How to Never Go Inactive From a Forgotten Filing

Reviewed by Austin Park, founder of ICR Filings · Updated October 28, 2026

The short answer

UCR: every year. Registration for the next year opens October 1 and is due before January 1.
MCS-150: every two years, in a month set by the last two digits of your USDOT number, even if nothing changed.
BOC-3: filed once, with no yearly FMCSA renewal, but if it is cancelled and not replaced, FMCSA can suspend your authority.
Write the dates down once, check your record on FMCSA's public sites, or have a service watch them for you.

Most carriers who end up inactive or suspended did not do anything wrong on the road. A filing came due during a busy month and nobody remembered it. Three filings cause most of this, and each runs on its own clock.

The three deadlines

Filing	How often	When	If you miss it
UCR	Every year	Opens October 1, due before January 1	Fines at roadside inspections
MCS-150	Every two years	Month and year set by your USDOT number	USDOT deactivation and civil penalties
BOC-3	Once, kept on file	Before authority goes active, and again if it is cancelled	FMCSA can suspend your authority

UCR: every year, before January 1

UCR does not renew itself. Each registration year runs January 1 to December 31, and registration for the next year opens on October 1. Your fee depends on your fleet size. See the 2027 UCR fees and deadline.

MCS-150: every two years, by your USDOT number

The last digit of your USDOT number sets the month (1 is January, 0 is October). The next-to-last digit sets the year: odd digit, odd years; even digit, even years. The update is required even if nothing changed, and there is no government fee. Work out your date in when is my MCS-150 due.

FMCSA has paused deactivations for updates due since June 1, 2026, during the Motus transition, but the update is still required and FMCSA has said it will give notice before enforcement resumes.

BOC-3: once, but it has to stay on file

There is no yearly FMCSA renewal for the BOC-3. It stays on file until it is replaced or cancelled. The catch is that some process agent companies bill every year, and an unpaid bill can lead them to cancel the filing. If your BOC-3 is cancelled and no new one is filed, FMCSA can suspend your authority. See why a BOC-3 gets cancelled.

How to keep track yourself

Write down your dates once
Your MCS-150 month from your USDOT number, December 31 for UCR, and your process agent's billing date if they bill yearly.
Set two reminders for each
One 60 days out, so a Motus problem has time to get fixed, and one 2 weeks out.
Check your record a few times a year
SAFER shows your USDOT status and MCS-150 Form Date. FMCSA's L&I system shows your authority status and whether a BOC-3 and insurance are on file.

Or let us watch them for you

Our Filing Plan is free to join. You save a card, and we track your UCR and MCS-150 deadlines and check your FMCSA record for your BOC-3 every day. Before each one, we email you the price, which is $5 off our regular fee. We only charge your card after you tap Go ahead, and you can skip any filing or cancel any time. ICR Filings is a private filing service, not a government agency.

Common questions

Does FMCSA remind me when my MCS-150 is due?

Do not count on it. The schedule is set by your USDOT number, so the date is yours to track. Look up your number on SAFER to see the MCS-150 Form Date FMCSA has on file.

Is an email saying my MCS-150 is incomplete from FMCSA?

Probably not. FMCSA says its emails typically end in .gov, but it also warns that scammers fake FMCSA addresses, and many urgent notices come from private companies selling a filing service. Look up your own record on SAFER before you pay anyone.

Does UCR renew automatically?

No. Each registration year runs January 1 to December 31, and you register again every year before January 1.

Do I need to renew my BOC-3 every year?

No. It stays on file until it is replaced or cancelled. A yearly bill from a process agent is that company's own fee, not an FMCSA requirement. If that bill goes unpaid, the agent may cancel the filing.

Official sources

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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