Permission from the federal government to haul freight in the US comes in the form of applying for and being issued an MC (Motor Carrier) number. Permission from the state government comes in the form of applying for and being issued a United States DOT (Department of Transportation) number. Get Permission From the Federal and State Government It’s an excellent piece of ID to have along with your passport (as your second form of ID). A TWIC also comes in handy if you’re planning to do a lot of pickups or deliveries on ports or military bases. This means you’ve passed a background check, which is helpful when you lease on. Get TWIC-Transportation Workers Identification Credential It used to be free, but now expect to pay around $10-20. To get your MVR, you have to pay a small fee. You have to prove that the person is eligible to drive, even if it is yourself. An MVR is also required for any business, in case you get audited. It’s good to know how good (or how bad) your driving record is when you apply for insurance, as they will tend to ask questions about your driving record. Your MVR is a report of your driving history as reported by your state. You operate vehicles with a GCWR (gross combined weight rating) of 26,001 or more pounds, as long as the GVWR (gross vehicle weight rating) of the vehicle being towed is over 10,000 pounds.
Going forward, deposit all payments to this account. When you open your account, put down your initial deposit, whatever that is - $1,000, $5,000, or $10,000. Once you have your LLC and your tax ID number, you can take those two things and go to the bank for the next step. Your business can now accept checks and other payments. It’s like a Social Security number for your business. This is also called an EIN (Employer Identification Number). But doing it yourself is a little cheaper.
You could either go to LegalZoom or do it yourself - either is fine. Regardless of what you do - whether you’re a driver, owner, operator - you’re going to need a company. It’s a step-by-step guide with nine clear steps. Where do you start? What should you do first? What should you do next? Well, here’s the order of the things you need to do. So you’ve decided to go into hotshot trucking.