International Fuel Tax Agreement (IFTA) Frequently Asked Questions

You must keep mileage and fuel records in order to complete your quarterly motor fuel road tax returns. The mileage records are also necessary when you renew your apportioned license plates under the International Registration Plan (IRP). An acceptable document used to verify vehicle mileage is an Individual Vehicle Mileage and Fuel Report" (MCTS-270). A trip report must include at least the following information:

• Vehicle identification number
• Starting and ending date of trip
• Point of origination and destination
• Intermediate stops
• Routes of travel
• Beginning and ending odometer readings of the trip
• Mileage by jurisdiction
• Driver's name
• Retail fuel purchase information and
• Information regarding withdrawals of fuel from bulk storage made in connection with the reported trip.

You must keep a complete record of all fuel purchased or received, including retail purchases and withdrawals from bulk storage. A receipt or invoice or a credit card receipt showing evidence of purchases and taxes paid must be retained to support retail "over the road" purchases of fuel. Acceptable receipts must include:

• Date of the purchase
• Seller's name and address
• Number of gallons or liters purchased
• Fuel type
• Price per gallon or liter
• Total amount of sale
• Vehicle unit number and
• Purchaser's name

If bulk fuel is stored, you must maintain records supporting inventory on hand, purchases and withdrawals. Withdrawal records must contain at least the following:

• Date of withdrawal
• Number of gallons or liters withdrawn
• Fuel type and vehicle unit number

Your return and the total tax due must be postmarked or received by DMV by the deadline. If your return is late or you do not submit the total tax due, you will be subject to a late fee of $50 or 10% of the tax due, whichever is greater. Interest will also be assessed regardless of when the payment is received within the month.

Taxable miles are the sum total of the miles you traveled in any jurisdiction that are taxable. If a jurisdiction allows any exemptions and you qualify, you may deduct the miles you operated under that exemption from your taxable miles.

Example: Ohio exempts all two-axle trucks operated without a trailer and two-axle trucks operated with a trailer weighing under 3,000 pounds empty. If any of your operations in Ohio meet this criteria, you may deduct those miles from your taxable miles in Ohio. If you operated under a temporary fuel trip permit, those miles may be deductible depending on exemptions offered by certain jurisdictions.

Road tax revenues are used to support construction, reconstruction or maintenance of the roads. The philosophy behind a surcharge is that heavier vehicles cause more damage to the highways; therefore, the taxes paid for those vehicles should be higher than the taxes paid for smaller vehicles. There are other jurisdictions that also have a surcharge.

You are required to submit your IFTA tax return regardless of whether you operated or not. On the tax return you would select the option for "No Operations".

Refer to the Information for Interstate Motor Carriers (DMV 247) for guidelines to help interstate carriers applying for the International Registration Plan (IRP), International Fuel Tax Agreement (IFTA), Unified Carrier Registration Agreement (UCRA), and for intrastate carriers applying for For-Hire Intrastate Operating Authority.

All outstanding tax liabilities and requirements must be satisfied before an IFTA Licensing Application (RDT 120) may be processed. You may submit the application based on the current preferred options.

You may have one set of decals for each qualified vehicle within your IFTA fleet. Additional decals may be requested however the agency may request a lease or other supporting documentation.

Your new decals should be laced on the cab doors on each side of the vehicle in a clean, dry are to prevent the decal from peeling off. Do not place new decals over old decals.

Complete the IFTA Licensing Application (RDT 120) and select the option to "Change Information". You may be required to submit supporting evidence of the requested change.

You may request to close your IFTA account by selecting the "Close IFTA Account" option on the IFTA Licensing Application (RDT 120), IFTA Renewal Application (RDT 123) or the IFTA Tax Return (RDT 121). Upon closure, ensure all IFTA decals are removed from the vehicles and destroyed. IFTA accounts that have outstanding tax liabilities or returns will not be closed until all obligations are met.