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International fuel tax agreement (IFTA)

IFTA is an agreement among all states (except Alaska and Hawaii) and Canadian provinces (except Northwestern Territories, Nunavut and Yukon) to simplify the reporting of fuel used by motor carriers operating in more than one jurisdiction. Persons who operate qualified motor vehicles are subject to IFTA licensing.

Qualified motor vehicle - a motor vehicle used, designed, or maintained for transportation of persons or property and:

• Having two axles and a gross vehicle weight or registered gross vehicle weight exceeding 26,000 pounds or 11,797 kilograms; or
• Having three or more axles regardless of weight; or
• Is used in combination, when the weight of such combination exceeds 26,000 pounds or 11,797 kilograms gross vehicle or registered gross vehicle weight. Qualified motor vehicle does not include recreational vehicles.

Recreational vehicle - vehicles such as motor homes, pickup trucks with attached campers, and buses when used exclusively for personal pleasure by an individual. In order to qualify as a recreational vehicle, the vehicle shall not be used in connection with any business endeavor.

Upon application, the carrier’s base (home) jurisdiction will issue credentials that allow the IFTA licensee to travel in all IFTA member jurisdictions.

Wisconsin is your base jurisdiction for IFTA licensing and reporting if you:

• Have qualified motor vehicles based in Wisconsin for vehicle registration purposes
• Maintain operational control and operational records for qualified motor vehicles in Wisconsin or can make records available to Wisconsin
• Have one or more qualified motor vehicles that actually travel on Wisconsin highways; and
• Operate in at least one other IFTA jurisdiction

The IFTA license offers several benefits to the interstate/inter-jurisdictional motor carrier. These benefits include one license, one set of decals, one quarterly fuel tax report that reflects the net tax or refund due. These advantages result in cost and time savings for the carrier and the member jurisdictions.

The Wisconsin International Fuel Tax License Application form MV2667 can be used by parties that have an established WI IFTA account to:

• Change your name or FEIN number
• Apply for additional decals
• Order a duplicate license
• Change your address
• Reinstate your license

Complete the form and mail with appropriate fees (see instructions) to the address below.

Every licensee is obligated to submit a return. Tax returns are required even if no operations were conducted or no taxable fuel was used during the reporting period. Returns that are not filed or not paid in full are considered late and will be assessed penalty and interest. When filing a tax return, a licensee may apply the fuel overpayment generated in one jurisdiction to the taxes owed for another jurisdiction. You must maintain your records for 16 quarters to prove the tax return information is accurate.

MV2755-Wisconsin Fuel Tax Quarterly Report for IFTA: These forms are in MS Word format.

• 4th quarter 2011 (373 KB) - due by January 31, 2012
• 3rd quarter 2011 (373 KB) - due by October 31, 2011
• 2nd quarter 2011 (380 KB) - due by August 1, 2010
• 1st quarter 2011 (381 KB) - due by May 2, 2011

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Wisconsin has a fuel tax licensing reciprocity agreement with Iowa and Minnesota. This agreement replaces fuel tax licensing and reporting requirements for the following vehicles:

1. All qualified motor vehicles owned or leased and operated by a resident of either state that operate no further than 30 miles from the Wisconsin/Iowa (for Iowa registrants) or Wisconsin/Minnesota state border (for Minnesota registrants).
2. All qualified motor vehicles owned or leased and operated by the state or any political subdivision of the state, while operated in official capacity and displaying tax exempt, municipal or state owned registration plates.
3. All school buses owned and operated by a resident of either state while used in the transportation of pupils to and from school related and/or sponsored events.

In lieu of IFTA licensing, a 72-hour trip permit can be obtained. These can be purchased from a permitting service or self issued. See trip permits.

IFTA information may be obtained by contacting:

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All external hyperlinks are provided for your information and for the benefit of the general public. The Wisconsin Department of Transportation does not testify to, sponsor or endorse the accuracy of the information provided on externally linked pages.

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You will need Microsoft Word to view Word files. If you do not have a copy of Microsoft Word installed on your computer, you can use the Microsoft Word Viewer (provided free of charge) to view Word files. For more information about getting your free copy of Microsoft Word Viewer, visit WisDOT's Software information page.

Questions about the content of this page:
Motor Carrier Services, irp-ifta@dot.wi.gov
Last modified: January 27, 2012