Montana trucking permits
Trip, fuel and oversize/overweight permits for Montana — what the state requires, how it prices them, and how to get them filed.
How Montana prices a permit
In Montana, what you pay turns on how heavy the load is, how far over legal it measures and how far you travel in the state. Because distance is part of it, a short crossing of Montana costs less than running its length.
States do not use a common formula. Montana charges on weight over the limit, per mile, dimension bands and a flat fee by distance band, depending on the permit and the configuration:
- weight over the limit, per mile
- Each increment of excess weight is charged across the miles travelled — long heavy crossings get expensive quickly.
- dimension bands
- Length, width and height are read together against a set of bands, and the band you land in sets the fee.
- a flat fee by distance band
- One price for a short crossing, another beyond it, with no weight component.
What Montana permits cost
The state's own fee, plus what we charge to prepare and file it. Your total depends on the trip, so the quote is the number that counts — these are the floors we hold on file.
| Permit | Montana fee | Our fee |
|---|---|---|
| Trip Permit | by weight, axles and distance | $29 |
| Fuel Permit | from $30 | $29 |
| Oversize / Overweight | by weight, axles and distance | $39 |
A handling fee applies to each permit line. Nothing is charged until you have seen the total.
Fees and limits on this page were last checked in September 2026. States change fee schedules, legal limits and office hours without notice, and some fees depend on details we only know once you tell us the trip. Montana is the authority, not this page — treat these as a guide and the quote as the number.
When you need an oversize permit in Montana
Width and gross weight are federal everywhere — over 102 inches wide or 80,000 lbs and you need a permit in Montana and in every other state. What changes at the state line is height, trailer length and what the axles may carry.
- Height
- 14'
- Semi-trailer length
- 55'
- Tandem axle
- 34,000 lbs
- federal baseline 34,000 lbs
- Montana allows 14' of height where the federal baseline is 13' 6" — a load that needs a permit elsewhere may be legal here.
- Semi-trailers may run to 55', longer than the 53' most states allow.
Overhangs, single and tridem axles and the full table are on the Montana regulations page.
The Montana permit office
Who issues the permit, when they are open, and where they take applications. We deal with them so you do not have to — but if you would rather call them yourself, this is the desk.
Oversize/ Overweight
- Phone
- (406) 444-7262
- Weekday hours
- Mon–Fri 7:30 AM–5:00 PM
- Portal
- State permit portal
Temporary Trip & Fuel
- Phone
- (406) 444-2998
- Weekday hours
- Mon–Fri 7:30 AM–5:00 PM
Crossing more than Montana?
Most trips need permits in more than one state. Pick another, or price the whole route at once.