Prorate plates are licence plates issued for commercial vehicles that regularly travel into two or more jurisdictions in Canada or the U.S. The plates exempt carriers from having to buy trip permits when they enter a jurisdiction.

​At ICBC, we administer the provisions of the International Registration Plan (IRP) through Prorate Licensing services. We provide insurance and prorate plates for commercial vehicles in B.C. For full details about prorate plates, download the B.C. International Registration Plan (IRP) Manual.

Vehicles that need prorate plates

Person or firms (i.e. carriers) operating commercial vehicle(s) that:

• travel into two or more IRP jurisdictions (U.S. or Canada) and transport passengers for hire, or
• are designed, used, or maintained primarily for the transportation of property.

How to get prorate plates

1. Apply for a prorate account. You will need to provide the following information and submit all the completed documents to the ICBC Prorate Office.

• Register with the Registrar of Companies in Victoria, B.C. (if applying under a company or firm name).
• Have a National Safety Code (NSC) Certificate. For more information, call NSC at 250-952-0576
• Obtain a B.C. International Fuel Tax Agreement (IFTA) number for operating vehicles or vehicle/trailer combinations over 11,800 kilograms, or vehicles that have three axles (regardless of weight). Please note that it can take up to 21 days to receive your IFTA credentials from the Ministry of Finance. For more information, see the International Fuel Tax Agreement, call IFTA at 250-387-9686 or email FuelTax@gov.bc.ca
• Established Place of Business Questionnaire
  
• Prorate Fleet Application
  
• Financial Responsibility Certificate (MV23)
  
• Prorate Vehicle Application, along with a copy of the bill of sale or lease agreement for each vehicle
  

2. With the prorate account, contact an Autoplan broker to obtain your insurance and prorate plates. A Prorate Optional Coverage Questionnaire and supporting documents will be required to obtain a new quote for Optional ICBC insurance and may be requested for existing prorate renewals.​ ​

How long does it take to get my plates?

It takes a minimum of five business days to process applications for new prorate accounts. Once the account is set up, you can get a prorate plate within the same day.

How much do prorate plates cost?

The cost of prorate plates vary. For full details, see the B.C. International Registration Plan (IRP) Manual.

Full Reciprocity Plan (FRP) benefits

All member jurisdictions are displayed on the cab card and full reciprocity is granted to IRP vehicles.

Under FRP, you do not need to:

• Plan which jurisdictions you will travel in when establishing or renewing IRP fleets
• Provide any estimated distances or add jurisdictions
• Pay fees over 100% due to second-year estimated distances and added jurisdictions
• Purchase trip permits for temporary travel into a jurisdiction (provided the carriers are registered under IRP and properly insured)
• Set up multiple fleets, each travelling in a different set of jurisdictions with different distances. However, multiple fleets per carrier will still be allowed under FRP

How it works

New IRP fleets effective on or after January 1, 2015 will use the base jurisdiction's average per vehicle distance (APVD) chart for all 59 jurisdictions and pay the proportionate amount of fees for each of those jurisdictions in order to establish the IRP fleet. FRP removes the option for you to provide estimated distances.

New or existing IRP fleets with a registration year beginning prior to January 1, 2015 will be subject to provisions of the current plan until you renew in 2015 – cab cards will only display those jurisdictions specifically requested. 

Existing IRP fleets (with no actual distances) renewing on or after January 1, 2015 will also be treated as a "new" IRP fleet and pay fees based on the APVD chart.

Existing IRP fleets (with actual distances) renewing on or after January 1, 2015 will report the actual distances operated during the distance reporting period and pay fees based only upon those distances as they do today. However, the renewal cab card will reflect all 59 jurisdictions.

For more information, visit the IRP website or call ICBC Prorate Office.

Contact information

Additional resources