How do I get loads with a new MC authority?

Chapter 01

Why do brokers turn down a new MC number?

Brokers turn down a new MC number because each one sets its own rule for how old your authority must be. That rule is company policy, not law. The federal rules let you run once your authority is granted, with your insurance in effect and on file with FMCSA (the insurance rules). After that, each broker decides who it works with. Owners call this the MC authority age. The rules we could read run from one week to a full year.

Here is how that looks in real life. Say you run one truck, a dry van, and you drive it yourself. You got your USDOT number in July 2026. Your authority became active on September 1, 2026. Your insurance is filed and the truck is ready. Three weeks later, on September 22, you start calling brokers about a lane you know well. If your authority is not active yet, start with our guide to getting operating authority instead.

The first calls end the same way. One broker says something like this (an example we made up): “We like your lane. Call us back when your MC is 90 days old.” Another one wants six months. You hang up with a truck that is legal to run and no load to put on it.

That no is a filter, not a verdict on you. At least one load board builds the filter right in. On Truckstop’s load board, a broker can set a “carrier authority age” requirement for each load it posts. So a broker can decide, load by load, how old your authority must be.

The rules are public, so you can plan around them. Here is what six freight companies said on their own carrier pages on September 22, 2026. We name them only because these are their published rules. This is not a list of brokers we recommend.

Three lessons come out of this table. First, the numbers differ a lot, because each company picks its own. Second, a broker that takes you early may still have some loads that require older authority. C.H. Robinson says some shippers’ freight “may require you to have 90 days of experience, but that is not a universal requirement” (its carrier page). Third, all six want more insurance than the law does. We cover those requirements in the carrier packet section.

The pages do not say why each company picked its number. They do show what brokers check: your authority, your insurance, your safety rating and your inspections. A carrier three weeks old has almost no inspections yet. NTG’s questions page lists “expired or missing inspections” among the common reasons a carrier fails its onboarding check (NTG’s onboarding questions).

Be careful with any number you hear secondhand. We found no official source that counts how many brokers use an age rule, or that says how long the usual wait is. Six companies are a sample, not the whole market. Each of them can change its page any day. So the only age rule that matters is the one a broker gives you. The next question is who will say yes this week.

Chapter 02

Which brokers and load boards work with a new authority?

Start with the brokers whose own rules let you in now, and with load boards that show each broker’s age rule on the load. C.H. Robinson says you can sign up once you have your MC number and haul after 7 days of active authority. On Truckstop’s load board, you can see a broker’s authority age rule in the load details, so you skip the loads you cannot book yet. Amazon Relay wants 180 days, but it asks new carriers to apply early.

Back to your truck. After those first calls, you stop dialing at random. Before each call, you look up the broker’s own carrier page. Some pages state an age rule, and some do not. A broker that lets you sign up once your authority is active goes to the top of your list. A broker that asks for 90 days goes on a second list, with a date next to its name.

You also look at load boards. A load board is a website where shippers and freight brokers post loads (DAT’s explanation). Paying for a board does not make a broker accept you. The broker posting each load still has its own approval process. What a board can do is save you wasted calls. Truckstop’s carrier plans include a filter that lets you “see a broker’s authority age requirement posted in the load details” (Truckstop’s pricing page). So before you call, you know whether that broker takes a carrier three weeks old.

Boards charge by the month. On September 22, 2026, DAT’s carrier plans started at $59 a month. Some large brokers also run free load boards for carriers they have approved. C.H. Robinson says its carrier website and app are free for approved carriers (its carrier page). So each broker that approves you opens one more board to you. How boards, brokers and shippers compare as sources is in our guide to where loads come from.

Amazon Relay is Amazon’s own load board for its freight network. Its rule reads: “A DOT number, with interstate authority and that has been active for minimum of 180 days” (Amazon Relay’s questions page). But it also says “we encourage you to apply early”, so it can start reviewing you while you wait. Once an application is complete, Amazon says it is “typically” approved or rejected within 1 to 3 weeks.

One detail on that page is unclear. It speaks of authority “active for minimum of 180 days”. In another answer, it says your DOT number should be “at least 180 days old”. It does not say which date it counts from. Your DOT number came in July, and your authority on September 1. Plan on the later date, February 28, 2027, and apply now. If Amazon counts from the earlier date, you are simply ready sooner. Our guide to Amazon Relay covers the rest of its list.

While you wait, someone may offer to rent or sell you an older MC number. It sounds like a shortcut. Under the federal rules, selling or leasing an authority is a transfer (the transfer rules). The two sides must file with FMCSA at least 10 days before the deal. The authority is put in the new owner’s name only after FMCSA approves it (the transfer application rule). A cash deal that skips those steps is not a safe way around the wait.

Whoever says yes, check the broker before the first load. Every broker must keep a $75,000 bond or trust fund in effect. Its registration stays in effect only as long as that bond does (the broker bond rule). Since January 16, 2026, when that bond falls below $75,000, FMCSA gives the broker 7 business days to fix it. Then it suspends the broker’s authority. You can search any company by its MC or DOT number on FMCSA’s SAFER website. A yes only helps if the broker is real and can pay. Now the broker wants papers from you.

Chapter 03

What goes in the carrier packet?

A carrier packet is the set of papers a broker needs before it gives you a load. The brokers whose pages we read ask for much the same things. They want your MC or DOT number and correct contact details. They want a certificate of insurance from your agent, a W-9 with your tax number and a signed agreement. They also need to know how to pay you. Several of them collect this through an online onboarding service (NTG’s onboarding questions).

One broker’s list shows the whole packet. NTG says a carrier must give it an MC, MX or DOT number, “validated contact information”, a W-9 form and a completed carrier profile. It also wants you to accept its broker-carrier agreement, send a certificate of insurance and meet its carrier requirements. Arrive Logistics asks for your tax ID, a W-9 and a certificate of insurance. Armstrong Transport asks for a signed carrier agreement. C.H. Robinson warns that you must finish signing up in one session, or start over (its sign-up page). So have every piece ready before you begin. You build each piece once, and then you reuse it.

Start with your FMCSA record, because brokers start there too. Amazon says its onboarding team contacts you using the details on file with FMCSA. If you hear nothing within 2 weeks, check those details. They must match your application “down to the dash or comma” (Amazon Relay’s questions page). The same record shows how many trucks you run. The service NTG uses compares the trucks seen in your inspections with the number on your registration update, the MCS-150 (NTG’s onboarding questions). So report your one truck as one truck, and update that form when your fleet changes.

Next comes insurance, where the gap between the law and the brokers is widest. The federal minimum is $750,000 in liability coverage. That applies to a truck of 10,001 pounds or more that hauls ordinary freight for pay (the federal minimums). The federal rules ask for cargo insurance only from carriers of household goods (the insurance filing rule). Brokers want more. NTG asks for $1 million in auto liability, $1 million in general liability, $100,000 in cargo coverage and workers’ compensation. Amazon asks for $1,000,000 in auto liability with $50,000 of trailer replacement coverage. It also asks for $100,000 in cargo coverage, workers’ compensation and $100,000 of employers’ liability (Amazon Relay).

So call your agent in your first weeks, not on day 89. Ask what your policy covers today. Then ask what it would cost to reach what your target brokers want. We cannot tell you that price. It depends on your truck, your driving record and your insurer. What we can tell you is that brokers check these numbers before they give you a load.

The proof is a certificate of insurance. NTG describes it as a document “issued by a carrier’s insurance agency” to show that your policies are active. Your agent usually sends it, not you. The service NTG uses, called Highway, contacts your insurance agency directly while you sign up. Its follow-up calls may stop after 12 hours, and a request expires after 72 hours if the agency does not answer (NTG’s onboarding questions). So warn your agent that these requests are coming, and ask for same-day answers. Our guide to insurance papers for brokers explains the certificate and the filing behind it.

The W-9 is a short IRS form. The IRS says you “use Form W-9 to provide your correct Taxpayer Identification Number”. You give it to a business that must report its payments to the IRS (the IRS page on Form W-9). Use the same legal name and tax number that your FMCSA record shows. Then comes payment. NTG asks during setup whether you use a factoring company. If you do, the factoring company handles your pay. If you do not, NTG sets up a payment account for you.

Then there is the broker-carrier agreement. It is a contract, even when you only click a box. MODE says your electronic submission of its carrier contract “constitutes your official electronic signature and agreement to its terms” (MODE’s carrier page). Read the payment terms before you accept. They tell you when you get paid and what faster pay costs.

Some brokers also want to track the load. C.H. Robinson explains how to link your ELD or GPS device for tracking (its carrier page). Its FAQ says carriers must keep their tracking compliance at 90% or more to avoid being restricted (its FAQ). The service NTG uses lists “failure to establish an ELD connection” among the common reasons a carrier does not pass. So know your ELD login before the first call.

Last come the onboarding services themselves. Some brokers send you to an online service instead of asking for papers by email. NTG and MODE both say they use Highway. Armstrong names Highway and a second service, myCarrierPackets (Armstrong’s carrier page). Highway says carriers use it “at no cost” and can get alerts when their FMCSA details change (Highway’s carrier page). Set up your profile once, check every field, and keep it current. While you wait for a broker to approve your packet, other deadlines are approaching.

Chapter 04

What else happens in my first months?

Three things run alongside the search for loads. FMCSA will call to confirm your registration within your first 90 days, and you must answer (FMCSA’s new entrant website). Your safety audit must happen within 12 months of getting your USDOT number (FMCSA’s definitions). And every roadside inspection goes on the record that brokers and Amazon read. You have few inspections yet, so each one weighs more.

FMCSA’s new entrant website says it plainly. “Within the first 90 days after their registration is complete”, new carriers get a phone call from FMCSA’s New Entrant Contact Center. The call confirms that the registration details are correct. The site warns: “if you fail to respond, your registration may be revoked.” So answer that call. Answer any letter about your safety audit too.

The same page warns about fakes. New carriers “may receive emails, letters, texts, or phone calls from entities pretending to be FMCSA.” Scammers use what they learn to pose as your company, which can hurt your safety record. FMCSA says it will never call you with a recorded robot call. It will never ask for a card number by phone, and it never charges for its forms. It also says you do not need a paid service provider. So if a caller asks for money or your login, hang up. Then look up FMCSA’s number yourself.

Your company is now in FMCSA’s new entrant program. For 18 months, FMCSA watches your roadside results closely (the monitoring rule). Your authority does not become permanent until you finish the program (the authority rule). The safety audit comes once you have enough records, “generally at least 3 months” of work. For a carrier that hauls freight, it must happen within 12 months of getting the USDOT number. Your number came in July 2026, so your audit must happen by July 2027. Our guide to the new entrant safety audit explains what the auditor checks and how to prepare.

Some mistakes bring the audit sooner. FMCSA may move your audit up, or order a deeper review, if a new carrier breaks certain rules (the expedited audit rule). The list includes using a driver with no valid CDL. It includes running a truck that was put out of service before it is fixed. It includes a failed or refused drug or alcohol test, and running without the required insurance. It also includes an out-of-service rate of 50% or more, over at least three inspections within 90 days.

For one truck, that last rule is easy to hit. Say your first three inspections all happen in October and November 2026. If two of them end with you or the truck put out of service, that is two out of three, or 67%. That is over the line. So check the truck before every trip, and fix what you find before you roll.

Brokers read the same record. Amazon publishes limits for your safety scores, which most people call CSA scores, and for the share of your inspections with violations (Amazon Relay). In these scores, a higher number is worse (FMCSA’s scoring manual). The manual counts your clean inspections as well as the bad ones. A big fleet has hundreds of inspections to balance one bad stop. You may have three. Why brokers turn down a carrier over its safety record explains what they look at.

One worry you can drop. As a new carrier, you have no safety rating, and the audit will not give you one. FMCSA’s definitions say safety audits “do not result in safety ratings”. Amazon accepts a rating of “None” or “Not Rated”, and Arrive and MODE accept “None”. If an inspection report on your record is wrong, you can ask the State to fix it. Since September 13, 2026, those requests follow new steps and deadlines (the rules FMCSA published in April 2026). Our guide to DataQs challenges shows how. Meanwhile, the bills do not wait for the first broker to pay you.

Chapter 05

How do I pay the bills until the first broker pays?

Plan for about a month between delivery and pay. Each broker sets its own terms. Standard pay from J.B. Hunt comes “within 21 business days with no fee”, and NTG pays in 30 days. Faster pay costs money. NTG charges 3.0% for pay in two days and 3.5% for pay in one day, and only once you have a load history with it. So budget your first month of fuel, insurance and truck payments before the first check arrives.

Here is what that means for your truck. Say your first load delivers on a Friday in October. On 30-day terms, the money comes in November. Your fuel for that load, and for the loads after it, came out of your pocket in October. Your insurance bill did not wait either. Neither did the load board: DAT’s cheapest carrier plan is $59 a month (DAT’s plans). A carrier that runs out of cash in its sixth week never gets to its 90th day.

Quick pay can help, at a price. At NTG’s rates, every $1,000 of freight costs $30 with pay in two days and $35 with pay in one day (NTG’s carrier page). J.B. Hunt offers quick pay “in just two days”. It is free for its “Elite status” carriers and costs “a small fee” for the rest. C.H. Robinson offers cash advances on loads you have picked up, once you have hauled your first load with it. It charges a fee on each advance (its carrier page). Read each broker’s terms in its agreement before you take the load.

Many carriers use factoring instead. A factoring company pays you for your invoice early, then collects the money from the broker. It is not free. Truckstop, which sells factoring, says plainly that “a per-invoice fee applies” (Truckstop’s pricing page). If you factor, the broker pays the factoring company, so you say so during setup (NTG’s onboarding questions). Before you sign, compare the fee with the cost of waiting a month.

Stay in business long enough, and the waiting ends. Each month brings more brokers who can say yes.

Chapter 06

When do more brokers open up, and should I get help?

More brokers open up as your authority gets older and you build a record of successful deliveries. In the example, day 90 falls on November 30, 2026. Day 180 falls on February 28, 2027, and a full year on September 1, 2027. Put those dates next to each broker’s rule, and call back on the day you qualify. And if you hire a dispatch service to work as your agent, FMCSA’s guidance says you pay it, not the broker (FMCSA’s 2023 guidance).

Look at your second list again. Armstrong asks for 90 days of active authority, so on November 30 you call back (Armstrong’s carrier page). Some C.H. Robinson freight that asks for 90 days of experience may open up then too. On February 28, 2027, you pass 180 days, Amazon’s rule, and your application is already in. On September 1, 2027, you reach the full year that Arrive and MODE ask for (Arrive’s carrier page, MODE’s carrier page).

Keep that clock running. MODE asks for a year of “continuous” active authority. Your authority stays in force only while your insurance filing stays in effect (the insurance filing rule). A lapse in insurance can put your authority out of force. A broker that counts continuous authority may then start its count again. So pay the insurance first.

The months also build the record that the next broker reads. By spring, you may have a few clean inspections and loads delivered on time for several brokers. You may have passed your audit too. Each of those is something a broker can check. None of it can be rushed.

Should you hand the calls to someone else? Some owners do, because calling brokers, building packets and chasing paperwork takes hours out of each week. If you do, know one rule first. FMCSA’s 2023 guidance lists signs that a dispatch service works as your agent and does not need broker authority. One sign is that it “receives compensation from the motor carrier(s)”, not from the broker or a factoring company (FMCSA’s 2023 guidance). The guidance also expects a written agreement between you. In plain words, you pay the dispatcher yourself, under a contract you can read.

A dispatcher also cannot change a broker’s age rule. Nobody can. What a good one can do is know which brokers take a new carrier, keep your packet current and follow each load to the invoice. Whether that is worth paying for depends on how many of your hours the calls take.

What has changed, and what could we not check? There is no federal waiting period, so advice that “every broker wants 90 days” is a habit, not a rule. What did change in 2026: the broker bond rule since January 16, and the DataQs steps since September 13. We found no official count of brokers with age rules, and no source for the usual wait, so we give neither. We give no rates, because none of the pages we read publish them. Company pages change without notice; the rules above are as published on September 22, 2026. We read FMCSA’s new entrant website from a copy saved in June 2026, because FMCSA’s sites block our tools. For the same reason, we could not open the SAFER screens to describe them.

If you would rather have someone make the broker calls, build the packets and follow each load, here is what our dispatch service costs.