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

A Virginia oversize or overweight permit, which Virginia calls a hauling permit, comes from the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), through its Hauling Permits Section in Richmond. It is not issued by the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT). VDOT reviews routes and bridges for DMV and sends haulers back to DMV: its VDOT’s freight page says oversize and overweight loads need permits and points to “the DMV’s Hauling Permits or … www.ezhaulvirginia.com.” Permits are ordered online in DMV’s EZ Haul (ezhaulvirginia.com) system, linked from the DMV Hauling Permits page. The rules sit in Va. Code § 46.2-1139 and 24VAC20-82, the Overload and Hauling Permits Regulation.

The short version: most single trip permits are good for 13 days, normal travel is sunrise to sunset, no permitted load may move inside a city or town from 7 to 9 a.m. or 4 to 6 p.m. unless it is only overweight or only overlength up to 85 feet, holidays shut travel down from noon the weekday before, and every escort (pilot car) driver must hold a Virginia escort vehicle driver certification. Virginia also splits its pilot car chart between interstate and non-interstate roads, so the same load can need a different number of escorts depending on the road.

This guide walks through what a Virginia hauling 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. DMV does not publish a filled-in sample of an issued permit, so where a detail depends on your own permit, the answer is the same: read the permit and its attachments, and ask the Hauling Permits Section. Where DMV’s own documents disagree with each other, we say so.

MI 01

Who issues Virginia oversize permits

Under § 46.2-1139(A), the DMV Commissioner and, in their own jurisdictions, local authorities of cities and towns may issue a permit to run a vehicle bigger or heavier than Title 46.2 allows, and the permit “may designate the route to be traversed and contain any other restrictions or conditions.” The regulation defines a hauling permit as one issued by DMV under that section (24VAC20-82-10). Before DMV issues a permit, VDOT or the local authority runs any engineering analysis the route needs, and DMV may not issue the permit if VDOT finds the roads and bridges cannot carry the load (§ 46.2-1139(G)).

Permit types. The DMV hauling page lists four:

• Single trip: one move between an origin and a destination.
• Blanket: multiple moves over a set period. The regulation calls these annual multi-trip permits, issued for one or two years (24VAC20-82-80).
• Superload: a load whose size or weight “requires research and analysis,” as a single trip or a multi-trip (24VAC20-82-60; 24VAC20-82-90).
• Exempt: permits for set commodities or services that the Code allows even though many of those loads could be reduced (24VAC20-82-100; DMV’s Exempt Hauling Permits page).

How to apply. Online, register at EZ Haul (ezhaulvirginia.com). DMV says EZ Haul offers automated routing, lets you self-issue certain permit types, and returns most permits “in one day or less.” Payment is by card or e-check (DMV hauling page); the EZ Haul FAQ adds ACH debit with separate approval. EZ Haul replaced DMV’s older VAHPS system; the hauling page still calls the online link the “Virginia Automated Hauling Permit System” in one line, but the link goes to EZ Haul (EZ Haul Transition FAQs (PDF, revised August 29, 2022)). Annual multi-trip requests go through DMV headquarters at least 10 business days ahead (24VAC20-82-80), and superload requests should arrive at least 10 working days before the move (24VAC20-82-60(A)).

Non-divisible loads only. DMV may issue hauling permits only when the oversize or overweight is not created by putting several items side by side, stacked, end to end, or by carrying several items, unless the Code exempts the load (24VAC20-82-30). The DMV hauling page puts it plainly: “You cannot create an over-dimensional or overweight situation by hauling or towing multiple items.”

MI 02

The top of the permit: type, dates and fees

The permit itself carries “routing information, travel regulations and safety requirements” (DMV hauling page). Check:

• Permit type and validity. Most single trip permits are valid for 13 days, but DMV may set a shorter window because of weather, routes, construction, the load’s size, or other circumstances (24VAC20-82-50). Read the dates on your own permit, not the general rule. Annual multi-trip permits run one or two years (24VAC20-82-80). Superload multi-trip permits run one year or may be limited to three months under the regulation (24VAC20-82-90); DMV 109 prices them for three months.
• Vehicle-specific. Single trip and superload single trip permits are vehicle-specific and cannot be moved to another truck (24VAC20-82-50; 24VAC20-82-60(A)). A multi-trip permit may be transferred to another vehicle no more than twice in 12 months, for a $10 fee each time, and the new vehicle is held to every limit in the original permit (§ 46.2-1139(D)(2)).
• Fees. DMV lists: single trip $20, plus 30 cents a mile if overweight or if the configuration cannot be licensed in Virginia (manufactured housing pays a flat $1 instead); blanket $100 for one year or $200 for two, plus a $40 mileage fee and a $360 damage fee per year if overweight; superload $30, plus 30 cents a mile when overweight or unlicensable and a damage fee based on gross weight (DMV hauling page). DMV 109, Virginia’s Size, Weight and Equipment Requirements (PDF) adds a superload multi-trip at $220 for three months. No refunds or credits are given for unused or expired permits (24VAC20-82-50).
• Proof it before you roll. By accepting and using the permit, you agree to check it for accuracy before traveling; if anything is wrong, contact DMV right away for a corrected permit before moving, because the permittee carries the consequences of a wrong permit (24VAC20-82-160(A)).

MI 03

Vehicle, load, dimensions and axle weights

The permit is written for your exact vehicle configuration, which the regulation defines as height, weight, width and length, including axle spacing (24VAC20-82-10). Virginia’s legal limits, without a permit:

• Where single trip stops and superload starts. DMV 109, Virginia’s Size, Weight and Equipment Requirements (PDF) lists the single trip permit up to 15 feet high, 15 feet wide and 150 feet long, with 24,000 pounds on a single axle and 44,000 on a tandem, and tri-axle, quad-axle and gross weights set by axle count and spacing. The general blanket tops out at 14 feet high, 14 feet wide and 100 feet long, with the same single and tandem axle figures. Bigger than that, it is a superload (24VAC20-82-60(A)).
• Superload travel plans. A move over 18 feet wide, 250,000 pounds, 200 feet long or 16 feet high may have to file a detailed travel plan: why the load cannot be reduced or sent by air, rail or water, origin and destination with mileage, pull-over and layover spots (traffic should not be held more than 10 minutes), and written agreements from local police to escort it, from utility, cable and phone companies to lift wires, and from VDOT for moving any roadside structures (24VAC20-82-60(B)). Laying over on private property needs the owner’s written permission, carried in the truck (24VAC20-82-60(C)).
• Heavy loads. Over 400,000 pounds, send a vehicle schematic with all axle spacings and tire layouts. Over 750,000 pounds (and at VDOT’s discretion from 500,000), a Virginia-licensed engineer must analyze every structure on the route, and VDOT may require before-and-after bridge inspections and a surety bond. VDOT’s decision is final (24VAC20-82-70).
• Overweight on the interstate. Most overweight permits are not valid on an interstate above 20,000 pounds on a single axle, 34,000 on a tandem, or 80,000 gross. The exceptions are containerized cargo and fluid milk permits under § 46.2-1141 and permits for irreducible loads (§ 46.2-1139(B)).
• Overload permits are different. A Virginia overload permit adds up to 5% to legal weights and is bought with registration (§ 46.2-1128; 24VAC20-82-20). DMV says overload permits cannot be used together with overweight hauling permits, except for concrete haulers (DMV 109).
• Posted bridges. No vehicle may cross a bridge or culvert posted below its gross weight (§ 46.2-1130). VDOT keeps a daily-updated list of weight-posted bridges on its VDOT truck restrictions page.

When the permit stops protecting you. Breaking any term of a Virginia permit is a Class 1 misdemeanor. The permitted weight stays valid unless you are off the permitted route, have fewer axles or shorter axle spacing than the permit requires, or carry multiple items the permit does not allow (§ 46.2-1139(D)(1)). In those cases officers may invalidate or take the permit. They may also hold the load at a safe spot, at your expense, if escorts are missing, you are moving outside permitted hours, the entire permit is not in the truck, you are over the permitted weight, or there is a safety violation (24VAC20-82-180(D)).

MI 04

The route section

A single trip permit covers one movement between two specific points (24VAC20-82-50), and the permit may designate the exact route (§ 46.2-1139(A)). Being off that route is one of the four things that cancel the permitted weight (§ 46.2-1139(D)(1)). Annual multi-trip permits allow many moves “on designated or unrestricted routes” (24VAC20-82-80).

• Blanket attachments. If you hold a blanket or exempt permit, DMV says you must download the VDOT Structure Exclusion List or locality document named in the permit (DMV hauling page). DMV’s Structure Exclusion Lists & Locality Documents page posts the lists (MP227, N1R through N8R and N45T) and locality documents for Chesapeake, Hampton, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Richmond, Suffolk and Virginia Beach. Match the list number on your permit to the right file.
• Cities and towns. Cities, towns and counties that run their own roads may issue their own permits only under an agreement with DMV (§ 46.2-1139(A1)). A DMV permit can include city or town streets that extend the primary highway system, and a city or town may not block a permit holder who stays on the streets named in the permit (§ 46.2-1140). DMV 109 says locality permits may be bought together with a state blanket, and that DMV issues single trip locality permits only for Norfolk, for travel to or from the ports.
• Tunnels. The VDOT truck restrictions page lists permit limits at the Hampton Roads crossings: the I-64 Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel and the I-664 Monitor-Merrimac Memorial Bridge-Tunnel allow up to 14'6" high and 10'6" wide with a permit (westbound HRBT is listed at 13'6" without a permit), with wider vehicles escorted by VDOT; the US-58 Midtown and I-264 Downtown tunnels cap height at 13'6" and width at 11 feet with a permit; and the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel caps height at 13'6".
• Truck-restricted roads. Some highways are posted “NO TRUCKS” or “NO TRUCKS OVER 65 FEET,” and trucks are barred on the Blue Ridge Parkway, Skyline Drive, the George Washington Memorial Parkway and the Colonial Parkway (VDOT truck restrictions page). VDOT’s Truck Routes and Length Restrictions map shows them.
• Clearances. Virginia does not require overhead structures to clear more than 12'6", and drivers and owners pay for damage to any bridge they hit (§ 46.2-1110). On VDOT roads, structures under 14 feet are signed at least 1,500 feet ahead. The permit route is not a promise of clearance, so check every height yourself.
• Route surveys. DMV’s EZ Haul FAQ says a route survey does not need a third party, but it must be signed and verified by the person who ran the route. Whether your load needs one is set by your permit or DMV.

MI 05

Escort vehicles (pilot cars) and height poles

Virginia’s official term is escort vehicle; drivers call them pilot cars. The general guidelines in 24VAC20-82-130(A) split by road class:

These are guidelines. DMV can change them for weight, size, location or route (24VAC20-82-130(B)), DMV 109 adds that law enforcement escorts may be required case by case, and “all escort requirements will be listed on your hauling permit or your locality permit.” The permit’s escort section is what you follow. Off-centered loads should be loaded with the overhang toward the outside shoulder (24VAC20-82-40).

Who may escort. Every escort driver must be certified before escorting in Virginia (24VAC20-82-130(A)), and Escort Vehicle Driver’s Manual, HP 405 (PDF) says this applies “regardless of their residence.” To get certified: be at least 18 with a valid license, finish an 8-hour DMV-approved training course, pass a knowledge test in person at a DMV customer service center, and pay $25. The certificate lasts five years (Form HP 404, the escort driver certification application (PDF); HP 405). The regulation defines an escort certificate as one “issued by a state” (24VAC20-82-10), but DMV’s pages and manual do not list which other states’ certificates Virginia accepts. If your pilot car driver is certified elsewhere, ask the Hauling Permits Section before the move.

Escort vehicle equipment (24VAC20-82-120):

• A truck of at least ¼-ton capacity and no more than 17,000 lbs. GVWR, or a car of at least 2,000 lbs.; it must not look like a police vehicle, tow a trailer, or be oversize or overweight itself, and it needs a clear rear window.
• Two-way radio with the truck and every other escort; headlights on.
• At least one rotating or flashing light on top, visible 500 feet in all directions.
• “Wide Load,” “Oversize Load” or “Overweight Load” signs on front and rear bumpers: black letters 8 inches high, 1¼-inch strokes, on yellow.
• A height pole on the front escort when the permit requires one, at least 3 inches above the load height.
• 18-by-18-inch stop/slow paddles with 6-inch letters, 18-inch flags, a hard hat and an ANSI Class II or III vest for flagging, a 5-pound BC or ABC fire extinguisher, and triangles or flares.

Escort drivers have no police powers to direct traffic (HP 405).

MI 06

Travel times, curfews, holidays and weather

The time rules are in 24VAC20-82-110:

• Daylight. Normal travel for permitted loads is sunrise to sunset. Some superloads may be required to move at night.
• City and town rush hours. No permitted travel inside the corporate limits of a city or town from 7 to 9 a.m. and 4 to 6 p.m. The only exceptions are loads that are just overweight, or just overlength up to 85 feet including rear overhang.
• Holidays. No travel on New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day or Christmas Day. The permit is not valid from noon the weekday before through the holiday; for a Monday holiday, from noon the Friday before through Monday. For the next three: Thanksgiving, noon Wednesday, November 25, 2026 through Thursday, November 26; Christmas, noon Thursday, December 24 through Friday, December 25; New Year’s, noon Thursday, December 31 through Friday, January 1, 2027. The rule does not list the day after Thanksgiving, so read your permit for that day.
• Extra limits. DMV may set tighter days and times for safety, and those go on the permit.
• Weather. When road conditions, visibility or weather make travel hazardous, permitted vehicles may not run unless responding to an emergency, and “law enforcement judgment shall prevail.”

Weekends. The regulation does not set a general weekend ban, and DMV’s hauling page does not publish one. Check the travel-time provisions on your permit, or ask the Hauling Permits Section. For current closures and work zones, VDOT points to 511.vdot.virginia.gov or 511 by phone (VDOT truck restrictions page). See our guide to checking curfews and travel restrictions on an oversize permit and the holiday restrictions by state table.

Emergencies. Multi-trip permit holders may ask for “emergency travel regulations” on their permit. To use them, contact VDOT’s Emergency Operations Center, which passes the details to the State Police, local police and DMV weigh stations (24VAC20-82-150).

MI 07

Signs, flags and lights

• Flags. Load flags must be red or orange fluorescent, at least 18 inches square and in good shape, placed at the edges of an overwidth load or at the end of an overhang (24VAC20-82-40). The statute requires flags on a commercial load that sticks out more than 4 inches to the side or 4 feet to the rear: one at the rear if the overhang is 2 feet wide or less, two if it is wider (§ 46.2-1121(B)). HP 405 adds flags at all four corners of an overwidth or overlength configuration.
• Night lights on overhangs. Between sunset and sunrise, a flagged load also needs a red light at the end, visible 500 feet to the sides and rear (§ 46.2-1121(C)).
• Amber lights. DMV 109 says high-intensity amber flashing lights, visible for at least 500 feet, must be used on any permitted vehicle when the vehicle or load is over 12 feet wide or over 75 feet long, mounted on top of the towing vehicle and on the upper rear of the load. They are not needed if the load travels with escorts that have amber lights on top.
• “Oversize Load” sign on the truck. The DMV sources above set sign rules for escort vehicles, but we did not find a published size or wording rule for a banner on the hauling truck itself. Check your permit’s safety requirements or ask the Hauling Permits Section.

MI 08

Carrying the permit, accidents, and contacts

• Carry it. Every permit must be in the vehicle it covers and may be inspected by any officer or size and weight compliance agent (§ 46.2-1139(D)(1)), and it must be shown to DMV, police or VDOT on request (24VAC20-82-50). A missing piece of the permit is grounds for holding the load (24VAC20-82-180(D)).
• On a phone? DMV’s EZ Haul FAQ says enforcement “may accept a digital copy,” but DMV recommends a printed copy in the vehicle. Bring paper.
• Accidents. If the permitted vehicle is in any accident, notify DMV within three business days; failing to can cost you permit privileges (24VAC20-82-160(D)).
• Damage. You take responsibility for injury or damage from the move and agree to pay for it (24VAC20-82-160(B); 24VAC20-82-170).
• Weigh stations. DMV runs Virginia’s weigh stations, called Motor Carrier Service Centers (DMV 109). Your permit may name weigh station rules; see our weigh station guide for oversize loads.
• Revocation and appeal. DMV may revoke a permit for violations, false information or altering a permit, and may deny permits for up to a year after a written violation notice. You can appeal in writing within 10 working days (24VAC20-82-180).
• Contacts. Virginia DMV Hauling Permits Section: phone (804) 786-2787, email haulingpermit@dmv.virginia.gov, fax (804) 367-1003, mail P.O. Box 23260, Richmond, VA 23260 (DMV hauling page). Escort certification questions go to the same section (HP 405).

MI 09

A pre-trip checklist, and where JaloPermit fits

Before you roll in Virginia, confirm:

1. The permit is a DMV hauling permit for this exact truck, the dates cover the move (most single trips are 13 days, but check yours), and you proofed every field.
2. Width, height, length, overhangs, axle count, axle spacing and weights match the permit, and you are not carrying extra items it doesn’t allow.
3. You know the route, including any city streets and tunnels. Blanket and exempt permits come with the right Structure Exclusion List or locality document, downloaded and on board.
4. Pilot cars match the chart for the road class you are on, every escort driver is Virginia-certified, and the front escort carries a height pole if the permit calls for one.
5. The move runs sunrise to sunset, stays out of city and town limits from 7 to 9 a.m. and 4 to 6 p.m. unless your load is exempt, and stops at noon on November 25 for Thanksgiving and noon on December 24 for Christmas.
6. Flags, the end-of-load light for night, and amber lights over 12 feet wide or 75 feet long are in place.
7. The whole permit is in the cab on paper.

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, time limits, 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 Virginia page in the JaloPermit Atlas. For a general walk-through of any state’s permit, see how to read an oversize load permit; for escort rules across states, see pilot car requirements by state. Heading north, see our Pennsylvania permit guide; down the East Coast, our Florida permit guide; and for trips that cross several states, reading each state’s permit on a multi-state trip. Not sure your load qualifies at all? Start with what a nondivisible load is.

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.

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FAQs