Important renewal deadline for certain carriers drawing near

Carriers who haul cross-border or contract with government agencies have an important deadline approaching.

According to the National Motor Freight Traffic Association – a nonprofit group representing less-than-truckload carriers – over 90,000 entities will need to renew their Standard Carrier Alpha Code by June 30.

“SCAC identification codes have existed since the mid-1960s and were developed to facilitate computerization in the transportation industry,” Debra Edwards, client service senior manager for NMFTA, said in a statement. “It’s a unique two- to four-letter code utilized to identify various transportation companies properly, and while certain groups of a SCAC are reserved for specific purposes, overall, the code is recognized by various organizations.”

According to the NMFTA website, a SCAC is “required when doing business with all U.S. government agencies and with many commercial shippers including, but not limited to, those in the automobile, petroleum, forest products and chemical industries. as well as suppliers to retail businesses and carriers engaged in railroad piggyback trailer and ocean container drayage.”

While the numbers are somewhat unclear, Edwards told Land Line that a good portion of the 90,000 expiring codes belong to owner-operators who will need to renew before the deadline.

All carriers with an SCAC must renew the codes online annually. Edwards said that in the past, all 90,000-plus codes were set to expire on June 30, which would create a flood of renewals. This year, in an effort to spread the workload across the calendar, carriers have 365 days after they renew their SCAC before it expires. The group hopes this will encourage some to renew early in 2025 to avoid a backlog at the end of June.

Carriers who are unsure if they need a SCAC can find out more about the program here. LL