Kentucky KYU: Who Needs It, Login, Quarterly Filing, and the Temporary Permit

Reviewed by Austin Park, founder of ICR Filings · Updated October 22, 2026

KYU is Kentucky's weight distance tax. Heavy trucks pay it by the mile for every mile driven on Kentucky roads, and it is separate from IFTA. If you run I-64, I-65, I-71, or I-75 through Kentucky in a loaded tractor trailer, it probably applies to you.

Who needs a KYU license

Any carrier, interstate or intrastate, running a vehicle with a combined license weight over 59,999 lbs on Kentucky roads. Most tractor trailers plated at 80,000 lbs qualify. Farm-plated vehicles are exempt. Every vehicle subject to the tax has to be listed under your KYU account.

The rate

$0.0285 per mile (2.85 cents), under KRS 138.660. A truck that runs 2,000 Kentucky miles in a quarter owes $57.00 for that quarter.

How to register and log in

1. Create a KYID account at kyid.ky.gov, Kentucky's state sign-in.
2. Sign in to Kentucky's Motor Carrier Portal and complete the KYU application.
3. You get your KYU number once the online application is complete.
4. Add every qualifying truck to your vehicle inventory in the portal. Unlisted trucks can be cited.

If the online application fails, Kentucky accepts a paper or emailed application, which takes 10 to 14 business days. Kentucky does not charge to register; you pay the tax on your returns.

Quarterly returns

You file a KYU return every quarter, online, and pay by card or ACH in the Motor Carrier Portal. Each quarter's return opens the day after the quarter ends:

Kentucky's KYU page does not list the due dates themselves, so check the date shown in the portal and file early in the window. If you underreported, you can amend upward in the portal; to lower reported miles, contact the Division of Motor Carriers.

Zero-mile quarters

This is where most KYU problems start. Kentucky requires a return every quarter you hold the license, even if no truck entered the state. Skipping a zero-mile return brings a penalty, interest, and a $500 revocation fee.

Rarely in Kentucky? Use a temporary permit

If you do not run Kentucky regularly, you can buy a one-time temporary KYU permit for each truck and trip instead of holding a license with quarterly returns. Get it before the truck enters the state.

KYU is not IFTA

You cannot pay KYU on your IFTA return. A truck over 59,999 lbs running in Kentucky usually owes both: IFTA for fuel (see IFTA due dates) and KYU for weight and distance. New Mexico has a similar tax; see the New Mexico weight distance tax guide.

Closing your KYU account

To close, bring every return and payment current, then answer "Yes" to the ceased operations question on your final return. Closing partway through a quarter still requires that quarter's return. Questions go to the Division of Motor Carriers at tax.dmc@ky.gov.

Want the registration handled? We file KYU applications, and a third party filing for you works through its own service provider access, never your KYID login.

Official sources

• Kentucky Transportation Cabinet: Kentucky weight distance (KYU)
• Kentucky Transportation Cabinet: Form TC 95-1, Kentucky trucking application

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Rules and fees change, so confirm with the official source before you file.

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