Illinois Motor Fuel Use Tax (IFTA) License & Registration

To determine if you need to register with Illinois as an IFTA carrier, ​your first step is to decide if Illinois is your base jurisdiction. Illinois is your base jurisdiction if all the following apply:

• Your qualified motor vehicles are based in Illinois for vehicle registration with the Illinois Secretary of State;
• You perform operations from an established physical place of business in Illinois (a post office box, shipping store address, virtual office, or agent address does not qualify);
• Illinois is where your operational control and operational records of your qualified motor vehicles are maintained or can be made available; and
• Your qualified motor vehicles within a fleet accrue miles on Illinois highways.

In addition, you must decide if your vehicles are considered "qualified motor vehicles." A qualified motor vehicle is a motor vehicle traveling interstate and is used, designed, or maintained for transportation of persons or property and either

• having two axles and a gross vehicle weight or registered gross vehicle weight exceeding 26,000 pounds (11,793 kilograms)
• having three or more axles regardless of weight; or
• used in combination and the gross vehicle weight or the registered gross vehicle weight of the combined vehicles exceeds 26,000 pounds (11,793 kilograms).

If you meet these qualifications, you must register with us. Once properly registered, you will be licensed and we will send you motor fuel use tax decals which will allow you to travel in all IFTA jurisdictions.

As a condition of IFTA registration in Illinois, you must first obtain a U.S. DOT number.

For more information, refer to the MFUT-53, Illinois Motor Fuel Use Tax Carrier Compliance Manual.

IFTA license and decals are valid from January 1 to December 31 of each year. IFTA licensees who submit renewal applications prior to January 1 are provided a grace period to receive the new sets of decals and affix them to their qualified motor vehicles. The grace period ends the last day of February. To take advantage of the decal display grace period, you must have your renewal application (Form MFUT-12, Motor Fuel Use Tax IFTA License and Decals Application) electronically submitted no later than December 31. The grace period is not an extension for carriers to file a renewal application. Licensees who fail to renew prior to January 1 are not afforded a grace period and their IFTA license status will show as suspended. 

There is no fee for licensing, however decals cost $3.75 per qualified vehicle. Decals are issued in sets of two. One set of decals is required for each qualifying vehicle you intend to operate.

If you make only occasional trips into or out of Illinois, a Single Trip Permit (STP) may be an alternative to obtaining an IFTA license and decals (and then filing quarterly returns). These STPs are good for 96 hours, and are available through most wire services for an additional fee. This option may become expensive if used more than just occasionally. To obtain single trip permits, contact an authorized permit provider. For more information, see MFUT-53, Illinois International Fuel Tax Agreement (IFTA) Carrier Compliance Manual.

In addition to Form MFUT-12, Motor Fuel Use Tax, Application for Motor Fuel Use Tax License and Decals, Form REG-1, Illinois Business Registration Application, must be completed by Illinois based commercial motor carriers. IFTA does not administer other state requirements such as vehicle licensing, operating authority, and non-highway fuel tax refunds. When required, a bond shall be equal to at least twice the estimated average tax liability of a quarterly return or $1,000, whichever is greater.

The only qualified motor vehicles exempt from registering for the Motor Fuel Use Tax in Illinois are:

• school buses (must have school bus license plates)
• recreational vehicles (cannot be used for business endeavors)
• state of Illinois or federal vehicles, and
• qualified motor vehicles operating solely within Illinois for which all motor fuel is purchased within Illinois.

Note that the rolling stock exemption applies to sales and use taxes and not IFTA. For more information regarding exemptions for rolling stock, please see the rolling stock certification forms and instructions as well as specific sales and use tax form instructions available on our Aircraft, Vehicles, and Watercraft Sales & Use Tax Forms web page. In addition, both ST-9, A Guide for Reporting Sales Using Form ST-556, Sales Tax Transaction Return, and ST-9-LSE, A Guide for Reporting Sales Using Form ST-556-LSE, Transaction Return for Leases, contain information regarding the rolling stock exemption.

Your license is free, the decals cost $3.75 per vehicle.

No. IFTA is a base-state agreement. This means your Illinois IFTA license is good in every state in the US (except Alaska and Hawaii) and most of Canada.

IFTA licenses are effective from January 1 through December 31 each year. You must renew with us every year (usually beginning in late October) and may begin displaying your decals for the following year beginning December 1st. Current-year decals must be affixed to your vehicles by February 28th.

No…not for first-time applicants. Bonds may be required for just-cause (e.g., when you do not file your reports on time, you did not pay the proper tax, or when an audit indicates problems that warrant a bond).

No. "Replacement" decals ($2.00) are intended for those decals that may have been stolen, lost, or damaged. Vehicles being placed into service must have a new IFTA decal ($3.75) affixed. Click here to obtain additional decals.

Yes. But instead of getting a license and decals (and filing quarterly returns), you may opt for a Single Trip Permit (STP). These STP's cost $40, are good for 96 hours, and are available through most wire services for an additional fee.

When ordering decals online for your company, we suggest you order an extra set or two of decals at that time. By doing so, you will have a set ready to go at anytime. Additional decals ordered through MyTax Illinois are typically packaged and mailed the next business day. You can order IFTA licenses and decals through your MyTax Illinois account anywhere you have an internet connection. Decals are no longer available for purchase in Springfield in the Willard Ice Building lobby. We no longer maintain internet terminals in our Springfield lobby.

If you are conducting business in another state in addition to Illinois, this activity is known as interstate commerce, and you will need to obtain federal operating authority from the U.S. Department of Transportation, if you have not already done so, prior to registering for IFTA with the Illinois Department of Revenue. Once you have your USDOT number, access MyTax Illinois to apply for IFTA registration and decals. For IFTA-specific questions, call 217 785-1397 weekdays between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. The application approval or denial process usually takes a few days. Typically, you’ll receive the IFTA License and Decals or a Denial Letter within a week.  Taxpayers may opt to provide a pre-paid overnight label to cut down on the mail time. Prepaid overnight labels must be for the taxpayer’s Illinois physical address and emailed to rev.ifta@illinois.gov.