What is the main purpose of the International Registration Plan used by Maryland carriers?
Correct answer: Apportion commercial-vehicle registration among participating jurisdictions.
IRP concerns apportioned vehicle registration based on mileage for qualifying interstate operations. It is different from driver licensing, fuel-tax reporting and permission to exceed road or vehicle limits.
Source: MVA International Registration Program: About the International Registration Program; reviewed September 15, 2026. ↗
A three-axle power unit transports property between Maryland and another IRP jurisdiction. Does being below 26,001 pounds alone remove it from Maryland’s IRP qualifying criteria?
Correct answer: No. A power unit with three or more axles meets an independent criterion.
For the stated interstate property operation, the MVA lists a power unit with three or more axles regardless of weight. The over-26,000-pound threshold is not the sole qualifying route.
Source: MVA International Registration Program: Qualifying vehicles, three-or-more-axle power unit; reviewed September 15, 2026. ↗
A two-axle freight power unit weighs exactly 26,000 pounds and meets no other mandatory IRP weight or axle criterion. What does Maryland’s guidance say about apportioned registration?
Correct answer: It may be issued at the registrant’s option.
The two-axle threshold is weight in excess of 26,000 pounds. Maryland allows optional apportioned registration for two-axle vehicles or combinations at 26,000 pounds or less; that does not settle separate fuel-tax obligations.
Source: MVA International Registration Program: Qualifying vehicles, two-axle threshold and optional registration; reviewed September 15, 2026. ↗
A qualifying interstate freight combination exceeds 26,000 pounds, although its power unit alone does not. Which IRP criterion should the carrier consider?
Correct answer: The weight of the combination, not just the power unit.
Maryland’s listed criteria include use in a combination whose gross weight exceeds 26,000 pounds. Assess the complete stated operation instead of treating the solo power-unit weight as decisive.
Source: MVA International Registration Program: Qualifying vehicles, combination criterion; reviewed September 15, 2026. ↗
An IFTA-qualified vehicle makes both interstate trips and trips entirely within Maryland. Which mileage records must the licensee retain?
Correct answer: Records of both the interstate and intrastate operations.
Maryland’s IFTA recordkeeping guidance covers all inter-jurisdictional and intrastate operations of qualified vehicles. A trip within the base state is not a reason to omit its distance.
Source: Maryland Comptroller IFTA Compliance Manual, Chapter 10(A), Mileage Records; reviewed September 15, 2026. ↗
An IFTA trip report shows 420 total miles through three states but no state-by-state distances. What required detail is missing?
Correct answer: Mileage traveled in each jurisdiction.
A total trip distance does not provide the required jurisdiction breakdown. Record the actual trip information, including routes and beginning and ending odometer readings, so the return can be supported.
Source: Maryland Comptroller IFTA Compliance Manual, Chapter 10(A), trip-report fields; reviewed September 15, 2026. ↗
A driver fills out an IFTA trip report after a multiday journey. Which date and location entries meet the listed trip-report requirements?
Correct answer: Start and end dates, with origin and destination city and state.
The required entries include both starting and ending dates and an origin and destination identified by city and state. Billing or payroll summaries alone do not establish that trip information.
Source: Maryland Comptroller IFTA Compliance Manual, Chapter 10(A), dates and origin/destination; reviewed September 15, 2026. ↗
A fleet wants to rely on GPS records for IFTA distance reporting. Which record set supports that choice?
Correct answer: Original dated location readings plus the required route and distance records.
The guidance permits tracking systems when they retain the required information: original locations, dates and times at adequate intervals, meter readings, calculated distances, routes, jurisdiction totals and vehicle identification. A map image alone is not that record set.
Source: Maryland Comptroller IFTA Compliance Manual, Chapter 10(A), vehicle tracking systems; reviewed September 15, 2026. ↗
A Maryland IFTA fleet buys diesel and gasoline. How should fuel totals be kept and reported?
Correct answer: Separately for each fuel type.
Complete purchase records and separate totals are required for each fuel type. Mixing diesel and gasoline into one total loses information required for the quarterly return.
Source: Maryland Comptroller IFTA Compliance Manual, Chapter 10(B), Fuel Receipts; reviewed September 15, 2026. ↗
A fuel stop receipt includes diesel and diesel exhaust fluid (DEF). Should DEF gallons be added to total fuel gallons on the IFTA quarterly return?
Correct answer: No. Exclude DEF gallons from that fuel total.
The Comptroller expressly says not to include DEF gallons in total gallons reported on the IFTA quarterly return. Retain a record that distinguishes the products and quantities.
Source: Maryland Comptroller IFTA Compliance Manual, Chapter 10(B), DEF exclusion; reviewed September 15, 2026. ↗
Two trucks use a fleet’s card-lock fueling system. What must its records allow the IFTA auditor to identify?
Correct answer: The qualified vehicle that received each fuel purchase.
The records must identify the IFTA-qualified vehicle fueled. The guidance recommends vehicle-specific cards identified by unit number; a fleet-wide payment total without vehicle identification is insufficient.
Source: Maryland Comptroller IFTA Compliance Manual, Chapter 10(B), card-lock systems and unit number; reviewed September 15, 2026. ↗
A driver has a prepaid receipt but no receipt for the fuel actually dispensed. What does Maryland’s IFTA guidance say about the prepaid receipt?
Correct answer: It is not recognized as the fuel-purchase receipt.
The guidance does not recognize prepaid receipts for vehicle fuel purchases or refund requests. Obtain the completed transaction record with the required purchase and vehicle details.
Source: Maryland Comptroller IFTA Compliance Manual, Chapter 10(B), prepaid receipts; reviewed September 15, 2026. ↗
A driver erases the gallon amount on a fuel receipt and writes a different number. Is that altered receipt acceptable under Maryland’s IFTA guidance?
Correct answer: No. Receipts containing alterations or erasures are not accepted.
Receipts with alterations or erasures are not accepted. Seek a verifiable corrected transaction record from the seller rather than changing the original evidence yourself.
Source: Maryland Comptroller IFTA Compliance Manual, Chapter 10(B), acceptable receipts; reviewed September 15, 2026. ↗
A tax-paid bulk tank fuels several qualified trucks. Which withdrawal record helps support the carrier’s IFTA claim?
Correct answer: Withdrawal date, quantity, fuel type and receiving vehicle’s unit number.
The bulk-storage guidance requires withdrawal details including date, amount, fuel type and vehicle unit number, along with purchase records supporting tax-paid fuel. A storage capacity or purchase total alone does not trace fuel to a qualified vehicle.
Source: Maryland Comptroller IFTA Compliance Manual, Chapter 10(C), Bulk Fuel Storage; reviewed September 15, 2026. ↗
A quarterly IFTA return is filed after its due date. From which date does Maryland’s Chapter 10(D) measure the four-year record-retention period?
Correct answer: The filing date, because it is later than the due date.
Keep the supporting records for four years from the due date or filing date, whichever is later. Failure to provide records demanded for audit can extend the statute of limitations; four years is not permission to destroy records needed for an unresolved audit.
Source: Maryland Comptroller IFTA Compliance Manual, Chapter 10(D), Record Retention Period; reviewed September 15, 2026. ↗
An IFTA licensee cannot produce adequate mileage and fuel records during an audit. What can follow under Maryland’s guidance?
Correct answer: An estimated liability and disallowance of unsupported tax-paid fuel claims.
The Comptroller may determine liability from available evidence and use the stated estimation methods when records are inadequate. Unsupported tax-paid fuel can be disallowed; the licensee bears the burden of supporting its records and statements.
Source: Maryland Comptroller IFTA Compliance Manual, Chapter 10(E), inadequate records and audit estimates; reviewed September 15, 2026. ↗
