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MCS-150 due date calculator
How the schedule works: 49 CFR 390.19T
Motor carriers must update their registration information every 24 months. The rule does not assign everyone the same date. It spreads filings across the year using your own USDOT number, which is why two carriers who registered on the same day can have deadlines nine months apart.
Step 1, the last digit sets your month
| Last digit | Filing month |
|---|---|
| 1 | January |
| 2 | February |
| 3 | March |
| 4 | April |
| 5 | May |
| 6 | June |
| 7 | July |
| 8 | August |
| 9 | September |
| 0 | October |
Step 2, the next-to-last digit sets your year
If the next-to-last digit is odd (1, 3, 5, 7, 9), you file in odd-numbered years. If it is even (0, 2, 4, 6, 8), you file in even-numbered years. This is the half most carriers get wrong, plenty of guides mention the month rule and skip the year rule entirely, or reverse the two digits.
Worked example: USDOT 385427
Last digit is 7 → files in July. Next-to-last digit is 2, which is even → files in even-numbered years. So the deadline is July 31 of every even year: July 31, 2026, then July 31, 2028.
What it costs to miss it
The stated consequence of not filing is deactivation of your USDOT number. FMCSA paused those deactivations on June 1, 2026 while Motus settles, with no end date announced, and the update is still required; if yours was already switched off, here is how to reactivate a deactivated DOT number. Civil penalties reach $1,584 for each day the violation continues, capped at $15,846 (49 CFR part 386, appendix B, adjusted for inflation; the statute’s base figures are $1,000 a day and $10,000). The practical damage usually arrives before the penalty does: a deactivated number fails a broker’s carrier-vetting check, complicates an insurance renewal, and shows up at a roadside inspection as an operating-authority problem.
It is an unusually avoidable violation. There is no fee to file, the form takes minutes, and the deadline is knowable years ahead, which is exactly why a missed one is hard to explain to an auditor.
Where to file (this changed in 2026)
FMCSA replaced the Unified Registration System with Motus, which launched to all users in May 2026. You sign in with Login.gov and pass an IDEMIA identity check; USDOT PINs are no longer used. Your existing USDOT and docket numbers are unchanged. Motus is first claimed by the company official on your FMCSA Portal account, and FMCSA disables Portal accounts after 90 days of inactivity and archives them after 12 months, so check that you can still get in well before your due month. Every screen, and where filings go wrong, is in how to file the MCS-150 in Motus.
One correction worth making, because it circulates widely: MC numbers have not been eliminated. FMCSA has proposed to stop assigning them, but that requires a rulemaking and did not take effect with Motus.
Questions carriers actually ask
How do I know when my MCS-150 is due?
Two digits of your USDOT number decide it. The last digit sets the month (1 = January through 9 = September, 0 = October). The next-to-last digit sets the year: an odd digit means you file in odd-numbered years, an even digit (including zero) means even-numbered years. The filing is due by the last day of that month.
Do I have to file if nothing about my company changed?
Yes. 49 CFR 390.19T requires the update every 24 months regardless of whether anything changed. You must also file to deactivate your number if you have stopped operating, an inactive USDOT number that is never updated is still a violation.
What happens if I miss the deadline?
The consequence the rule states is deactivation of your USDOT number, which means you are not authorized to operate. FMCSA paused those deactivations on June 1, 2026 while Motus settles, with no end date, but the update is still required. Civil penalties run up to $1,584 for each day the violation continues, capped at $15,846 (49 CFR part 386, appendix B, adjusted for inflation; the statute's base figures are $1,000 a day and $10,000). Deactivation also tends to surface at the worst moment, during an insurance renewal, a broker's carrier-vetting check, or a roadside inspection.
Does filing an update early reset my two-year clock?
FMCSA treats the biennial requirement as satisfied if you reported changes within the 12 months before your due date. Filing an unrelated change 18 months early does not reset the clock: check your next scheduled date rather than assuming.
Is the MCS-150 the same as UCR?
No, and confusing them is common. The MCS-150 biennial update is a free FMCSA filing on your own two-year schedule. UCR (Unified Carrier Registration) is a separate annual fee based on fleet size, due before January 1 each year. You need both.
Where do I actually file it?
Through FMCSA's registration system. As of May 2026 that is Motus, which replaced the legacy Unified Registration System. Motus requires a Login.gov account, USDOT PINs are no longer used. Your existing USDOT and docket numbers do not change.
How much does TenFour charge to handle this?
Nothing extra. Preparing the biennial update, and every other MCS-150 filing including a change, a correction or a reactivation after a missed update, is part of the membership: $99/month for the first truck on the annual plan ($119 month to month), $59/month for each additional truck, every driver included. There is no per-filing fee, and the same membership covers the UCR, the BOC-3, the driver files, the consortium paperwork and the calendar, so it is one less thing to buy separately. You submit it yourself in your own Motus account. If you are not on a plan and want it prepared once, it is $199 and we verify it in SAFER after you submit, credited in full to any membership you start within 60 days. FMCSA charges nothing to file the form itself, and we say so.
Sources
- 49 CFR 390.19T: Motor carrier identification report
- FMCSA: When am I required to file a biennial update?
- FMCSA: Updating your registration
- FMCSA: Registration modernization (Motus) FAQs
Last reviewed October 2, 2026. TenFour is a compliance service, not a law firm, and is not affiliated with FMCSA or any government agency. This page explains a federal filing requirement in plain English, verify the specifics for your operation against the official sources above. See our disclaimer.
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