When can your new-entrant audit land?
Every new USDOT registrant enters an 18-month monitoring period, and FMCSA conducts the safety audit within the first 12 months. Enter your activation month to see both windows on one timeline — and how much runway you actually have.
The month FMCSA activated your operating authority — it's on your registration paperwork, or look your USDOT number up on SAFER.
How the windows work
Under 49 CFR §385 Subpart D, the new-entrant period runs 18 months from the date your USDOT number becomes active. The safety audit — roughly 80% of which are now conducted remotely as document uploads — must occur within the first 12 months. Pass/fail is determined within 45 days; a failed audit triggers a 60-day corrective action plan before out-of-service revocation.
This tool computes month-granularity estimates from your activation month. Passenger carriers are on a different clock (a 120-day audit window) that this tool does not cover. Not legal advice — the regulation and your registration paperwork control.