How to Read a Texas Oversize Permit: Field-by-Field Guide

A Texas oversize or overweight permit comes out of TxPROS, the Texas Permitting & Routing Optimization System run by the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles (TxDMV). The system builds the route from your load size and prints the permit together with turn-by-turn driving directions. The state rules behind it are short and specific: escorts start at set widths, heights and lengths, most permitted loads move in daytime only, big loads stay off the road on six holidays, and local curfews set by TxDOT districts can apply on top.

This guide walks through what a Texas permit holds and the published rule behind each part, so a driver or dispatcher knows what to check before rolling. Every rule below links to its source, mainly TxDMV’s oversize/overweight permits page, 43 TAC §219.11 and TxDMV’s escort and equipment requirements page. TxDMV does not publish a sample permit, so where a detail depends on your own permit, the answer is the same: read the paper permit and ask the TxDMV Oversize/Overweight Permits Office.

MI 01

Who issues Texas oversize permits

In Texas, OS/OW permits come from the TxDMV Motor Carrier Division, not from TxDOT. TxDMV’s oversize/overweight permits page says vehicles or loads over Texas legal size and weight limits must have an OS/OW permit and an authorized route, when applicable, issued by TxDMV before traveling on Texas public roadways. TxDOT still matters: under 43 TAC §219.11(e), TxDMV picks the route using information TxDOT provides, and TxDOT district offices order many of the local restrictions covered below.

Permits are ordered in TxPROS. TxDMV’s TxPROS quick start guide says most permits can be self-issued, while some need review by the Permits Office first. You can use the Permit Wizard in TxPROS to find the right permit type, or call the Oversize/Overweight Permits Office at (800) 299-1700.

Before you apply, TxDMV’s general single-trip permit page says you must give your USDOT Number. TxDMV checks it against the federal MCMIS system for out-of-service orders, and the permit is issued to the company name listed for that USDOT Number. If you are not required to have a USDOT Number, you need a $10,000 permit surety bond on file.

MI 02

The top of the permit: number, type and dates

Start at the top. Find the permit number (shown here only as a placeholder, TX-XXXXXXXX; we never show real ones), the company it is issued to, the permit type and the start date and travel period. Under Transportation Code §623.080, a single-trip permit must include the applicant’s name, the date of issuance, the kind of equipment and its weight and dimensions, the kind and weight of the commodity, any condition the permit is issued on, and each highway to be used. Then check:

• Permit type. TxDMV’s general single-trip permit page says a general single-trip permit covers non-divisible vehicles or loads over legal size and weight up to 254,300 pounds, and may be used for one movement, during the times specified on the permit, from a specific origin to a specific destination. Loads over 254,300 pounds, over the maximum permit weight on any axle or axle group, or over 200,000 pounds with less than 95 feet of axle spacing need a superheavy permit (TxDMV’s superheavy single-trip permit page). Manufactured housing, portable buildings, house moves and a long list of time permits (30/60/90-day, annual and quarterly) have their own pages on TxDMV’s oversize/overweight permits page.
• Customer reference. TxDMV’s TxPROS quick start guide says an optional customer reference, such as a job number, prints on the permit if you entered one.
• Fees. The single-trip permit fee is $60 (Transportation Code §623.076). Over 80,000 pounds, a highway maintenance fee is added: $150 up to 120,000 pounds, $225 up to 160,000, $300 up to 200,000 and $375 above that (§623.077). Over 200,000 pounds there is also a vehicle supervision fee, $35 in the standard case, per 43 TAC §219.12(b).
• Changes. 43 TAC §219.11(g) lists the only reasons a permit may be amended: vehicle breakdown, changing intermediate route points, extending the expiration date when conditions delay the move, changing origin or destination or size before the start date (if the route does not change), and correcting a permit officer’s mistake.

Carry it. Transportation Code §623.007 says a TxDMV permit must be carried, in a manner prescribed by the department, in the vehicle operating under it. The TxDMV pages we checked do not spell out whether a phone copy is enough, so ask the Permits Office before relying on one. TxDMV’s general single-trip permit page adds: review your permit for the specific conditions that apply to your load and movement.

MI 03

Vehicle, load, dimensions and weights

The load section shows the width, height, length, overhangs and gross weight you applied for, plus axle weights and spacings for overweight moves. 43 TAC §219.11(c) says the application must include the complete load description and, for overweight permits, the number of axles, axle spacing, axle weights, number of tires and tire size. The permit is only good for what it describes.

Context for those numbers. According to TxDMV’s Texas size and weight limits page, the legal limits without a permit are:

With a permit, the same page lists these caps and trigger points:

Axle weights. Under 43 TAC §219.11(d), maximum permit weight for an axle or axle group is 650 pounds per inch of tire width or the following, whichever is less: 25,000 pounds on a single axle, 46,000 on a two-axle group, 60,000 on three, 70,000 on four and 81,400 on five. Six or more axles are set by engineering study. On load-restricted (load-zoned) roads the limits drop by 10%, for example 41,400 pounds on a tandem. Two axle groups less than 12 feet apart lose 2.5% for each foot under 12, and weight may not exceed the tire manufacturer’s rated capacity. TxDMV’s Texas size and weight limits page adds that weight within a group should be spread evenly, with no more than a 10% difference between any two axles. Our guide to reading overweight permit axle weights explains axle groups in more detail.

Paperwork for heavy loads. TxDMV’s general single-trip permit page says a combination over 200,000 pounds gross must submit a Shipper’s Certificate of Weight, Form 2280 (PDF) with the application, and so must anyone moving their own construction equipment. It also says hauling more than one item may not create or increase any over-legal dimension or weight.

MI 04

The route section and driving directions

The route is where a Texas permit differs most from a hand-written one. In TxPROS, you enter the origin and destination as an address, an intersection, a border crossing or a map point, and the system generates the route from your load size, the permit type and the restrictions on roads between those points. TxDMV’s TxPROS quick start guide says you can then print the permit and driving directions. If the route looks wrong, there is a box to send the application to the Permits Office for review before you pay.

Rules to read for in the route section:

• Most practical route. 43 TAC §219.11(e) says TxDMV routes a load over the most practical route, considering vertical clearances, width restrictions, steep grades, load-restricted bridges, road geometry, construction, traffic and city-designated routes. If you want a different route, more than one permit will be needed unless TxDMV grants an exception.
• Getting to and from the load. The same rule lets you move empty oversize hauling equipment to and from the job site, and to and from your origin or place of business, as long as the move is legal size and weight and stays within the permit’s time period.
• Lane and freeway rules. 43 TAC §219.11(h) says that unless the permit says otherwise, a load over 12 feet wide must use the outside lane on multi-lane highways. A load over 16 feet wide will not be routed on the main lanes of a controlled-access highway without a TxDOT exception, though frontage roads may be used.
• Route inspections. Over 20 feet wide, over 125 feet long, or 19 feet high or more, TxDMV furnishes a proposed route and the applicant must physically inspect it and tell TxDMV in writing whether the load can make it. Once the route is set and the permit issued, it may not be amended without an exception (43 TAC §219.11(h)–(j)).
• Bridges and clearances. An overweight load will not be routed over a load-restricted bridge above its posted capacity without a TxDOT-approved analysis (§219.11(d)). The TxDMV permit pages link to TxDOT’s Load-Restricted Bridge Map, Load-Zoned Roads and Structures with Low Vertical Clearance in their Roadway Information list. Our post on bridge clearance maps for trucks lists more free sources.
• Overhead wires. 43 TAC §219.11(k)(1)(C) and TxDMV’s permit restrictions page put it on the permittee to contact utility and cable companies in advance when a wire, signal, light or sign must be raised or lowered.
• City and county roads. TxDMV’s list of known jurisdictions requiring notice before movement says the carrier is responsible for contacting the right jurisdiction for all non-state-maintained travel, and lists known local notice rules, for example a 24-hour call to the City of Abilene for loads over 15 feet high on listed highways.

Superheavy loads. TxDMV’s superheavy single-trip permit page says to apply in TxPROS three to four weeks before the permit is needed unless an approved route is already on file. Under 43 TAC §219.12(b)(7), you must check the tentative route and confirm it in writing, and a TxDOT-certified engineering firm must send TxDOT a structural analysis of the bridges on it. TxDOT district approvals stay valid for 30 days from the movement date on the application.

MI 05

Escorts and escort flag vehicles

Texas publishes its escort thresholds. Under 43 TAC §219.11(k) and TxDMV’s escort and equipment requirements page, unless TxDOT grants an exception based on a route and traffic study:

Overlength loads can share escorts in a convoy: up to four loads 110 to 150 feet long, or two loads 150 feet 1 inch to 180 feet long, with one front and one rear escort, spaced 1,000 to 2,000 feet apart (§219.11(i)(8)). Manufactured housing and portable buildings follow different escort rules on the same page.

Law enforcement escorts. TxDOT may require law enforcement to control traffic, especially inside city limits. District rules can add more: the Houston District permit restrictions (PDF) say that loads over 20 feet wide need front and rear law enforcement escorts on all highways in that district, and loads 17'6" high and over must email a copy of the permit to the Houston District Signal Shop 48 hours ahead. If your permit lists an escort or police condition you do not understand, call the Permits Office.

The escort vehicle. TxDMV’s escort and equipment requirements page says an escort flag vehicle must be a single unit from 1,000 to 10,000 pounds GVW, with two flashing amber lights, a rotating amber beacon at least 8 inches across, or flashing blue and amber lights, visible from all sides. It carries an OVERSIZE LOAD or WIDE LOAD sign on the roof or front and rear: yellow with black letters, 5 to 7 feet long, 12 to 18 inches high, letters 8 to 10 inches. Escorts must keep two-way radio contact with the load. An escort who directs traffic as a flagger needs training that meets the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement curriculum, and other states’ accepted training counts too. Our guide to pilot car escort requirements covers escort roles in general.

MI 06

Travel times and curfews

Texas sets one basic hours rule and then layers local curfews on top. 43 TAC §219.11(l)(1) says a permitted vehicle may move only during the daytime unless:

• it is overweight only; or
• it is on an interstate highway and is no more than 10 feet wide and 100 feet long, with legal front and rear overhang (overweight or not).

Daytime means from half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset (Transportation Code §541.401). TxDOT can grant nighttime movement after a route and traffic study, and escorts may be required when it does.

Curfews. §219.11(l)(3) says the driver must observe the curfew restrictions TxDMV publishes. TxDMV’s permit restrictions page lists restrictions for each of TxDOT’s 25 districts and says permittees are responsible for having the most up-to-date ones before traveling. For time permits, TxDMV’s Time Permit Curfews sheet (PDF, effective September 30, 2025) lists current curfews that replace the ones printed on permits issued before that date, and tells holders to print it and attach it to the permit. A few examples from that sheet:

That sheet exists because curfews printed on a permit can go out of date when TxDOT changes them. So read the curfews on your permit, then check the current district restrictions for your route before you plan departure. Our guide to checking curfews and travel restrictions shows a quick way to line these windows up with your dates.

MI 07

Holiday and weekend rules

TxDMV’s holiday hours and movement restrictions page says loads over 14 feet wide, 16 feet high or 110 feet long may not move on these holidays unless TxDMV grants an exception. The dates it lists for the rest of this year and next:

• Thanksgiving Day: Thursday, November 26, 2026
• Christmas Day: Friday, December 25, 2026
• New Year’s Day: Friday, January 1, 2027

The same list covers Memorial Day, Independence Day and Labor Day. Under 43 TAC §219.11(l)(2), TxDMV may also restrict holiday movement of a specific load if TxDOT finds it could be a hazard because of local road or traffic conditions. Manufactured housing has a longer list that also includes Veterans Day (November 11), Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Presidents’ Day.

Office closures are different from travel bans. The Permits Office is also closed on Veterans Day, the day after Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve, so get any permit that needs staff review done before those days. TxDMV notes that permits needing TxDOT coordination may be delayed when TxDOT is closed on a holiday that TxDMV is open.

Weekends. The statewide rules we checked set no general weekend ban; the daytime rule applies every day. Some local curfews do cover weekends, such as Bandera’s all-day Saturday and Sunday curfew and a Sunday curfew on SH 153 in Nolan and Taylor counties on the Time Permit Curfews sheet. Check your permit and the district restrictions for your route.

MI 08

Signs, flags and lights

TxDMV’s escort and equipment requirements page sets these marking rules for the permitted vehicle:

• Flags. A load that sticks out past the sides, or more than 4 feet past the rear, must have 12-inch red flags marking its extremities. For a load extending more than 4 feet past the bed or body, the flags go where the lamps are required.
• Lights for rear overhang. A load extending more than 4 feet to the rear needs, on its extreme end, two red lamps visible from 500 feet, two red reflectors marking its width, and two red side lamps marking the overhang, visible from 500 feet. The general lighting rules are in Transportation Code chapter 547, subchapter E.
• Convoys. Each load in a convoy needs a rotating amber beacon or amber pulsating light at least 8 inches across at the top rear of the load.
• Escort vehicles. Amber lights and the OVERSIZE LOAD or WIDE LOAD sign described in the escorts section. The sign must not be used at any other time.

Manufactured housing has its own rules: a house over 12 feet wide needs a rotating amber beacon at the rear of the roof (or two flashing amber lights at the rear corners), and the towing vehicle needs a cab-top beacon. The TxDMV pages we checked do not set an OVERSIZE LOAD banner rule for the permitted truck itself on a general single-trip move. If your permit’s conditions call for one, follow the permit, and ask the Permits Office if unsure.

MI 09

Where to find the issuing office

Texas OS/OW permits come from the TxDMV Oversize/Overweight Permits Office (Motor Carrier Division) in Austin. According to TxDMV’s oversize/overweight permits page, TxDMV’s holiday hours and movement restrictions page and TxDMV’s permit restrictions page:

• Phone: (800) 299-1700. The main permits page lists office hours of 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, and says the toll-free line closes at 4:30 p.m. Other TxDMV pages list slightly different hours, so call early in the day.
• Online: TxPROS, with training on TxDMV’s Outreach & Training page and the TxDMV’s TxPROS quick start guide.
• District restrictions: each district PDF on TxDMV’s permit restrictions page names TxDOT district contacts for questions about its restrictions. If you are unsure which district you are in, use TxDOT’s district and county maps.
• Local notice: TxDMV’s list of known jurisdictions requiring notice before movement.

TxDMV’s general single-trip permit page says a permit fee will not be refunded after the permit number has been issued unless the refund corrects an error by the Motor Carrier Division, so check every field before you pay.

MI 10

A pre-trip checklist, and where JaloPermit fits

Before departure on a Texas permit, confirm:

1. The permit and its driving directions are in the cab, the permit type fits the load, and the dates and times cover the move.
2. Every dimension, axle weight and spacing on the permit matches the actual loaded truck, and no axle is over 650 pounds per inch of tire width.
3. You will drive the route exactly as listed, and you have permission from any city or county for roads off the state system.
4. Escorts match the published thresholds and any district rule, such as Houston District’s law enforcement escorts over 20 feet wide.
5. The move stays in daytime unless the load qualifies for night travel, clears every curfew on your route, and avoids the holiday dates if you are over 14' wide, 16' high or 110' long.
6. Flags, lights and escort signs match the TxDMV equipment rules, and overhead wires along the route have been arranged with the utilities.

JaloPermit can speed up the reading part. Drop an already-issued, text-based permit PDF into the permit decoder on the JaloPermit homepage and it lays out the route, escorts, curfews, dimensions and limits on one route card, with weigh stations, truck stops and low-bridge alerts. Then compare it with the original. For the state rules at a glance, see the Texas page in the JaloPermit Atlas. For a general walk-through of any state’s permit, see how to read an oversize load permit. Our Oklahoma, Louisiana, New Mexico, Arkansas, Minnesota and Michigan permit guides cover those states the same way, and if your trip crosses state lines, read multi-state oversize permit trips.

JaloPermit, which publishes this guide, is a reading aid for issued permit PDFs. It is not a permit-filing service and it does not plan routes or provide navigation. The issued permit always wins.

JaloPermit reads text-based PDFs only, not scans or photos. Guests get three free decodes a day with no account and no card. Logged-in users get 10 free decodes a day. After those free decodes, each one is $3.50. There is no subscription.

Questions about how JaloPermit reads a permit? Email support@jalopermit.org.

MI 11

FAQs