What happens in the FMCSA new entrant safety audit?

What is the new entrant program?

When a motor carrier registers with FMCSA and starts operating in interstate commerce, it enters the New Entrant Safety Assurance Program. FMCSA's rule says that once a new entrant meets its pre-operational requirements, it is subject to safety monitoring "for a period of 18 months." During that time, FMCSA:

• Watches your roadside inspection results to make sure your basic safety management controls are working.
• Conducts a safety audit once you have been operating long enough to have records to review. The rule says that period will "generally be at least 3 months" (49 CFR 385.307).

FMCSA's program page puts it as a short list. As a new entrant, you operate safely, keep your records up to date, perform periodic inspections and maintenance on your vehicles, and pass the safety audit. FMCSA conducts the audit, monitors your roadside performance, and grants permanent authority "if safe."

Two clarifications. First, the audit is not a safety rating. The rule says a safety audit "will not result in a safety fitness determination," and those follow a different process, a compliance review (385.317). Second, FMCSA moved its registration system to Motus in 2026, and the CFR copies we read carry notes that several registration sections in this subpart, including 385.301, 385.303, 385.305, and 385.329, are suspended. We rely on the audit sections here, which do not carry those notes. If you are going through registration or re-registration, confirm the current steps on FMCSA's registration pages. For the steps to get authority, see how to get trucking authority.

When does the audit happen, and what does it look like?

Timing. FMCSA says the audit takes place within 12 months after you begin operations. The appendix to the rule describes it as a review within 12 months of receiving your USDOT number for property carriers. The rule itself ties the timing to having enough records, generally at least three months in (385.307(b)). Do not assume you have a full year of lead time.

Format. The rule says the audit "will generally be conducted at the new entrant's business premises" (385.315). FMCSA's program site says the audit is conducted by a certified safety auditor either at your place of business or electronically, by submitting documents online, by mail, or by fax, and that FMCSA tells you which type you were selected for by phone or mail. Keep your contact information current with FMCSA so you do not miss that notice.

Who does it. An individual certified under FMCSA regulations to perform safety audits (385.313). FMCSA says that may be a federal safety investigator or a state or provincial enforcement officer.

Records. You must make required records available on request (385.307(c)).

What does the auditor review?

The scope is a review of your safety management systems and a sample of required records, to check compliance with the safety regulations. The rule names these areas, and says they include but are not limited to them (385.311):

• Driver qualification.
• Driver duty status. Records of when drivers worked and rested.
• Vehicle maintenance. Inspection, repair, and maintenance records.
• Accident register.
• Controlled substances and alcohol use and testing.

FMCSA's program site links a Safety Audit Resource Guide that lists the documents an audit may request, and recommends keeping them organized and ready. Ask FMCSA or your assigned auditor which items cover your operation.

The rule's appendix explains how findings are scored. The auditor checks compliance with "acute" and "critical" regulations, grouped into six factors: general (parts 387 and 390), driver (382, 383, 391), operational (392 and 395), vehicle (393, 396, and inspection data from the last 12 months), hazardous materials, and accidents. An acute violation is 1.5 points and a critical violation is 1 point. Three or more points in a factor means inadequate controls in that factor. Inadequate controls in at least three separate factors means inadequate safety management controls overall, and the carrier must take corrective action to avoid revocation. The accident factor looks at recordable accidents per million miles, and only counts when a carrier had two or more in the 12 months before the audit.

What fails the audit automatically?

Some violations fail an audit by themselves. The rule lists 16 (385.321(b)). Most count on a single occurrence. In plain terms, they are:

Drug and alcohol testing

• Failing to implement an alcohol and controlled substances testing program, or a random testing program.
• Using a driver you know has an alcohol concentration of 0.04 or greater to perform a safety-sensitive function.
• Using a driver who refused a required test, or who is known to have tested positive for a controlled substance.

Drivers

• Knowingly using a driver who does not have a valid CDL.
• Knowingly letting a driver operate who is disqualified, or whose license or permit is disqualified by a state, or who is physically unqualified.

Insurance

• Operating without the required minimum financial responsibility in effect (49 CFR 387.7(a)). For how that gets on file, see how trucking insurance gets filed with FMCSA.

Hours of service records

• Failing to require a driver to make a record of duty status. This one needs a violation threshold, 51 percent or more of the records examined.

Vehicles

• Requiring or permitting the operation of a vehicle that was declared out of service before repairs are made.
• Failing to correct out-of-service defects a driver listed on a vehicle inspection report before the vehicle is operated.
• Using a vehicle that has not been periodically inspected, which also needs the 51 percent threshold (396.17 requires an inspection within the preceding 12 months).

Other things the auditor finds can still count against you through the scoring above. And household goods and Americans with Disabilities Act compliance do not affect the audit result, according to the appendix and FMCSA, but can lead to review by other agencies.

What happens after the audit: pass, fail, and review

The auditor reviews findings with you when the audit finishes. FMCSA then sends written notice no later than 45 days after completion.

If you pass. The notice says you have adequate basic safety management controls. Monitoring continues for the rest of the 18 months. At the end, if the audit was done and you are not under a corrective order, FMCSA removes the new entrant designation and notifies you in writing that your registration is permanent (385.319(b), 385.333).

If you fail. The notice says your new entrant registration will be revoked and your operations placed out of service unless you take the specified actions (385.319(c)). The deadlines:

• 60 days from the date of the notice for most new entrants.
• 45 days for carriers that transport passengers in vehicles designed or used for 9 to 15 passengers for direct compensation, more than 15 passengers, or hazardous materials in a CMV as defined in 390.5.
• Extensions. FMCSA may extend the 60 days by up to 60 more if it finds a good faith effort, and the 45 days by up to 10 if you have submitted evidence and it needs time to judge it (385.323).
• If you do not respond acceptably in time, FMCSA revokes the registration and issues an out-of-service order effective on day 61 (day 46 for the 45 day group), or the day after an extension ends. You may not operate in interstate commerce on or after that date (385.325).

Administrative review. If you believe FMCSA made an error, you can ask for a review. Send the request within 90 days of the notice. If you want a decision before the out-of-service order takes effect, send it within 15 days. FMCSA decides within 45 days (30 for the 45 day group), and the decision is final agency action (385.327).

Refusing an audit. If you refuse to permit one, FMCSA sends notice that your registration will be revoked unless you agree in writing within 10 days (385.337).

Re-registering. Revocation ends the new entrant registration, and the rule for re-registering (385.329) carries a suspension note, so ask FMCSA how it works today.

If no audit has happened by the end of the 18 months through no fault of yours, you may keep operating as a new entrant until one does (385.333(d)).

How do I get ready?

Do the work early, before FMCSA calls. This list follows the areas the rule names. It is a practice checklist, not FMCSA's list, so check the Safety Audit Resource Guide.

1. Insurance. Confirm your filings are in effect and your name and address match.
2. Drug and alcohol testing. If your drivers need a CDL, have a program in place, including random testing, before they drive.
3. Drivers. Check every driver's license and medical qualification, and keep the file for each one.
4. Duty status records. Make sure each driver is making them, and keep them.
5. Inspections and maintenance. Get an annual inspection with the documentation on the vehicle, fix driver-reported defects before the truck moves, and keep repair records.
6. Accident register. Keep one, even if it is empty.
7. One place for everything. An auditor who can see your records in a folder is a short audit.

For other recurring obligations, see the trucking compliance checklist.