Form 2290 and the heavy vehicle use tax: due dates, amounts and proof of payment

Form 2290 reports the federal heavy vehicle use tax on highway vehicles with a taxable gross weight of 55,000 pounds or more. The tax period runs from July 1 to June 30, and the return is due by the last day of the month after the month the vehicle is first used on a public highway in the period. For vehicles in use in July 2026, that is August 31, 2026. The tax is $100 a year at 55,000 pounds, rising by $22 per 1,000 pounds, up to $550 a year above 75,000 pounds.

Everything on this page comes from the IRS Instructions for Form 2290 (Rev. July 2026) and the tax law itself, 26 U.S.C. 4481.

Who must file

You must file Form 2290 and Schedule 1 for the period July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027 if a taxable highway motor vehicle is registered, or required to be registered, in your name under state, DC, Canadian or Mexican law at the time of its first use in the period, and it has a taxable gross weight of 55,000 pounds or more. The filer can be an individual, LLC, corporation, partnership or any other organization. 26 U.S.C. 4481(b) puts the tax on "the person in whose name the highway motor vehicle is, or is required to be, registered."

• Dual registration: if the vehicle is registered to the owner and someone else, the owner is liable. This also applies to leased vehicles.
• Dealers: a vehicle running on a dealer’s tag is treated as registered to the dealer.
• What counts as use: "use of a vehicle with power from its own motor on any public highway in the United States." The IRS example: driving a new truck home from the dealer is the first taxable use.
• Which vehicles: self-propelled vehicles designed to carry a load over public highways, such as trucks, truck tractors and buses. The instructions note that vans, pickups and panel trucks are generally below 55,000 pounds and not taxed.

Exempt users

The tax does not apply to vehicles used and operated by the federal government, DC, a state or local government, the American National Red Cross, a nonprofit volunteer fire department, ambulance association or rescue squad, an Indian tribal government (for essential government functions), or a qualifying mass transportation authority. Qualified blood collector vehicles and certain specially designed mobile machinery are also exempt.

Taxable gross weight

For a truck or tractor, taxable gross weight is the total of:

1. the actual unloaded weight of the vehicle fully equipped for service;
2. the actual unloaded weight of any trailers or semitrailers fully equipped for service customarily used in combination with it; and
3. the weight of the maximum load customarily carried on the vehicle and those trailers.

A trailer counts as customarily used if the vehicle is equipped to tow it. "Fully equipped" includes the body, accessories and a full supply of fuel, oil and water, but not the driver. For a bus, it is the unloaded weight plus 150 pounds per seat for passengers and driver.

The state registration weight sets a floor. If your state registers by a declared gross weight (including IRP apportioned registration), the taxable gross weight can be no less than the highest gross weight declared in any state; for a tractor-trailer, the highest combined weight declared. Weights declared only for short special permits are ignored, unless those permits together cover more than 60 days (or more than 2 months, if issued monthly) in the year. So a tractor registered at 80,000 pounds for IRP is in the top category.

How much

26 U.S.C. 4481(a) sets the rate:

The categories on Form 2290 page 2 follow that formula, category A at $100, category V at $550. Logging vehicles use a reduced table (Table II in the instructions).

First use after July: the tax is prorated from the first day of the month of first use to June 30 (4481(c)(1)). The instructions’ Table I gives the amounts; for category A, for example, it shows $91.67 for first use in August (11 months) and $8.33 for June (1 month).

Sunset: 4481(f) applies the tax "only to use before October 1, 2029." Congress has extended that date repeatedly in the past, so watch for changes.

When it is due: 2026-2027 period

File for the month of first use; the return is due by the last day of the following month. If the date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, file by the next business day. The IRS chart for this period:

The IRS stresses that "the filing deadline isn’t tied to the vehicle registration date." If you first use vehicles in more than one month, you file a separate Form 2290 for each month.

The 5,000-mile suspension (7,500 for farm vehicles)

You can claim suspension of the tax for a vehicle expected to be used 5,000 miles or less on public highways in the period, or 7,500 miles or less for an agricultural vehicle. Suspended vehicles are reported as category W on Form 2290 and listed on Schedule 1; you still file, you just pay nothing on them.

• The limit counts total highway miles in the period, whatever the number of owners.
• Once a suspended vehicle goes over the limit, the tax becomes due. File an amended Form 2290 by the last day of the month after the month the limit was exceeded, computing the tax from the month of first use.
• For an agricultural vehicle, miles driven on the farm are not counted toward the 7,500, but you must keep records of them. An agricultural vehicle must be used primarily (more than half its mileage) for farming purposes and registered as a farm vehicle for the whole period.
• If you sell a suspended vehicle, give the buyer a statement with your name, address and EIN, the VIN, the sale date, odometer readings at the start of the period and at sale, and the buyer’s details.

Filing, EIN and e-file

• EIN required: "You must have an EIN to file Form 2290. You can’t use your social security number (SSN)."
• VIN: use the 17-character VIN of the vehicle, not the trailer.
• E-file: required for each return reporting and paying tax on 25 or more vehicles (also in 4481(e)). Suspended category W vehicles do not count toward the 25. The IRS encourages everyone to e-file; an e-filed return’s stamped Schedule 1 can be available within minutes.
• Paying: electronic funds withdrawal when e-filing, EFTPS, credit or debit card, or check or money order with Form 2290-V. The tax must be paid in full with the return.
• Extension: you can ask in writing, before the due date, for up to 6 months to file, but "an extension of time to file doesn’t extend the time to pay the tax."

Schedule 1: your proof of payment

File both copies of Schedule 1; the IRS stamps one and returns it (e-filers get a watermarked electronic copy). The instructions say states "generally ... will require verification of payment of the tax for any taxable vehicle before they will register the vehicle," and U.S. Customs and Border Protection requires it for Canadian and Mexican vehicles entering the country. That is why IRP offices ask for it with apportioned registration (see IRP and apportioned plates).

• If you do not have the stamped copy, a photocopy of the filed Form 2290 with Schedule 1 plus both sides of the cancelled check can serve.
• If the state gets your registration application in July, August or September, you may show the previous period’s stamped Schedule 1, but you must still file the current return by its due date.
• No proof is required for a vehicle bought in the last 60 days if you show the bill of sale, but the return and tax are still due.
• Enter the full VIN for every vehicle; a missing or wrong VIN "may prevent you from registering your vehicle with the state." Use the VIN Correction box to fix one.

Credits and refunds

You can claim a credit on your next Form 2290 (or a refund on Form 8849, Schedule 6) for tax paid on a vehicle that was:

• sold before June 1 and not used for the rest of the period;
• destroyed (damaged beyond economical repair) or stolen before June 1 and not used afterward; or
• used 5,000 miles or less (7,500 for farm vehicles) in the prior period. That credit can only be claimed after the period ends.

The instructions are explicit that no credit, lower tax or refund is allowed "for an occasional light or decreased load or a discontinued or changed use of the vehicle."

Buying or selling a used truck mid-year

If you buy a truck on which the seller already paid the tax for the period, and your first use is in the month of the sale, your tax runs from the first day of the following month. The IRS example, adapted:

Example from the IRS instructions. Linda paid the full $550 on July 2, 2026 for her 80,000-pound truck. John bought it on September 9, 2026 and drove it home the next day. Linda can claim a credit for the 9 months after the sale. John’s prorated tax runs from October through June: 9/12 of $550 = $412.50. His return is due October 31, 2026, which is a Saturday, so he has until November 2, 2026.

Worked example: a new tractor in November

Example, applying the rules above. An owner-operator buys a tractor on November 3, 2026, registered at 80,000 pounds under IRP, and drives it home the same day. First use is November, so the return is due December 31, 2026, line 1 "202611", and the tax is the partial-period amount for category V from Table I (8 months of the $550 annual tax). He needs the stamped Schedule 1 to complete his IRP registration. The tax also belongs in his cost model: the cost per mile calculator takes it as a fixed annual cost.

Penalties and records

• The IRS instructions say that if you receive a penalty for late filing or late payment and have reasonable cause, you can explain it in a letter or through IRS penalty relief; do not attach an explanation to the return.
• The general additions to tax in 26 U.S.C. 6651(a) are 5 percent of the unpaid tax per month or part month for failure to file (up to 25 percent), and 0.5 percent per month for failure to pay (up to 25 percent), with the filing addition reduced by the payment addition for months when both apply (6651(c)(1)). Interest runs as well.
• Records: keep them for at least 3 years after the tax is due or paid, whichever is later, including the VIN, weights, purchase and sale details, and for suspended vehicles the actual highway mileage.

Common mistakes

• Filing late because the truck’s registration renews in a different month. The due date follows first use, not registration.
• Declaring a lower taxable gross weight than the weight on the IRP cab card.
• Using an SSN instead of an EIN.
• Claiming suspension and then running past 5,000 highway miles without filing the amended return.
• Entering the trailer VIN.

For how 2290 fits with the other filings a new carrier makes, see how to get your own trucking authority.