IFTA Due Dates 2026-2027: Quarterly Deadlines and How to File on Time

Quick Answer

IFTA returns and full payment are due on the last day of the month after each quarter ends: April 30, July 31, October 31 and January 31. If that day is a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, the due date moves to the next business day. That makes the Q3 2026 return due Monday, November 2, 2026, and Q4 2026 due Monday, February 1, 2027.

Key Takeaways

• The IFTA due date is the last day of the month following the quarter, under Section R960 of the IFTA Articles of Agreement.
• A late or unpaid return can draw a penalty of $50 or 10% of the delinquent tax, whichever is greater (R1220), plus interest at 9% a year for 2026.
• You must file every quarter, even with zero miles and no fuel bought (R930).
• IFTA tax is fleet MPG applied to miles in each state, times that state's rate, minus tax you already paid at the pump.
• Keep IFTA mileage and fuel records for four years, much longer than the 6 months required for ELD logs.

When is IFTA due in 2026 and 2027?

Under R960.100, "the tax return and full payment of taxes" are due on the last day of the following month. Filing on time without paying in full still counts as late (R970).

Here are the next five deadlines as of October 27, 2026, with the weekend rule already applied:

If your base jurisdiction approved you for annual filing, your single return is due January 31 after the year ends. Annual filing is only an option if you ran under 5,000 miles outside your base jurisdiction in 12 consecutive months, and you need your base jurisdiction's approval first (R930.200).

For what IFTA is and who needs a license, see IFTA reporting explained.

What if the IFTA due date falls on a weekend or holiday?

R960.100 says that if the last day of the month is a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, "the next business day shall be considered the due date." That is why three of the five dates above slide to a Monday.

A mailed return counts as filed on its postmark date if it is properly addressed and stamped (R960.200). For online returns, the received date follows your base jurisdiction's law (R960.300), and so does the list of legal holidays. Treat the calendar date (October 31, January 31 and so on) as your real target, and use the weekend rollover only as a cushion.

What is the IFTA late filing penalty?

Under R1220.100, your base jurisdiction may assess "a penalty of $50.00 or 10 percent of delinquent taxes, whichever is greater" for not filing, filing late, or underpaying. A few examples:

• $300 owed, filed late: 10% is $30, so the penalty is $50.
• $2,400 owed, filed late: 10% is $240, so the penalty is $240.
• Zero-mile or credit return filed late: 10% of nothing is $0, so the penalty is $50.

Interest is charged on top. Under R1230.100, the rate for U.S.-based fleets is the IRS underpayment rate plus 2 percentage points, reset every January 1. IFTA, Inc. lists 9% a year for 2026 (the IRS rate is 7%). It builds up at 1/12 of that rate each month, about 0.75% for 2026. Interest is figured separately for each jurisdiction you owe, and part of a month counts as a full month.

So $425 owed to one state and paid 40 days late picks up two months of interest: $425 x 0.75% x 2 = about $6.38, plus the penalty.

Your base jurisdiction can add penalties under its own law (R1220.300), and failing to follow the Agreement is grounds for suspending or revoking your license (R420). You also can't renew next year's license and decals until every return is filed and paid (R345.100).

Do you have to file IFTA with zero miles?

Yes. R930.100 says returns "are required even if no operations were conducted or no taxable fuel was used." A truck parked all quarter still needs a zero return by the deadline, and a late zero return can still cost $50.

If you stay inside your base jurisdiction and report zero or in-state-only miles for three or more quarters in a row, it can cancel or refuse to renew your IFTA license (R345.300).

How is IFTA tax calculated?

Every IFTA calculator works the same way, and you can do it by hand:

1. Total miles for the quarter, all jurisdictions, taxable and non-taxable.
2. Total gallons put into your qualified vehicles in the quarter.
3. Fleet MPG = total miles divided by total gallons.
4. Taxable gallons for each state = miles in that state divided by fleet MPG.
5. Tax due for each state = taxable gallons times that state's rate.
6. Credit for each state = gallons bought there with tax paid at the pump, times the same rate.
7. Net for each state = tax due minus credit. Add the states together for the return total.

Worked example (made-up states and rates, for illustration only): one truck ran 30,000 miles and bought 5,000 gallons, so fleet MPG is 6.0.

This truck owes $145. It overpaid where it fueled heavily and underpaid in State B, where it drove a lot but bought little.

Two rules can change the result. You only get tax-paid credit when fuel goes into a qualified vehicle's tank and the receipt shows the date, seller, gallons, fuel type, price, vehicle and purchaser (R1010, Procedures Manual P550). Rates also change by quarter, so take every rate from the IFTA tax rate matrix for the quarter you're filing, not from last quarter's return or this example.

When do IFTA decals and licenses renew?

An IFTA license runs for the calendar year and expires December 31. Decals are issued every year, with at least two per qualified vehicle, one on each side of the cab (R610, R625).

Renewal timing under the Agreement:

• You can put the new license and decals on two months before they take effect, so from November 1 (R630).
• You have a grace period through January and February to display the new year's credentials, as long as the truck carries valid prior-year credentials or a trip permit (R655.200).
• Renewal is issued only if every return is filed and every tax, penalty and interest charge is paid (R345.100). A missed Q3 return can hold up your 2027 decals.
• Even with new decals on, you still owe the Q4 return for the old year (R630).

How long do you keep IFTA records, and how does ELD mileage feed the return?

Keep IFTA records for four years from the date the return was due or filed, whichever is later (Procedures Manual P510). In an IFTA audit, the burden of proof is on you (P520). Compare that with your ELD logs: carriers must keep records of duty status for only 6 months (49 CFR 395.8(k)). If your miles by state only exist inside an ELD account, export the quarterly report and save it with the return.

Miles by state are the hardest part of the return to rebuild by hand. An ELD with GPS adds up state-line miles automatically. Lucid ELD includes IFTA reporting and real-time GPS tracking with full trip history on its Standard plan, so you can pull each quarter's miles from the fleet dashboard.

If you plan to use GPS data as your audit record, the Procedures Manual sets a bar. Under P540.200, a vehicle tracking system's records must log a reading at least every 10 minutes while the engine is on. Each reading needs the date and time, latitude and longitude to four decimal places, the ECM odometer, and the VIN or unit number. The data must come in a spreadsheet format such as CSV or XLSX, not a PDF. Ask any provider, Lucid included, whether its export meets P540.200 before relying on it alone, and keep trip sheets or other P540.100 records if you're unsure. The IFTA audit checklist covers what auditors ask for.

What should you do at the end of each quarter?

Use this routine in the first two weeks after a quarter closes:

1. Check that every truck has a trip record for each day it moved, and that unassigned or personal miles are sorted out.
2. Pull the quarter's miles-by-state report from your ELD or GPS system and compare its total with odometer or ECM readings.
3. Gather every fuel receipt and fuel card statement for the quarter, and flag receipts missing gallons, seller or vehicle.
4. Download the current quarter's rates from the IFTA rate matrix.
5. Work out fleet MPG and the net for each state, or enter the miles and gallons in your base jurisdiction's online return.
6. File and pay in full before the calendar due date. Don't wait for the weekend rollover.
7. Save the return, the confirmation, the mileage export and the receipts together, where you can find them for four years.

Doing this every quarter also turns IFTA into a predictable line in your cost per mile. To see what Lucid ELD's IFTA reporting costs per truck, check the listed prices as of October 2026 on the pricing page.

Want IFTA mileage reports from your ELD? See Lucid ELD plans

Educational content, not legal advice. Confirm requirements against current FMCSA regulations and your state's rules.

FAQ

When is the IFTA Q3 2026 return due?

Q3 2026 covers July through September. The normal due date, October 31, 2026, is a Saturday, so under R960.100 the return and payment are due Monday, November 2, 2026.

Is there an IFTA filing extension?

The Articles of Agreement provide no general extension. The only automatic relief is the weekend and legal holiday rollover to the next business day. Some base jurisdictions may have their own procedures, so ask yours before you count on one.

What is the IFTA penalty for a late zero return?

The penalty is $50 or 10% of delinquent tax, whichever is greater. On a zero or credit return the 10% is nothing, so a late zero return can still draw a $50 penalty.

What is the IFTA interest rate for 2026?

For U.S.-based fleets it is 9% a year, which is the 7% IRS underpayment rate plus 2 points, charged at 1/12 per month. The 2027 rate will be set by December 1, 2026.

How long do I keep IFTA records?

Four years from the return's due date or filing date, whichever is later, plus any extra period covered by waivers or assessments, per IFTA Procedures Manual P510.