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Glossary · FMCSA & freight

USDOT number

Also called: DOT number, US DOT number, USDOT

Definition

A USDOT number is the unique identifier FMCSA assigns to a registered motor carrier, broker or other regulated company to track its registration, safety data and compliance.

FMCSA's census file describes the USDOT number as the unique number it assigns to each entity record. Under Motus, FMCSA continues to identify every regulated entity by USDOT number, and shows suffixes after it for each registration type, though those suffixes are display-only for now.

A USDOT number is not permission to haul for hire. That comes from operating authority, identified by an MC number or other docket, and one USDOT number can hold several dockets.

New USDOT numbers issued in Motus are randomized, so the number's size says nothing about how long the company has existed; use the census add_date instead. For data work, treat USDOT as the canonical key, strip leading zeros (legacy files pad them), and attach dockets to it.

Sources

  1. 01FMCSA Company Census File · data.transportation.gov
  2. 02Federal Register: Availability of Motus, FMCSA's New Registration System · FMCSA notice, 2026-04-29
  3. 03NGWA: FMCSA announces new online registration system, Motus · Summary of FMCSA's Motus guidance, 2026-08-27

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