The Kentucky weight distance tax, known as the KYU tax, is a per-mile road-use tax charged to commercial trucks and truck-trailer combinations with a combined licensed weight of 60,000 pounds or more. The rate is $0.0285 per mile driven on Kentucky’s public highways, paid quarterly to the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet.1Justia Law. Kentucky Revised Statutes 138.660 – Motor Fuels Tax — Surtax — Weight Distance Tax Every carrier at that weight needs a KYU license before its trucks touch a Kentucky highway, and missed filings can lead to a $500 revocation fee, criminal charges, and vehicle seizure.
Who Owes the Tax
The KYU applies to any motor vehicle operated on Kentucky’s public highways with a combined licensed weight over 59,999 pounds.1Justia Law. Kentucky Revised Statutes 138.660 – Motor Fuels Tax — Surtax — Weight Distance Tax “Combined licensed weight” is whichever is greater: the vehicle’s registered weight or its maximum gross weight including cargo.2Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. 601 KAR 1:200 – Definitions and Requirements That threshold catches most loaded tractor-trailers and leaves lighter straight trucks out.
It doesn’t matter whether you run routes entirely inside Kentucky or just cut across on the interstate. Both owe the tax on Kentucky miles.
Vehicles displaying farm plates are exempt.3Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. Kentucky Weight Distance (KYU) If you haul agricultural products under a farm registration, no KYU license and no quarterly returns for those vehicles. In a mixed fleet, only the farm-plated units drop out; any truck registered at 60,000 pounds or more under a standard commercial plate still owes.
How Much You Owe
Multiply each qualifying vehicle’s total miles on Kentucky public roads during the quarter by $0.0285.1Justia Law. Kentucky Revised Statutes 138.660 – Motor Fuels Tax — Surtax — Weight Distance Tax A truck that logs 4,000 Kentucky miles in a quarter owes $114. Calculate each vehicle separately, then add them up for the total.
Only miles on public highways in Kentucky count. Miles on private property, miles in other states, and deadhead miles outside Kentucky’s borders are excluded. The burden is on you to prove which miles were driven where if the state audits.
Getting a KYU Number
Before any qualifying vehicle enters Kentucky, register through the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet’s Motor Carrier Portal.4Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. KYTC One Stop Shop Paper applications work too, but they take 10 to 14 business days, and anything incomplete gets sent back.
You’ll need:
- An active USDOT number, which Kentucky will verify before issuing the KYU
- Your federal tax ID or Social Security number
- A vehicle inventory listing the VIN, unit number, and maximum gross weight for every truck that will operate in Kentucky
- Physical address, mailing address, and contact information for the company
There is no filing fee for the KYU number itself. Once approved, the state assigns a unique KYU number that stays with your carrier account, and it must be displayed on both sides of every qualifying vehicle operating in Kentucky.
Temporary Trip Permits for Occasional Runs
If your trucks only pass through Kentucky occasionally, a temporary KYU permit can make more sense than full registration. The Transportation Cabinet sells one-time temporary permits on a per-truck basis through its online permit portal.3Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. Kentucky Weight Distance (KYU) Each permit covers a single trip for a single vehicle. Once you start making regular runs, switch to full registration; buying individual permits for frequent trips gets expensive, and it doesn’t relieve you from tracking mileage.
Quarterly Filing Deadlines
Every carrier with a KYU license files four times a year, whether or not any vehicles entered Kentucky during the quarter:
- First quarter (January through March): filing opens April 1, due April 30
- Second quarter (April through June): filing opens July 1, due July 31
- Third quarter (July through September): filing opens October 1, due October 31
- Fourth quarter (October through December): filing opens January 1, due January 31
If none of your trucks entered Kentucky during a quarter, you still have to file a zero-mile return. Skipping a zero-mile filing carries the same penalties as missing a return with tax due.3Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. Kentucky Weight Distance (KYU) Seasonal carriers and anyone temporarily pulling out of the Kentucky market get caught by this constantly.
Returns are filed and paid online through the KYU E-File system. The portal calculates your tax from the mileage you enter and takes payment by electronic funds transfer. Save the confirmation receipt. If a dispute later comes up about timing or amount, that receipt is your proof.
Records You Have to Keep
Kentucky requires detailed distance records for every qualifying vehicle, retained for five years from the date the quarterly return was filed.5Legal Information Institute. 601 KAR 1:201 – Recordkeeping and Audit Requirements That’s longer than many carriers keep records for their own purposes, so build the retention into your document system from the start.
For each vehicle, the records need to show:
- Beginning and ending date of each trip
- Trip origin and destination
- Route traveled
- Beginning and ending odometer readings
- Total mileage for each trip
- Distance recaps broken down by jurisdiction
- Both taxable and nontaxable fuel usage
Electronic onboard recorders and computerized storage systems are allowed, but the device and process have to meet criteria set by the Transportation Cabinet’s Division of Road Fund Audits, and condensed or computerized storage needs pre-approval from that division.6Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. Audit Assistance Manual Getting that approval before an audit is far easier than arguing about your data format after auditors have already opened a case.
Penalties for Noncompliance
Consequences escalate quickly. Missing a quarterly filing deadline triggers penalties and interest on any tax owed. If the state revokes your KYU license for failure to file, reinstatement costs $500 on top of back taxes, penalties, and interest.3Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. Kentucky Weight Distance (KYU) That $500 fee applies even if you owed zero tax for the quarters you missed, because the violation is the failure to file.
Beyond the administrative side, violating any provision of the KYU statutes is a Class A misdemeanor in Kentucky, carrying up to 12 months in jail and fines.7Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Kentucky Revised Statutes 138.990 – Penalties Enforcement officers can seize a vehicle on the spot if the carrier is operating without proper credentials. Kentucky positions weight stations and checkpoints across its interstate system to catch unregistered carriers, and getting a truck released after seizure means clearing all outstanding obligations plus additional fees.
Heavy Equipment Motor Carrier Surtax
Carriers classified as “heavy equipment motor carriers” under Kentucky law owe an additional fuel surtax on top of the per-mile weight distance tax. The surtax rate is 2% of the average wholesale price on gasoline and 4.7% on special fuels used in Kentucky highway operations.8Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Kentucky Revised Statutes 138.660 – Motor Fuels Tax — Surtax — Weight Distance Tax If you operate specialized heavy-haul rigs, check whether your vehicles fall under the heavy equipment definition in KRS 138.655 before assuming the standard per-mile rate is your only obligation.