['Registration and Permits - Motor Carrier']
['Vehicle Registration Permits']
03/12/2025
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All motor vehicles operating upon the highways of this state must be registered except farm tractors, implements of husbandry, and certain types of farm trailers. Vehicles must be registered annually with the Minnesota Department of Public Safety, Driver and Vehicle Services.
All interstate motor carriers operating any of the following vehicles must obtain a United States Department of Transportation number:
- A vehicle or vehicle combination greater than 10,000 pounds gross vehicle weight;
- A vehicle of any size required to display hazardous materials placards;
- A vehicle designed or used to transport more than eight passengers, including the driver, for compensation; or
- A vehicle designed or used to transport more than 15 passengers, including the driver, not for compensation.
All intrastate motor carriers operating a truck or truck tractor having a gross vehicle weight of more than 10,000 pounds must obtain a United States Department of Transportation number. United States Department of Transportation (DOT) numbers must be displayed on vehicles operated intrastate.
The requirement to obtain and display a United States DOT number doesn't apply to a farm truck that is operated intrastate.
Agency: Prorate Office; see Regulatory Agencies for address(es).
License plate display
All license plates are required to be displayed horizontally and in an upright position with the identifying numbers and letters facing outward from the vehicle.
Trailers, motorcycles, mopeds, and dealer vehicles must display a single license plate on the rear of the vehicle. Tractors and truck tractors used in tractor trailer combinations, as well as farm class vehicles that are 20 model years or older, must display a single license plate on the front of the vehicle.
All other vehicles are issued double plates to display on the front and back of the vehicle. This includes cars, vans, pickups, trucks, and buses.
International Registration Plan
Minnesota is a member of the International Registration Plan (IRP). The IRP is a base state system for vehicle registration fees allowing a carrier to apply for vehicle registration and pay fees to a single jurisdiction.
Motor vehicles that qualify for apportionment consist of the following:
- A power unit having two axles and a gross vehicle weight (GVW) or registered weight in excess of 26,000 pounds;
- A power unit having three or more axles, regardless of weight; or
- A unit used in combination when the weight of such combination exceeds a GVW or 26,000 pounds.
First time (original) IRP registration applicants must provide the following information:
- United States Department of Transportation number,
- Taxpayer identification number (FEIN),
- Documentation verifying the Minnesota business address,
- Minnesota driver license number,
- Proof of Federal Heavy Vehicle Use Tax payment for all vehicles over 54,999 pounds that qualified for operation in any jurisdiction, and
- Power of Attorney paperwork for applications represented by a paid registration service agent for IRP registration purposes.
Temporary permit: A vehicle owned and currently registered by an out-of-state resident and not apportioned with Minnesota may obtain a temporary Minnesota registration trip permit. The cost is 1/12 of the annual amount of registration tax imposed on trucks and tractors rounded to the nearest whole dollar, plus an $11 filing fee. The permit is valid for 120 hours. A temporary registration trip permit is limited to 1 permit every 30 days per vehicle.
For currently registered vehicles, registrants may increase the weight of a vehicle for more than 80,000 pounds. For each 30-day period, the additional tax is $4.17 per ton rounded to the nearest whole dollar. An $11 filing fee is required for each request. A temporary weight increase does not replace the requirements for an overweight permit authorized by the Minnesota DOT and/or local road authority.
A vehicle owned and currently registered by an out-of-state resident and not apportioned with Minnesota may obtain a 30-day registration for the time period the vehicle will be temporarily used for interstate and intrastate travel. The registration fee is 1/12 of the annual fee based on the gross vehicle weight, and is available in 30, 60, and 90-day increments, plus the $11 filing fee.
Hunter's or unladen weight permit: This permit allows the owner/operator of a vehicle previously leased to a motor carrier to legally operate the vehicle at the vehicle's empty (unladen) weight while hunting for another job or to return home.
Agency: Minnesota Department of Public Safety, Driver and Vehicle Services.
Fees: Registration fees are calculated by taking the percentage of distance per jurisdiction driven multiplied by the full year registration fee for that jurisdiction.
Other
Reciprocity
Minnesota has the following border reciprocity agreements:
- Iowa: Iowa recognizes farm truck license plates, the 25% weight tolerance, and the commercial drivers license exception for covered farm vehicles within a 150 air mile radius of the farm. Iowa exempts fuel permits within 30 miles of the border, and exempts farm plates from the IRP.
- North Dakota: All Minnesota licensed vehicles are exempt from the 72-hour trip permit requirements. The movement, however, must be an interstate operation and within 20 miles of the North Dakota/Minnesota border. Travel does not have to be the most direct route.
- South Dakota: Licensing reciprocity is granted to individuals and corporations from either South Dakota or Minnesota — including corporations not organized under the laws of either state but are licensed to do business in either state as well as maintain a place of business in either state — to operate a bus, straight truck, truck tractor, trailer, semitrailer, or any combination of these when performing interstate commerce within 20 miles of each state's border.
- Wisconsin: All qualified motor vehicles owned or leased and operated by residents of Iowa and Minnesota may operate in Wisconsin within 30 miles of the Wisconsin border without carrying any additional fuel tax credentials as set forth in the fuel tax reporting reciprocity agreements between Wisconsin and those two states.
Verify with Minnesota if vehicles qualify before operating within the state. More information regarding Minnesota border reciprocity agreements can be found on page 19 of the 2023 Minnesota Commercial Truck and Passenger Regulations book.
Trailer registration
Trailers registered at a gross vehicle weight of 3,000 pounds or less must display a distinctive plate. The registration plate is valid for life of the trailer if it remains registered at the same gross vehicle weight. The one-time registration tax for trailers registered for the first time within Minnesota is $55.
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Copyright 2025 J. J. Keller & Associate, Inc. For re-use options please contact copyright@jjkeller.com or call 800-558-5011.