MCS-150 Biennial Update Information

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) requires all transportation companies that use commercial vehicles to transport cargo and passengers to be registered. This registration process involves filing a form called an MCS-150 form.

At Federal Motor Carrier Authority Filings, we recognize that filing for an MCS-150 Biennial Update form can be complicated. We wrote this guide to explain what these forms do, how to file for one, and how the file update process works. You'll learn how the online system can make the filing process simple and straightforward.

What Is MCS-150?

Your company's vehicles, no matter their model, feature a unique identifying number known as a USDOT number. Think of this code as a snapshot that contains your company's details; it's an identifying marker that the authorities can use for inspections, audits, and post-accident investigations. You have to feature your USDOT number in a visible place on all of your vehicles.

Whether you're just starting a new company or you're managing an enterprise that's been in business for some time, you need to have a USDOT number. Moreover, you have to update that number on a regular basis. Thanks to the MCS-150 form, this process is fairly straightforward; you can tell the FMCSA the latest updates about your company.

The MCS-150 contains space for you to include many details, including new fleet vehicles, mileage, and safety information.

How To File an MCS-150

You have to fill out your MCS-150 form on a regular basis; otherwise, you can't legally handle freight and passengers. Worst of all, trucking companies that fail to complete their forms often incur hefty fines that do serious damage to company operations, stretching budgets to their limits.

However, filing an MCS-150 form — especially when filing through the online system of Federal Motor Carrier Authority Filings — is not that difficult. You have multiple means of filing at your disposal; for example, you can submit an online form or use a physical copy via fax.

Online filing is great for people interested in completing the process in a quick and timely manner. You simply submit your information, press enter, and within minutes you receive an updated USDOT number and your USDOT Number is updated in SAFER and across all U.S. Department of Transportation systems. Physical forms, on the other hand, take anywhere between two to four business days to process; that said, many people prefer to fill out a physical form.

In any event, one thing is for certain: you need to provide the agency with certain pieces of information. You must provide your company's information, the company's EIN or the owner's SSN, your USDOT Pin number, and your DOT number.

How To Complete an MCS-150 Update

Having your information on file with the FMSCA is crucial to ensure proper business operations, but it's just a start. We want transportation company owners to understand that regular, timely updates matter. Without filing for an MCS-150 update, you can't legally operate your company; you could even incur hefty fines and penalties.

Filing for an MCS-150 update does not differ that much from the standard filing process when it comes to both the details you must provide and the means by which you can submit the form. You can use the MCS-150 online update form (which is the fastest process) or fax a physical copy in to update your information within the FMSCA’s databases for the next two-year cycle.

As stated previously, all motor carriers involved in transporting cargo or passengers by means of commercial vehicles must file for an update on a biennial basis. We want to stress that there are other types of services that must file for an update every two years as well. Interstate carriers using vehicles designed to carry eight or more passengers, as well as those with a gross vehicle rating of 10,001 pounds or more, must update their information.

If you need to file an update, you can begin by checking your USDOT number. Each number has two final unique digits that inform you of your personal deadline for filing. The second to last digit indicates the year of filing, while the last digit suggests the month.

An odd year digit indicates that you need to file an update every odd year, while an even number suggests that you have to file during even years. The month digits rely on a different scale and go from one to nine, followed by zero. The digit one means January, two denotes February, all the way until nine, which means September; zero stands for October.

What Is MCS-150 Mileage?

The FMSCA uses the MCS-150 form to gather statistics about transportation companies and their performance. To do so, they request a key piece of information: your mileage per vehicle. Through a series of calculations, they will provide you with a score on a scale of zero to 1.5, with a lower score being better than a higher score.

This Compliance, Safety, and Accountability (CSA) score tells you how efficient and safe your operations are. It's also a convenient way for the FMSCA to keep track of motor carriers that suffer from lower performance levels and potential safety issues. When you file, you'll provide your total mileage to let the agency know more about your operations.