Short answer
Unified Carrier Registration (UCR) is an annual fee that interstate motor carriers, brokers, freight forwarders and leasing companies pay through a state-run program. Registration for 2027 opened October 1, 2026 and is due before January 1, 2027. Brokers and carriers with up to two trucks pay $55 for 2027, up from $46. You file at ucr.gov with your USDOT number.
UCR is easy to miss. FMCSA doesn’t run it, and there’s no decal or card to renew. It’s still a bill that comes due every year, the amount went up for 2027, and an unpaid one is a roadside violation. This post covers who owes it, what it costs, and how to file without paying more than the fee.
UCR fees for 2026 and 2027
The fee depends on how many commercial motor vehicles you run. Brokers and leasing companies always pay the first row.
| Vehicles owned or operated | 2026 fee | 2027 fee | Increase |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 to 2, and every broker and leasing company | $46 | $55 | $9 |
| 3 to 5 | $138 | $167 | $29 |
| 6 to 20 | $276 | $333 | $57 |
| 21 to 100 | $963 | $1,163 | $200 |
| 101 to 1,000 | $4,592 | $5,548 | $956 |
| 1,001 or more | $44,836 | $54,165 | $9,329 |
Source: 49 CFR 367.40 and 367.50. The 2026 fees are the same ones charged for 2025.
The 2027 fees are final. FMCSA published them on September 1, 2026 in a final rule that took effect October 1. The agency describes the change as an average increase of 20 percent, and notes the new fees are still lower than the ones charged from 2019 through 2022. The 2027 schedule stays in place for later years until a new rule changes it.
If you see a 2027 notice next to a table that starts at $46, you’re looking at the 2026 schedule. The UCR Plan’s fee brackets page and the regulation both show $55 for 2027.
Who has to register
The UCR Plan puts it in one sentence: “All motor carriers (for-hire, private and exempt), brokers, freight forwarders and leasing companies operating in interstate and international commerce are subject to the UCR Agreement.” That includes carriers based in Canada and Mexico that operate in the United States.
Two groups are outside it: carriers that operate only in intrastate commerce, and private motor carriers of passengers.
UCR comes from a federal law, 49 U.S.C. 14504a, but the states run it and keep the money. FMCSA’s part is setting the fees by regulation.
It’s also separate from your FMCSA registration. Getting a USDOT number, an MC number, a broker bond and a BOC-3 doesn’t register you for UCR. FMCSA moved its own registration to a new system, Motus, in May 2026. UCR didn’t move with it. You still file at ucr.gov.
What freight brokers pay
A broker pays the lowest bracket no matter how big the brokerage is. The statute says the fee for a broker or leasing company “shall be equal to the smallest fee charged to a motor carrier, motor private carrier, and freight forwarder.” That’s $46 for 2026 and $55 for 2027.
A freight forwarder that doesn’t run its own trucks lands in the same bracket.
If one legal entity holds both carrier and broker authority, the UCR Handbook says it is “required to pay only one UCR fee, but at the higher of the two possible rates.” In practice that’s the carrier bracket for its fleet. Two separate companies with separate USDOT numbers each register and each pay. We cover the setup choices in can a freight broker own trucks.
UCR is one of four filings behind a legal brokerage. The rest are in what is a freight broker and how to start a freight brokerage.
How a carrier’s fleet size is counted
Carriers get to choose between two counts. The statute allows the number on the “most recently filed MCS-150” or the number of vehicles owned or operated in the 12 months ending June 30 of the year before the registration year. For 2027, that second window ended June 30, 2026.
A few rules decide what goes in the count:
- Only power units count. The UCR Handbook says towed units “don’t count,” so trailers are left out.
- Trucks you run under a long-term lease count as yours.
- A commercial motor vehicle, for UCR, is one with a weight rating or actual weight of at least 10,001 pounds, one that carries placarded hazardous materials, or one built for more than 10 passengers including the driver.
- You may leave out trucks used only for intrastate hauling.
- Adding or selling trucks during the year doesn’t change that year’s fee.
The bracket edges are steep. Going from two trucks to three takes the 2027 fee from $55 to $167, and going from 20 to 21 takes it from $333 to $1,163. So check the count before you pay. The portal’s auto-renewal uses the number of power units on your current MCS-150. If you sold trucks and never updated that form, you’ll be billed for them.
Small carriers are covered too. A pickup and trailer rated at 10,001 pounds or more together, hauling interstate freight, owes UCR. See our posts on hot shot trucking and straight trucks.
Deadline and enforcement
Registration for 2027 opened on October 1, 2026. The fee is due “before January 1 of the registration year,” in the UCR Plan’s words, which makes December 31, 2026 the last day to be on time. The plan’s handbook notes that the UCR Board can postpone the due date in a given year.
Roadside enforcement follows the calendar. Minnesota’s Department of Transportation says enforcement for 2027 UCR begins January 1, 2027. An officer who finds an unregistered carrier writes it up under code 392.2 UCR, failure to pay UCR fees.
There’s nothing to keep in the truck. The UCR Plan’s FAQ says, “You are not required to carry any proof of compliance in the vehicle.”
Fines are up to each state. The statute lets participating states issue citations and impose “reasonable fines and penalties” under their own laws, and the handbook says each state “is free under the program to impose what penalties it sees fit.” Texas, for one, makes failing to register a Class C misdemeanor and counts each day as a separate offense. The handbook adds that some states won’t renew a truck’s registration until UCR is paid.
If you missed a year, you can still pay it. FMCSA’s rule notes that collections for a fee year stay open through December 31 of the following year to allow for late registrations.
If your state isn’t in UCR
Forty-one states take part. Arizona, Florida, Hawaii, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Vermont, Wyoming and Washington, D.C. don’t. Being based in one of them doesn’t get you out of the fee. The handbook is blunt about it: “A business is not exempt from the requirements of the UCR program merely because its operations are restricted to states that do not participate in UCR.”
You register through a participating state instead. If you have an office or a facility in one, use that state. If you don’t, pick the nearest participating state or one from your region’s list.
| If you’re based in | You can register through |
|---|---|
| Maryland, New Jersey, Vermont or Washington, D.C. | Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia or West Virginia |
| Florida | Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee or Texas |
| Arizona, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon or Wyoming | Alaska, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah or Washington |
Source: UCR Plan FAQ and handbook. The fee is the same whichever state you file through.
How to register
Get your USDOT number
The filing site asks for it before anything else.
Go to ucr.gov
The National Registration System at ucr.gov is the official site. The handbook says a paper form filed with your base state is still allowed.
Confirm what you are and how many trucks you run
Pick carrier, broker, freight forwarder or leasing company. Carriers then choose the MCS-150 count or the 12-month count.
Pay the bracket fee
Check the amount against the table above before you pay.
Keep the receipt
There’s no decal. Save the confirmation with your company records, and send a copy when a broker asks for it in a carrier packet.
The UCR Plan’s help line is 1-833-UCR-PLAN (1-833-827-7526).
Third-party filing sites
Search for UCR registration and several of the top results are private companies that file for you. That’s allowed. The handbook says a business “may engage a third party to perform UCR registration and pay UCR fees.”
It also says the program “does not regulate the fees a private party may charge a registrant for such a service.” Anything you pay above the bracket fee is that company’s service charge. If you’d sooner pay only the fee, file at the address that ends in .gov, and compare the total against the fee table before you enter a card number.
Five UCR mistakes
- Paying on an old truck count. Update the MCS-150 first if your fleet shrank.
- Counting trailers. Only power units go in the count.
- Assuming a non-participating state means no fee.
- Thinking UCR is only for carriers. Brokers, freight forwarders and leasing companies owe it too.
- Waiting for a reminder. Nothing in the truck expires, so the first notice can be a citation.
Where FreightVero fits
FreightVero is a TMS for freight brokers. It keeps each carrier’s compliance status with the carrier record, and a load can’t reach Alerted without an approved carrier. See carrier management and our carrier onboarding guide.
Final thoughts
UCR is a small fee with a hard date. For 2027, a broker or a one-truck carrier owes $55 by December 31, 2026. Check your truck count, file at ucr.gov, and keep the receipt. File early and it’s one less thing an officer can write up.