How to Start a Trucking Company in Texas in 2026: LLC, TxDMV Number, MC Authority, IRP and IFTA Step by Step

Updated September 11, 2026 | TruckerNavi Inc | 22 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: a Texas trucking company is built in two layers. The state layer is a Texas LLC for $300 at the Secretary of State (Form 205), a free EIN from the IRS and, if you haul only inside Texas with a truck or combination exceeding 26,000 pounds, a TxDMV Number through TxMCCS: $100 application, $10 per vehicle, $100 Form E insurance filing, a $500,000 liability minimum, decision in 24-48 business hours (TxDMV). The federal layer, if you cross a state line: a USDOT number and MC authority through FMCSA's Motus system ($300 per authority type, 20-25 business days for a first-time applicant), a BMC-91X filing at $750,000, a BOC-3 filed by a process agent, UCR ($46 for 2026, $55 for 2027 with 0-2 trucks), IRP apportioned plates through TxFLEET, a free IFTA license from the Comptroller, and Form 2290 for any truck at 55,000 pounds or more. Fixed government fees for one interstate tractor come to about $681 (LLC $300, MC $300, BOC-3 about $35, UCR $46) before IRP fees, the 2290 tax and insurance; for a Texas-only truck over 26,000 pounds about $510 (LLC $300, TxDMV $210).

The line between the two roads is the load, not the truck. TxDMV says it in one sentence on How to Be a Motor Carrier: if you do both kinds of work, you need both kinds of authority, one does not cover the other. A USDOT number is an identifier, not permission to haul. Inside Texas the permission is the TxDMV certificate; across state lines it is the MC number.

How to start a trucking company in Texas: two roads, intrastate and interstate

The foundation is the same for everyone: an LLC, an EIN and a USDOT number. Texas is on FMCSA's list of states that require a USDOT number for intrastate carriers, and in interstate commerce the federal trigger is a gross vehicle or combination weight rating of 10,001 pounds or more under 49 CFR 390.5. After that the road forks, and the fork decides which office you deal with, what you pay and how long you wait. If you are still deciding which road your loads take, interstate vs intrastate authority walks through the legal test.

Step 1. Texas LLC: $300 at the Secretary of State

The Certificate of Formation for an LLC is Form 205; the filing fee is $300, and card payments carry a 2.7 percent convenience fee. The SOS strongly encourages electronic filing through SOSDirect or SOSUpload; paper goes to P.O. Box 13697, Austin, TX 78711-3697 or to 400 W. 15th St., Austin. If you need it faster than the ordinary queue, Texas Express charges $50 per document for standard expedited handling (typically 2-3 business days), $500 for next-day and $750 for same-day, each on top of the $300. The SOS publishes no turnaround for the unpaid queue, so plan on "longer than the paid 2-3 days" rather than a number.

Three details on the form decide whether the LLC survives the year:

• Registered agent. Required. The LLC cannot act as its own agent, and the registered office may not be solely a mailbox service or telephone answering service (BOC § 5.201). Failure to maintain an agent and office may result in the involuntary termination of the LLC. If you have no Texas street address, TruckerNavi provides a Registered Agent for $149 per year.
• Initial mailing address. Mandatory since January 1, 2022; it can be a P.O. box or a street address, and the Comptroller sends tax correspondence there, so make it an address someone opens. Which address belongs on the USDOT record is a separate question, covered in what address to use for USDOT and the LLC.
• Owners. Texas law does not restrict who can form or own an LLC; there is no citizenship or residency requirement.

An assumed name (DBA) is Form 503, $25. And one thing Texas does not have: an annual report to the SOS for LLCs. The SOS formation FAQ lists the entity types that file periodic reports, and an LLC is not among them; its yearly obligation lives at the Comptroller, which is Step 2.

Step 2. EIN, Texas Taxpayer Number and the franchise tax you file even when you owe nothing

The EIN is free, issued online in minutes, one per responsible party per day, and the IRS says to form the entity with the Secretary of State before applying. Two trucking notes from the IRS Trucking Tax Center: Form 2290 must be filed under an EIN, not an SSN, and a new EIN takes about four weeks to be established in the IRS systems, so a truck bought in the first month may wait for its Schedule 1.

The Texas franchise tax is a privilege tax on every taxable entity formed in Texas, and the trap for a small carrier is that it looks like it does not apply. The annual report is due May 15. For report years 2026 and 2027 the no-tax-due threshold is $2,650,000 in annual revenue, so a one-truck company owes nothing. But since report year 2024 the No Tax Due Report no longer exists; under the threshold the entity must still file Form 05-102, the Public Information Report (or 05-167, the Ownership Information Report). Skip it and the Comptroller sends Form 05-211, Notice of Intent to Forfeit, then 05-213, Notice of Forfeiture of Registration: the loss of the right to transact business in Texas. Franchise tax questions: 800-252-1381.

Step 3. USDOT number in Motus: mark interstate or intrastate correctly the first time

Since May 14, 2026 FMCSA registration runs through Motus, the USDOT Registration System that replaced the legacy tools. You sign in through login.gov and pass an identity check with a photo of your ID and a selfie; the check is personal, so the owner does it with his own phone, about twenty minutes. A USDOT PIN is not needed to create the account, and paper transactions have not been accepted since September 30, 2025. The walkthrough is in FMCSA registration through Motus.

Two fields on the USDOT application decide the rest of the Texas process:

• Operation classification. TxDMV's instruction is explicit: for operations conducted exclusively within Texas, register with USDOT as INTRAstate, not INTERstate. A Texas-only carrier marked interstate will be asked for an MC, filings and UCR it does not need; an interstate carrier marked intrastate cannot get its MC granted.
• Legal name and address. FMCSA's insurance filing page warns that the name and address in all pre-registration filings, such as the Secretary of State record, must match exactly; any deviation delays the grant. Copy the LLC name from the SOS certificate character for character.

Step 4a. Staying inside Texas: TxDMV Number, Form E and the 26,000-pound line

Under Texas Transportation Code chapter 643 an intrastate carrier must register with the TxDMV Motor Carrier Division when it operates a vehicle or combination with a gross weight, registered weight or gross weight rating exceeding 26,000 pounds, transports placarded hazardous materials, runs a farm vehicle at 48,000 pounds or more, carries more than 15 passengers, operates a commercial school bus, or moves household goods for compensation at any weight. Note "exceeding": a box truck rated at exactly 26,000 pounds is outside the rule. Registration runs seven calendar days, 90 days, one year or two years; the 7-day and 90-day certificates cannot be renewed. Fees for carriers other than household goods movers, from the TxDMV Number page and § 643.053 and § 643.103 of the statute:

The application runs in TxMCCS and needs a valid USDOT number first. The sequence: you submit; TxDMV reviews within 24-48 business hours (plus 7 business days if you ever held a previous certificate or are linked to another one); an email tells you to notify your insurer; the insurer files Form E electronically; a second email sends you back to pay; TxMCCS issues the certificate number. A current insurance cab card, paper or electronic, must be in the vehicle at all times. Status: (800) 299-1700, options 3-3.

The minimums come from 43 TAC § 218.16: $500,000 for private or for-hire carriers with a gross, registered or rated weight in excess of 26,000 pounds; $300,000 for household goods carriers under 26,000 pounds, plus cargo coverage of $5,000 per shipper per vehicle and $10,000 aggregate; $1,000,000 or $5,000,000 for hazmat by class. Only the insurer can file Form E (liability), Forms H and I (cargo) or Form K (cancellation), and coverage may not be cancelled until 30 days after notice to TxDMV. The premium behind those limits is quoted, never published.

Three more lines from TxDMV. The application under § 643.052 requires a certification that you comply with the drug testing rules of 49 CFR Part 382 and the name of your consortium, so the program must exist before you file. If you keep the certificate active you must keep insurance filed, and you can be fined for holding authority without insurance even if you are not operating; pausing means cancelling the certificate in TxMCCS first. And TxDMV does not regulate driver licensing or safety audits; that is the Department of Public Safety. Anyone can verify a Texas carrier's filings at Texas Truck Stop.

Step 4b. Crossing state lines: MC authority for $300, BMC-91X, BOC-3, 20-25 business days

The federal numbers are on FMCSA's operating authority page: $300 per type of permanent authority with no refunds for mistaken applications; 20-25 business days for a new applicant, or 8 weeks or longer if the application goes to further review; authority documents go out 3-4 business days after the grant. The page still describes the old filing tools, so use it for fees and timing and Motus for the filing itself.

Once the application is published in the FMCSA Register, two clocks start. Under 49 CFR 365.203T a protest may be filed within 10 days of publication. Under 365.109T(a)(5)-(6) the insurance filing and the BOC-3 are expected within 20 days; FMCSA's insurance filing page adds that after 20 days a decision is served and the application is dismissed unless the entity complies within 60 more days. That is the "about 90 days" you hear about: after it the $300 is gone. The minimum for a for-hire property carrier at 10,001 pounds GVWR or more is $750,000, filed by the insurer as BMC-91 or BMC-91X with the MCS-90 endorsement on the policy. How the filing turns a pending docket into an active one is traced in the MC authority activation timeline.

The BOC-3 designates process agents in every state. FMCSA is unambiguous: only a process agent, on behalf of the carrier, can file it. One form is on file at a time, it must cover all required states, and a copy stays at the principal place of business. It costs about $35 through an agent; details in BOC-3 filing explained.

After the grant, the New Entrant program follows for 18 months with a safety audit within the first 12. The automatic failures: no drug and alcohol program, no random testing, a driver without a valid CDL, no insurance, no hours-of-service records, operating an out-of-service vehicle. Federal penalties are indexed every year, so no dollar figure here would stay true; the exposure does.

Step 5. IRP apportioned plates through TxFLEET

An interstate power unit with two axles and a gross or registered weight in excess of 26,000 pounds, any unit with three or more axles, or a combination over 26,000 pounds is an apportionable vehicle under the Texas IRP Information Packet. Every new account is processed online through TxFLEET, and transactions take up to 72 hours. Apportioned plates let the truck run interstate and intrastate in every jurisdiction on the cab card, but they are registration, not authority: the MC and TxDMV rules still apply.

To base a fleet in Texas you need an established place of business in the state, Texas mileage, and records kept in Texas. The IRP definition is strict: a physical structure owned or leased for at least 12 months, a sign, business hours, and staffing of at least 20 hours per week by a permanent employee, not an independent contractor. Residency is shown with a Texas driver license, Texas entity registration, tax filings, utility bills and vehicle titles, all pointing to the same physical address. For the first account bring:

• a Texas title or Registration Purposes Only (RPO) record for each vehicle;
• a stamped Schedule 1 of Form 2290 for vehicles at 55,000 pounds or more (within 60 days of the title transfer for a newly bought unit);
• a liability policy for the unit: the packet says non-trucking and bobtail insurance are not acceptable;
• the USDOT number and Tax ID of the registrant and of the carrier responsible for safety, plus form MCD-467;
• a current UCR: since March 2022 TxDMV requires IRP applicants to be current with UCR.

Fees follow the distance percentages your fleet runs in each jurisdiction; a first-year fleet with no actual mileage is charged from the Average Per Vehicle Distance chart, unless the vehicle had IRP registration in the last 18 months. Payment is by ACH or card ($0.25 plus 2.25 percent), and plates are mailed after payment. Since March 1, 2015 there is no inspection sticker; the cab card or registration receipt is proof of inspection and registration. Texas must audit an average of 3 percent of renewed fleets each year, and distance records are kept for three reporting periods plus the current one. The renewal packet arrives by email 45 days before expiration. IRP questions: TxFLEET@TxDMV.gov or (800) 299-1700, option 5.

Two Texas tax facts ride with the plates. A tractor registered with apportioned plates is exempt from the 6.25 percent motor vehicle sales tax when box 38 of Form 130-U is marked "for interstate use"; a unit diverted from interstate use within a year of purchase loses the exemption. And IRP trucks pay a Texas Emissions Reduction Plan (TERP) surcharge of 10 percent of the registration fee each year. How IRP fits with IFTA, HUT and the 2290 is laid out in IRP vs IFTA vs NY HUT vs Form 2290.

Step 6. IFTA through the Comptroller: free license, quarterly returns

Texas charges nothing for IFTA: the Texas IFTA Guidebook states there are no fees associated with registration, licenses or decals. Apply through Webfile, about 10 minutes, or on paper with Form AP-178, with the SSNs of the LLC members, the EIN, the Texas Taxpayer Number, the IRP (cab card) number or, without IRP, each plate number, and the USDOT number. First-time applicants are generally not asked for a bond. The license and two decals, one per exterior side of the cab, come by mail.

A qualified motor vehicle has the same shape as the IRP threshold: two axles and a gross or registered weight exceeding 26,000 pounds, three or more axles at any weight, or a combination over 26,000. Returns are due April 30, July 31, October 31 and January 31, every quarter, even with no travel in a member jurisdiction and no fuel bought; a zero return is still a return. The late penalty is $50 or 10 percent of delinquent tax, whichever is greater, with interest at 9 percent a year; records are kept four years. Renewal is automatic, but the Comptroller refuses it when the entity's SOS registration has been forfeited or cancelled, when tax is owed, when a return is missing, or after six quarters without interstate mileage. Need to enter Texas before the license arrives? A trip permit is $50, one entry, 20 days, at most five a year. Quarterly mechanics are in the IFTA filing guide; IFTA questions go to 800-252-1383.

Step 7. UCR, Form 2290 and the Drug & Alcohol consortium before the first load

UCR. Every interstate carrier pays the Unified Carrier Registration fee once a year, only through ucr.gov, by the number of motor vehicles of 10,001 pounds or more, trailers excluded, last reported on the MCS-150. The TxDMV UCR page lists the 2026 brackets; the UCR Plan has published the 2027 fees, effective when the 2027 portal opens on October 1, 2026. Card payments add 2.97 percent. You do not carry proof in the truck, but TxFLEET will not touch an IRP application until UCR is paid. Background in UCR registration 2026; help desk 833-827-7526.

Form 2290. The heavy vehicle use tax applies at a taxable gross weight of 55,000 pounds or more. The tax year runs July 1 to June 30; a vehicle first used in July is filed between July 1 and August 31, any other month by the last day of the following month. E-filing returns a watermarked Schedule 1 within minutes, and that Schedule 1 is what TxFLEET asks for. A truck expected to run 5,000 miles or less in the period (7,500 agricultural) can be filed as suspended. Details in Form 2290: the August deadline; IRS 2290 line 866-699-4096.

Drug & Alcohol. Both layers ask for it before you move: the TxDMV application certifies compliance with 49 CFR Part 382 and names the consortium, and the New Entrant audit fails automatically without a program and random testing. A pre-employment test, a consortium for random selections and a Clearinghouse registration for the company and each driver are the minimum; the TruckerNavi consortium is $150 per year, and the Clearinghouse steps are in FMCSA Clearinghouse registration.

How much does it cost to start a trucking company in Texas

Government fees per line item, so you can add up your own configuration. Insurance premiums are not listed because they are quoted, not published; the legal minimums are. TruckerNavi services sit in the last rows at our current prices.

Two sums fall out of the table. One interstate tractor: LLC $300 + MC $300 + BOC-3 about $35 + UCR $46 = $681 in fixed fees, then the 2290 tax by weight, IRP by distance and the premium. One Texas-only truck over 26,000 pounds: LLC $300 + TxDMV $210 = $510, then Form E and, at 55,000 pounds or more, the 2290. A budget that includes the truck, fuel and the first months of cash flow is in trucking company startup costs.

How long does it take: a day-by-day timeline

Texas-only rules drivers from other states miss

Texas writes its own rulebook for intrastate operations in 37 TAC § 4.12, and several numbers differ from the federal ones a driver learned in another state.

• CDL. Licensing is DPS, not TxDMV. Class A covers a combination with a GCWR of 26,001 pounds or more when the towed unit exceeds 10,000 pounds; the learner permit is held 14 days before the skills test; and effective June 1, 2026 DPS administers all CDL knowledge exams in English only. An intrastate-only driver carries restriction K.
• Sales tax on the truck. 6.25 percent of the price minus trade-in for a Texas-plated truck; zero for a unit with apportioned plates bought for interstate use, with the one-year diversion rule above.
• No mileage tax. Texas has no separate road tax by the mile of the kind New York charges as HUT or Oregon as weight-mile; the state layer is TxDMV registration, the franchise tax and IFTA. Trucks that cross into those states pick up their taxes there, which is what the permits service handles.
• Inspection. For apportioned vehicles the cab card or registration receipt doubles as proof of inspection; for other commercial vehicles confirm the current inspection requirement with DPS or TxDMV before the first roadside stop.

Mistakes that stall a Texas trucking startup

• USDOT marked interstate for Texas-only work, or intrastate for interstate work. The first drags in an MC, filings and UCR you do not need; the second blocks the MC grant.
• LLC name in Motus does not match the SOS record. A missing comma or "LLC" versus "L.L.C." delays the grant until corrected.
• MC filed, insurance not bound. Dismissal at about 90 days, $300 lost, a fresh application and a fresh wait.
• TxDMV certificate left active without Form E. Fines apply even with no loads; cancel the certificate in TxMCCS before you pause.
• A bobtail or non-trucking policy brought to TxFLEET. The packet rejects both; IRP wants the liability policy on the unit.
• IRP application before UCR. TxDMV has required current UCR since March 2022, so the application sits.
• Registered office at a mailbox service. Not allowed under BOC § 5.201; the LLC can be terminated for lacking a proper agent and office.
• Form 2290 under an SSN, or under a week-old EIN. The IRS wants an EIN that has been in its system about four weeks; the Schedule 1 is what TxFLEET needs at 55,000 pounds or more.

FAQ

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