Registering (and titling?) my car in Maryland
March 19, 2018 10:57 AM Subscribe
I have a 2006 Ford Fusion that I own outright. I moved to Maryland from New Jersey a while ago. Insurance company sent me a letter saying I had to register my car in MD. How do I do this and how much is it going to cost me? I'm finding the MD MVA site to be very confusing. Please assume I do not know anything about how this works because I don't.
Additional information:
I have lived in Maryland for more than 60 days and this seems to be important when it comes to taxes?
I have NJ tags and an NJ driver's license (do I have to get a new license too?)
Additional information:
I have lived in Maryland for more than 60 days and this seems to be important when it comes to taxes?
I have NJ tags and an NJ driver's license (do I have to get a new license too?)
Response by poster: I'm trying not to threadsit, but I think I need to make it clear that I have tried reading through the appropriate pages on the MVA site to figure out what I'm supposed to do, I just am confused by what they say and am looking for clarity. Something like a flowchart for how to register my vehicle would be my ideal answer.
posted by runcibleshaw at 12:00 PM on March 19, 2018
posted by runcibleshaw at 12:00 PM on March 19, 2018
You probably won't be able to get past going down to DMV in person. Bring your driver's license, registration, proof of insurance, and vehicle's title. The teller will tell you what else to do. You may need to show proof of residence, such as a power bill or some such.
A police officer might find you in violation if you get stopped; they might just give you a "fixit" ticket, or you may have to pay a smallish, but necessary fine. Do all this sooner than later before it snowballs.
posted by mule98J at 12:20 PM on March 19, 2018
A police officer might find you in violation if you get stopped; they might just give you a "fixit" ticket, or you may have to pay a smallish, but necessary fine. Do all this sooner than later before it snowballs.
posted by mule98J at 12:20 PM on March 19, 2018
Best answer: To register your car, you need a Maryland title. You'll also need a safety inspection. The inspection's cost varies from place to place; most dealerships and mechanics and even some gas stations will do them. There's no set fee, so you may want to shop around. I think most places charge under $100. You can just straight up google "maryland licensed safety inspection near me" to find a place.
The inspection certificate is valid for 90 days, so do that first, then head to the full-service MVA branch closest to you to sort the title out. You'll actually do title and registration at the same time, which is part of what makes this confusing. Here's the form. It does both things. You actually can call the number on the form to ask any questions you might have; the people at the MVA are sometimes more helpful than the website is.
In addition to the inspection certificate, you'll need proof that you own the car outright, so bring your NJ title and your bill of sale for the car. If you want to try and get your driver's license done at the same time, bring the documents on this checklist.
Fees for registration will probably run you $135 for two years of registration (or $155 if you want the Save-The-Bay plates with the heron on them). The excise tax thing is... it's confusing. It's 6% of the car's purchase price, but you have an older car, so that basically means either its blue-book value or $640, whichever is greater. (Expect to pay around $260-$300 depending on your car's condition and mileage -- you can play with the calculator here, to estimate, but the MVA will calculate it for you and it may be higher than that.) Because your car wasn't recently purchased, the whole 60-days tax rebate-ish thing doesn't apply anyhow, so there's no need to worry about it. But you do want to get your car registered as soon as you can.
After your car is registered, you'll have to take it for an emissions test -- this is separate from the safety inspection. You'll get a notice in the mail telling you when you have to do it, but you can also just go and have it done.
posted by halation at 12:30 PM on March 19, 2018 [1 favorite]
The inspection certificate is valid for 90 days, so do that first, then head to the full-service MVA branch closest to you to sort the title out. You'll actually do title and registration at the same time, which is part of what makes this confusing. Here's the form. It does both things. You actually can call the number on the form to ask any questions you might have; the people at the MVA are sometimes more helpful than the website is.
In addition to the inspection certificate, you'll need proof that you own the car outright, so bring your NJ title and your bill of sale for the car. If you want to try and get your driver's license done at the same time, bring the documents on this checklist.
Fees for registration will probably run you $135 for two years of registration (or $155 if you want the Save-The-Bay plates with the heron on them). The excise tax thing is... it's confusing. It's 6% of the car's purchase price, but you have an older car, so that basically means either its blue-book value or $640, whichever is greater. (Expect to pay around $260-$300 depending on your car's condition and mileage -- you can play with the calculator here, to estimate, but the MVA will calculate it for you and it may be higher than that.) Because your car wasn't recently purchased, the whole 60-days tax rebate-ish thing doesn't apply anyhow, so there's no need to worry about it. But you do want to get your car registered as soon as you can.
After your car is registered, you'll have to take it for an emissions test -- this is separate from the safety inspection. You'll get a notice in the mail telling you when you have to do it, but you can also just go and have it done.
posted by halation at 12:30 PM on March 19, 2018 [1 favorite]
Best answer: So basically it goes MECHANIC ---> GET INSPECTION ---> MVA
MVA ---> hand over inspection cert., NJ title/bill of sale, passport/birth cert., NJ license, proof of residence ---> go out to MVA parking lot, have MVA person check VIN and odometer reading -->
pay the money (probably around $500, which does suck but the tax thing is just the one time) --> hooray your car is legal now, new plates and new license will arrive in the mail
posted by halation at 12:40 PM on March 19, 2018
MVA ---> hand over inspection cert., NJ title/bill of sale, passport/birth cert., NJ license, proof of residence ---> go out to MVA parking lot, have MVA person check VIN and odometer reading -->
pay the money (probably around $500, which does suck but the tax thing is just the one time) --> hooray your car is legal now, new plates and new license will arrive in the mail
posted by halation at 12:40 PM on March 19, 2018
Best answer: Yeah, schedule the inspection pronto. I JUST moved to Maryland and the thing that threw me off the most was that because people only get safety inspections once and not annually, you can't roll into any random gas station without an appointment and do it. That's why there was a month gap between getting my license and getting my registration.
Also MVA only does registration processing Monday through Friday, so save yourself the heartache I had of getting up super early on a Saturday and being turned away. They will do licenses on Saturday. Halation has the process right, although I just had to write the VIN and odometer reading on a form. I brought the completed title form, my old title, my bill of sale, and my proof of identity/residence (ie my MD license). I have a 2011 Nissan Versa, and paid about $300 all told between fees, taxes, and pretty Bay plates. And they'll hand you your new plates right then and there, which is nice.
posted by bowtiesarecool at 4:41 AM on March 20, 2018
Also MVA only does registration processing Monday through Friday, so save yourself the heartache I had of getting up super early on a Saturday and being turned away. They will do licenses on Saturday. Halation has the process right, although I just had to write the VIN and odometer reading on a form. I brought the completed title form, my old title, my bill of sale, and my proof of identity/residence (ie my MD license). I have a 2011 Nissan Versa, and paid about $300 all told between fees, taxes, and pretty Bay plates. And they'll hand you your new plates right then and there, which is nice.
posted by bowtiesarecool at 4:41 AM on March 20, 2018
Response by poster: Thanks for all the good info. This gives a plan for what to do and in what order. I definitely didn't know about the emissions test. This whole process is much more straightforward in NJ. I've marked the question as resolved, but just wanted to follow up. What's the deal with the vision test for the license? If I go to get a MD license will they give me a vision test at the MVA?
posted by runcibleshaw at 10:16 AM on March 20, 2018
posted by runcibleshaw at 10:16 AM on March 20, 2018
This thread is closed to new comments.
These pages look like they cover everything including the stuff you need to bring.
You'll have to give up your NJ license and get a MD license. You are going to have to take a vision test for the new license, so you can't do everything on-line. I don't immediately see how to make an appointment, but you can always show up. Bring a book.
posted by It's Never Lurgi at 11:06 AM on March 19, 2018