moves are licensed by the Bureau of Household Goods and Services: a $500 application, an exam on Maximum Rate Tariff 4, LiveScan fingerprints, and its own insurance floors ($600,000 combined single limit and $20,000 cargo per shipment), per the BHGS FAQ. A licensed mover does not need a DMV MCP; a freight or office-move carrier does not need BHGS.
4. Buying a 2010 or older truck. The DMV will not register it under Truck and Bus, and Clean Truck Check applies from 14,000 lbs GVWR either way.
5. Letting insurance lapse for a week. The MCP suspends automatically on the certificate's cancellation date, the DMV gets 30 days' notice before that, and driving on a suspended permit is its own violation.
6. A name in Motus that differs from the SOS record. One extra comma or "LLC" versus "L.L.C." and FMCSA holds the authority until it matches.
7. Driving 65 with a trailer. California's limit for tractors and any truck pulling a trailer is 55 mph under CVC 22406, and CVC 2813 requires every commercial vehicle to pull into open scales. Both are the first two tickets a new carrier collects.
8. Leasing on owner-operators as if AB5 did not exist. California's ABC test presumes a worker is an employee; the business-to-business exception only holds if the owner-operator has his own entity, a written contract, his own equipment and the freedom to work for others, per the Labor Commissioner's FAQ. Willful misclassification carries state civil penalties of $5,000 to $25,000 per violation under Labor Code 226.8. Write the lease with a lawyer who has read the motor carrier guidance.

FAQ

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