FMCSA Rules 2026: Every Rule Change and Its Citation

Six changes matter to a working carrier. (1) Broker financial responsibility rules in 49 CFR 387.307 became effective January 16, 2026 — the section's own first line says so. (2) Non-domiciled CDL eligibility was cut to H-2A, H-2B and E-2 nonimmigrant status holders (91 FR 7044, effective March 16, 2026). (3) FMCSA made explicit that DVIRs may be completed and kept electronically (91 FR 7893, effective March 23, 2026). (4) Liquid-burning flares were removed as a permitted warning device (91 FR 7867, effective March 23, 2026). (5) The spare fuse requirement was removed (91 FR 7877, effective April 20, 2026). (6) The requirement to keep an ELD operator's manual in the cab was rescinded (91 FR 37050, effective July 22, 2026). FMCSA published roughly a dozen other technical and deregulatory rules in 2026 that change little or nothing for a typical for-hire fleet.

Only foreign-domiciled applicants who present an unexpired foreign passport plus a Form I-94/I-94A showing H-2A (temporary agricultural workers), H-2B (temporary non-agricultural workers) or E-2 (treaty investors) status. That list is the definition of 'evidence of lawful immigration status' in 49 CFR 383.5, applied through 383.71(f). Three other provisions came with it: the State must query USCIS's SAVE system and may not issue if SAVE does not confirm status (383.73(m)(2)(ii)); every non-domiciled issuance, transfer, renewal or upgrade must be done in person and never by mail or electronic means (383.73(f)(6)); and the credential cannot be valid past the I-94 Admit Until Date or one year, whichever is sooner (383.73(f)(2)(iv)). The final rule is 91 FR 7044, effective March 16, 2026. It also directs a State to downgrade the credential if it learns the holder is no longer eligible — so this is an eligibility cutoff, not a processing delay.

Spare fuses are no longer required — FMCSA removed the requirement in 91 FR 7877, effective April 20, 2026, and 49 CFR 393.95(b) through (e) and (h) through (i) now read [Reserved]. Liquid-burning flares were separately removed as a permitted warning device in 91 FR 7867, effective March 23, 2026. Fusees, however, are still allowed: 393.95(f) lets you carry either three bidirectional emergency reflective triangles conforming to FMVSS No. 125 or at least six fusees. You must still carry a fire extinguisher: one rated 5 B:C or more, or two rated 4 B:C or more, and 10 B:C or more if the vehicle transports placarded hazardous materials (393.95(a)(1)). Warning devices must be placed within 10 minutes of stopping (49 CFR 392.22(b)(1)).

No. 49 CFR 396.11(a)(2)(i) says plainly: 'Drivers are not required to prepare a report if no defect or deficiency is discovered by or reported to the driver.' A report is required when there is something to report. When a report does exist, the motor carrier must keep it — along with the certification of repairs and the driver's review — for three months from the date it was prepared (396.11(a)(4)). Since March 23, 2026, 396.11(a)(6) states the report 'may be created and maintained in electronic format, in accordance with 49 CFR 390.32.'

Yes, they can be electronic — but 2026 did not create that permission, it made it explicit. The final rule at 91 FR 7893 (effective March 23, 2026) says in its own summary: 'The DVIR may already be completed electronically, however the explicit language in this rule will make this clear.' Electronic records were already permitted under 49 CFR 390.32. If a vendor or consultant tells you electronic DVIRs became legal in 2026 and you need to buy something to comply, that is not what the rule says. The rule adds no new obligation; paper remains acceptable.

$75,000. 49 CFR 387.307(a): 'A broker must have a surety bond or trust fund of $75,000 in effect.' Freight forwarders are held to the same figure — 387.405 states the minimum surety bond or trust fund amount is identical to the one prescribed for brokers at 387.307. Where a trust fund is used instead of a bond, 387.307(b) requires assets aggregating to $75,000 that can be liquidated to cash within 7 calendar days. On claims, two clocks matter: the surety or financial institution must pay where the broker does not respond within 7 business days to address the validity of a claim (387.307(e)), and after FMCSA publicly notifies a broker's financial failure, claims against the BMC-84 bond or BMC-85 trust fund are accepted for 60 calendar days (387.307(f)(4)). The section states it is effective January 16, 2026.

Check the status yourself at eld.fmcsa.dot.gov/List — that is the only authoritative source for which devices are registered and which have been removed. Two things worth knowing before you act on advice you read elsewhere. First, 49 CFR 395.34 is the malfunction rule, and it gives the motor carrier 8 days to correct the malfunction (395.34(d)(1)), extendable by the FMCSA Division Administrator; it is not a driver's licence to run eight days on paper. The driver must notify the carrier in writing within 24 hours, reconstruct the record of duty status for the current 24-hour period and the previous 7 days, and keep preparing paper records of duty status until the device is compliant (395.34(a)). Second, the only ELD final rule FMCSA published in 2026 is 91 FR 37050, effective July 22, 2026, which rescinds the requirement to keep an ELD operator's manual in the cab.

Appendix B to 49 CFR Part 386 sets the current maximums. Recordkeeping violations carry a maximum civil penalty of $1,584 for each day the violation continues, up to $15,846 — note that it accrues per day, not per occurrence. Knowingly falsifying records carries a maximum of $15,846 where the action misrepresents a fact that constitutes a violation. Non-recordkeeping violations carry a penalty not to exceed $19,246 for each violation, and non-recordkeeping violations by drivers not to exceed $4,812. These amounts are adjusted annually for inflation, so check Appendix B rather than quoting a figure from an article.

No, 5/5 is not legal. 49 CFR 395.1(g)(1)(ii) permits a driver to accumulate the equivalent of 10 consecutive hours off duty using two rest periods where neither is shorter than 2 consecutive hours, one is at least 7 consecutive hours in the sleeper berth, and the two together total at least 10 hours. In practice that allows 7/3 and 8/2, not 6/4 or 5/5. FMCSA has proposed — not adopted — a pilot program to study splitting sleeper berth time (90 FR 44790, published September 17, 2025), which would give temporary relief from the 7-consecutive-hour minimum to approximately 256 eligible drivers over a four-month window: one baseline month, then three months under the exemption. Until a final rule exists, the current splits are the only legal ones.

Motus is FMCSA's new online registration system, replacing the Unified Registration System for new USDOT Number and operating authority applications. Per the agency's notice at 91 FR 23144 (April 29, 2026), Phase I was released December 8, 2025 for supporting companies — blanket companies, financial responsibility filers, transportation service providers — and Phase II, planned for the second quarter of 2026, makes Motus available to all regulated entities. Biennial updates are among the functions it handles. MC numbers are not being eliminated: the same notice states that in response to stakeholder feedback, the Phase II release 'will not include the elimination of MC/FF numbers.' FMCSA does continue to treat the USDOT Number as the unique identifier, with suffixes appended to identify each registration a company holds.

There is no FMCSA inspection or maintenance rule for automated driving system (ADS) equipped commercial vehicles. A search of FMCSA's Federal Register output for 2026 through August 12 returns no ADS inspection rule, proposed or final. What does exist is case-by-case exemption activity: 91 FR 20252 (April 15, 2026) is a notice seeking comment on Aurora Operations, Inc.'s application for a five-year exemption to use cab-mounted warning beacons instead of placing reflective triangles or fusees around a stopped Level 4 vehicle, extendable to other carriers running comparable vehicles that notify FMCSA in writing. Nothing in this changes an operating requirement for a conventional carrier today.

Four items do. Your emergency equipment kit changed — spare fuses are out, liquid-burning flares are out, triangles or six fusees plus a rated fire extinguisher stay in. Your DVIR paperwork can be electronic, and you only owe a report when there is a defect. Your broker verification habit matters more than ever, because the $75,000 bond and the 60-day claim window in 387.307 are what you fall back on when a broker fails. And if you have a biennial update due, file it — Motus Phase II is open to all regulated entities. The non-domiciled CDL rule, the sleeper berth pilot and the ADS exemption activity do not touch a single-truck domestic operation.