Resource centre
Trucking tax & compliance centre
Form 2290 has a handful of rules that catch people out every year: the period that does not match the calendar, the mileage limit that turns into a full year's tax, the VIN that cannot be edited once it is filed. These are written plainly, and by the people who file the returns.
Answer it in ten seconds
Form 2290 tax calculator
What you owe, across any mix of weights and in-service months. Prorates mid-year trucks and shows the IRS category letter.
Deadline calculator
The exact date your return is due, including the five dates a year that move off a weekend or federal holiday.
Form 2290 by state
Where each state actually registers heavy trucks, and the five that charge their own highway-use tax on top of the federal one.
Start here
Whether you have to file at all, what the tax is, and what you need before you can file anything.
Form 2290 guide
What the Heavy Vehicle Use Tax is, which vehicles owe it, how the tax is computed by weight category, and what happens after the return is filed.
Read the guideDo you need to file?
Who has to file the Heavy Vehicle Use Tax return, which vehicles are covered, which owners are exempt, and when a return is due even though no tax is owed.
Read the guide2290 vs IFTA vs IRP
Three obligations that get confused constantly, with three different weight thresholds and three agencies. Why filing one does nothing for the others.
Read the guideOwner-operators
What a one-truck owner-operator must do about the Heavy Vehicle Use Tax: whether you file when leased on, what it costs, when it is due, and what to avoid.
Read the guideEIN requirements
Form 2290 cannot be filed with a Social Security number. What an EIN is, how to get one, why a new one takes about four weeks, and what the name has to match.
Read the guideDeadlines, filing and paying
When the return is due, how the form is laid out, the four ways to pay the tax, and what a late return actually costs.
Filing deadlines
When your Form 2290 is due for a vehicle already in service, for one first used part-way through the period, and what happens if you file late.
Read the guideFilling out the form
A walk through Form 2290 as it is actually laid out — header and period code, Part I lines 1 to 6, Part II suspensions, the Schedule 1, and the signature.
Read the guidePaying the tax
The four ways to pay the tax on Form 2290 — direct debit, EFTPS, credit or debit card, and cheque with Form 2290-V — and which to use when time is short.
Read the guideFiling late
What a late Form 2290 actually costs — the failure-to-file penalty, the separate failure-to-pay penalty and interest — and why filing today beats next month.
Read the guideSchedule 1 and registration
The document the whole exercise produces, what a DMV does with it, how to replace a lost copy, and what to do when the IRS sends the return back instead.
Schedule 1 guide
What the stamped Schedule 1 proves, when you need it, what a DMV will accept, and how to get another copy.
Read the guideWas it accepted?
How to tell whether the IRS accepted your Form 2290, what an acknowledgement actually looks like, and the one thing not to do when you cannot find Schedule 1.
Read the guideLost Schedule 1
A DMV will not register a truck without the stamped Schedule 1. Where to get a replacement, how long each route takes, and what to do if you filed on paper.
Read the guideRejected returns
The rejection codes the IRS returns on Form 2290 — name control mismatch, duplicate filing, bad routing number, unestablished EIN — and how to fix each.
Read the guideVIN correction guide
What to do when a VIN was entered incorrectly on a Form 2290 the IRS has already accepted, and why it is a separate filing rather than an edit.
Read the guideWhen the fleet changes
Trucks bought, sold, parked or reclassified part-way through a period — each with its own filing and its own deadline.
Filing for a new truck
A newly bought truck has its own Form 2290 deadline and its own prorated tax. How the first-use month is set, and why the seller’s Schedule 1 will not do.
Read the guideSold or destroyed vehicles
When a truck you paid the Heavy Vehicle Use Tax on leaves the fleet mid-period: how the credit works, when to take it, and when to use Form 8849 instead.
Read the guideSuspended vehicles
A truck driven 5,000 miles or less owes no Heavy Vehicle Use Tax — 7,500 if it is agricultural. What you still have to file, and what happens if you go over.
Read the guideAmended returns
Two things require an amended Form 2290: a taxable gross weight that rose mid-period, and a suspended vehicle that went over its miles. A VIN fix is neither.
Read the guideGetting money back
Tax paid on months you did not use is recoverable. These two guides cover both routes.
Credit guide
When a Line 5 credit applies to a vehicle that was sold, destroyed, stolen or fell under the mileage limit, and what evidence you need to keep.
Read the guideForm 8849 refunds
When to claim a Heavy Vehicle Use Tax refund on Form 8849 Schedule 6 instead of a credit on your next Form 2290, and the three situations that qualify.
Read the guideFleets and special categories
Filing at volume, and the two reliefs — agricultural and logging — that depend on how a vehicle is registered rather than what it hauls.
Fleet filing guide
Practices for businesses filing Form 2290 for several vehicles: mid-period additions, suspensions, credits and recordkeeping across years.
Read the guideFarm & logging vehicles
Agricultural vehicles get a 7,500-mile suspension limit instead of 5,000, and logging vehicles are taxed at 75% of the normal rate. Both turn on registration.
Read the guideQuestions
Form 2290, answered
The full set of questions we are asked most often.
What is Form 2290?
Form 2290 reports the federal Heavy Highway Vehicle Use Tax. It applies to vehicles with a taxable gross weight of 55,000 pounds or more that use public highways, and it is filed with the IRS for a tax period running 1 July to 30 June.
Who needs to file Form 2290?
Whoever the vehicle is registered to. That is usually the owner, but it can be a lessee depending on the lease. If your vehicle is 55,000 pounds or more and runs on public highways, a return is due even when the vehicle is suspended and no tax is owed.
When is Form 2290 due?
The tax period runs 1 July to 30 June. For a vehicle already in use at the start of the period, the return is due by 31 August. For a vehicle first used later in the period, it is due by the last day of the month following the month of first use.
What information do I need to file?
Your business name and EIN exactly as the IRS holds them, the VIN and taxable gross weight of each vehicle, the month each was first used in the period, and a 5-digit self-select PIN to sign with. A Social Security number cannot be used in place of an EIN.
How does BKS file Form 2290?
The platform prepares the return from your information, checks it against the IRS schema, and transmits it through IRS Modernized e-File as an IRS Authorized e-file Provider under our own EFIN, rather than passing it to a third party to file on your behalf.
How do I receive my Schedule 1?
The IRS returns the stamped Schedule 1 on acceptance, and it appears in your account alongside the return and the acknowledgement. It stays there, so it can be produced again when a DMV or an auditor asks.
What happens if the IRS rejects my return?
You will see the exact error the IRS returned; correct it and resubmit through your account. Most rejections are a mismatch between the business name and the EIN the IRS holds, or a duplicate return for the same period. We do not charge our filing fee twice for the same return.
Can BKS correct a VIN?
Yes. A VIN typed incorrectly on a return the IRS has already accepted needs a VIN correction, which is a separate filing type rather than an edit to the original. It is priced below a new return.
Can BKS file for multiple vehicles?
Yes. Fleets are filed as one return covering the whole roster, with each vehicle carrying its own weight category, first-use month and suspension status. Our fee is a flat amount by fleet size.
Can I amend a Form 2290?
Yes. An amendment is required when the taxable gross weight of a vehicle increases during the period, or when a vehicle reported as suspended later exceeds the mileage limit. Both change the tax due for the period.
Do I need my own IRS PIN?
Yes. You sign your own return with a 5-digit self-select PIN of your choosing, any five digits except 00000. We cannot sign for you: federal law requires the taxpayer’s signature, and we would not take it if we could.
How does BKS protect my information?
Your IRS PIN, the signing officer’s Social Security number and any bank account number are write-only. There is no page, export or support tool that can display them; the system returns only a presence flag or a masked form. This is enforced where the data leaves the database, so it holds on every route.
Is BKS an IRS Authorized e-file Provider?
Yes, for Form 2290. Returns are transmitted through the IRS Modernized e-File system under our own EFIN. We are not affiliated with, or endorsed by, the Internal Revenue Service.
Ready to file in minutes?
The platform prepares, validates, and files your Form 2290 automatically, starting at $6.95, so you can get back to running your business.