MOTUS Data Studio

Blog

Your MC Is Already Active. Here’s What a Name Change Costs.

Not pending: $30 without MCSA-5889, or $44 when that form is needed.

🎯
Key Takeaway
If the motor carrier application is not pending, name-change checkout is $30 without MCSA-5889, or $44 when that form is in the packet. That is the full payable total. motorcarrier.ai is a private filing and compliance help service — not the FMCSA.

Active name change

See which total applies, then file

Confirm you are not pending. Then start the change. The review screen shows $30 or $44 before you pay.

Start the name changeConfirm you are not pending

The two totals

Paid name change is never a single made-up number. It is one of these two.

No MCSA-5889

$30

Single payable total for a USDOT-only record change (MCS-150).

MCSA-5889 needed

$44

Single payable total when MCSA-5889 is required.

When is 5889 in the packet?
When there is an MC, MX, or FF operating-authority record to update — not just the USDOT. An already-active MC almost always needs that form, so most readers of this post will see $44.

Still pending?

Then this bill does not apply. Pending name changes are free. No checkout.

Confirm you are not pending

Check the public record first. Pending means the free path.

Authority status checker

USDOT or MC number. Look for pending vs active on common, contract, or broker.

August 2026 Motus update

Why the change goes through Motus now, not the retired Portal or URS.

⚠️
Revoked or inactive is a different job
If the MC is revoked or inactive, this is not your name-change bill. That is a separate reinstatement filing — not this post.

File the change

1
Confirm you are not pending
Open /tools/authority-status.
2
Look up the USDOT
Go to /services/business-name-change. We pull the public record and build MCS-150, plus MCSA-5889 when a docket is present.
3
Select name change
New legal name and/or DBA. The packet includes MCS-150. MCSA-5889 is added when an MC, MX, or FF docket is present.
4
Read the total before you pay
$30 without 5889. $44 with it. If the screen says no checkout, you are still pending — do not force a charge.

What you pay

The payable total is $30 for a USDOT-only change or $44 when MCSA-5889 is required.

💡
Pro Tip
Still waiting on insurance or BOC-3? Recheck authority status. If it still says pending, you should not see a $30 or $44 charge.

FAQ

How much is a name change if my MC is already active?

$30 without MCSA-5889, or $44 when that form is needed. Start at /services/business-name-change after you confirm you are not pending.

When is MCSA-5889 needed?

When the packet updates an MC, MX, or FF authority record, not just the USDOT. Then the total is $44.

Is motorcarrier.ai the FMCSA?

No. We are a private filing and compliance help service. Motus is the government system.

Studio $50/mo. API $500/mo unlimited.

Start free trialSee the API

More notes.

ELD for a One-Truck Company

One truck does not skip the ELD. If you keep RODS most days, you need a registered device. True short-haul on timecards may not. Brokers may still ask.

Read

Authority Revoked or Inactive: How to Turn It Back On in Motus

Inactive, lapsed, and revoked are not the same. Motus shows a status plus a reason. Fix insurance, BOC-3, and USDOT first, then request reinstatement. FMCSA lists $80; payable checkout is $85.

Read

How Insurance Gets on File With FMCSA

You buy the policy. The insurer files BMC-91 or BMC-91X. Why Motus can show insurance missing when the policy is fine, and what the official minimums are.

Read
All posts