Form 2290: Heavy Vehicle Use Tax for Truck Owners

The heavy vehicle use tax is an annual federal tax on trucks that operate on public highways at a taxable gross weight of 55,000 pounds or more. It is reported on Form 2290, and the proof that it was paid, a Schedule 1 stamped or electronically watermarked by the IRS, is what the county tax office and TxDMV require before they will register or renew the vehicle. That is why the form matters more than its dollar amount would suggest: without it, the truck does not get plates.

Who owes it

• The person or business in whose name the vehicle is registered, for every highway motor vehicle with a taxable gross weight of 55,000 pounds or more.
• Taxable gross weight is the unloaded weight of the truck plus any trailers customarily used with it plus the maximum load customarily carried. It is not the empty weight and it is not the plate weight.
• Tractors, dump trucks, water trucks, vacuum trucks and many oilfield rigs in the Permian cross the threshold. Most hot shot pickups pulling gooseneck trailers do not, but the combination weight should be checked rather than assumed.
• The tax increases with weight, up to a maximum category. Logging vehicles and agricultural vehicles have their own rules.

The tax period and the deadline

The tax period runs from July 1 through June 30, and it does not line up with the calendar year or with your income tax. For a vehicle in service at the start of July, the return and payment are due by August 31. For a vehicle first used in any later month, the return is due by the last day of the month after first use, and the tax is prorated for the months remaining in the period. A truck bought and put on the road in February owes a partial-year tax by March 31, and then the full-year tax again the following August.

The low-mileage suspension

A vehicle expected to travel 5,000 miles or less on public highways during the period, or 7,500 miles or less for an agricultural vehicle, is exempt from the tax but not from the filing. You still file the 2290, list the vehicle as suspended, and receive a Schedule 1 for registration. If the vehicle then exceeds the mileage limit during the period, the tax becomes due for the full period from the month it was first used. Keep an odometer log for any suspended vehicle; the IRS can ask for it.

Filing it

1. 01You need an EIN. The 2290 cannot be filed under a Social Security number, and a brand-new EIN takes time to become active in the IRS system, so apply for it well before the deadline.
2. 02Gather the VIN and the taxable gross weight category for each vehicle.
3. 03Electronic filing is required for anyone reporting 25 or more vehicles and is the practical choice for everyone else, because the watermarked Schedule 1 comes back in minutes rather than weeks.
4. 04Pay by electronic funds withdrawal, EFTPS, card or check.
5. 05Keep the Schedule 1 with the truck's registration papers, and keep the return and records for at least three years after the tax was due or paid.

Frequently asked questions

We file it for Permian carriers

Bring the VINs and the weights and we will file the 2290 and hand you the Schedule 1 for registration. Call (432) 257-7547 or come by 700 C Andrews Hwy in Midland. English and Spanish.