Maine Car Registration & Excise Tax Calculator

The calculation

Six excise rates, one original MSRP

Maine Revenue Services calculates excise tax as original MSRP multiplied by the applicable age-band rate. The rate steps down on January 1 and reaches 0.40% in the sixth year. The MSRP does not fall with the vehicle's used-market price. [1]

Worked example: in the third tax year, $19,500.00 × 0.0135 = $263.25 excise tax. Add the $35 passenger registration fee for a $298.25 known subtotal. An eligible vanity plate adds $25 annually, making that subtotal $323.25. Town processing and other applicable charges remain separate. [2] [3]

Maine parameters, in force and sources

The $5 floor matters only for very old vehicles with a low list price: a car that listed at $1,000.00 owes the $5.00 minimum in its sixth year or later, because 4 mills on that list price comes to less.

This is a comparison of today's age-band rates, not a promise of future renewal bills. Changes in law, exemptions, plate type or registration circumstances can change the amount.

The statute

What 36 M.R.S. §1482 actually says

The rate table above is not an administrative schedule that can be revised by a department. It is written into Maine law. Title 36, section 1482, subsection 1, paragraph C sets the motor vehicle excise tax as "a sum equal to 24 mills on each dollar of the maker's list price for the first or current year of model, 17 1/2 mills for the 2nd year, 13 1/2 mills for the 3rd year, 10 mills for the 4th year, 6 1/2 mills for the 5th year and 4 mills for the 6th and succeeding years." A mill is one tenth of a cent per dollar, so 24 mills is 2.4% and 4 mills is 0.4% — the percentages in the table.

"The maker's list price" is the phrase that decides most bills. It is the original list price of the vehicle when new. It is not what you paid, not the trade-in figure, not the book value and not the insured value. Buying the same car used does not reduce the excise tax by a cent; the only thing that reduces it is the car getting older and moving down a band. Two identical cars on the same street, one bought new for $34,000 and one bought used for $14,000, owe exactly the same Maine excise tax in the same model year.

There is a statutory floor. "The minimum tax is $5 for a motor vehicle other than a bicycle with motor attached, $2.50 for a bicycle with motor attached, $15 for a camper trailer other than a tent trailer and $5 for a tent trailer." A very old, very cheap car does not fall to zero — 4 mills on a low list price is floored at $5.

New registrations are timed differently from renewals. The statute provides that "on new registrations of automobiles, trucks and truck tractors, the excise tax payment must be made prior to registration and is for a one-year period from the date of registration." So a first registration buys twelve months from the day it is issued rather than running to a common expiry, and the excise has to be paid before the registration can be issued, not alongside it.

Commercial heavy vehicles use a different basis. For commercial vehicles of model year 1996 and after, the excise tax due for trucks or truck tractors registered for more than 26,000 pounds, and for Class A special mobile equipment as defined in Title 29-A, section 101, subsection 70, is based on the purchase price in the original year of title rather than on the maker's list price. The estimator above assumes an ordinary passenger vehicle and does not apply that rule.

Read the section in full at Maine Legislature, 36 M.R.S. §1482.

New to your name or new to Maine

Estimate a first Maine car registration

For an ordinary passenger car, start with the original MSRP and the excise age band in the calculator above, then add the $35 standard passenger registration fee. A first-year $19,500.00 MSRP example gives $468.00 excise tax (2.40%) and a $503.00 known subtotal. A used car first registered in your name still uses its original MSRP and applicable age band, rather than the price you paid. Your town confirms the excise amount and collects it before registration. [1] [2]

This subtotal excludes sales or use tax, title, plate, municipal processing and any other applicable charge. Maine BMV lists different documents for dealer purchases, private sales and vehicles brought from another state. For a new dealer vehicle, take the MSRP sticker or a copy to the town; also check the bill of sale, title application and proof of insurance requirements before visiting the town or BMV. Read BMV first-registration instructions.

From estimate to renewal

Prepare your Maine renewal

1. Check your town's online participation. If eligible, Rapid Renewal may handle the whole renewal. Otherwise, start with your town office. Open official Rapid Renewal.
2. Pay municipal excise tax. Your town collects it before registration. Ask the office to confirm the original MSRP, age band and any exemption that applies.
3. Bring insurance and the town paperwork. BMV lists evidence of insurance, the white and yellow registration-application copies, and the excise-tax receipt.
4. Complete registration through the correct office. A participating municipality can issue it; otherwise take the documents to a BMV branch and pay the applicable registration fees. Find a BMV branch.

These are passenger renewal steps from BMV's renewal guidance [3]. A first registration, ownership transfer or different vehicle class has a separate process.