Nebraska car registration and title fees

• Title fee — $10.00. Certificate of title: $10 by statute. The dealer sends in the title application, or you do it at the county treasurer. If the dealer uses the state's Dealer Automated Services portal, the state's $3 portal fee per title is the dealer's cost, not a state charge to you. (Neb. Rev. Stat. 60-154(1)(a))
• Lien notation fee — $7.00. Recording your lender's lien on the title: $7 by statute. (Neb. Rev. Stat. 60-155(1))
• Registration fee — $15.00. One year of registration for a passenger vehicle, paid to the county treasurer. It renews every year. (Neb. Rev. Stat. 60-3,143(2); DMV Registration Fees and Taxes page)
• Additional registration fees — $5.50. Four small add-ons charged on every registration: $2.00 to the DMV, $1.50 to the county, $1.50 for the state recreation road fund and $0.50 for emergency medical services. (Neb. Rev. Stat. 60-3,156, 60-3,141(2))
• License plates — $8.20. A plate fee of $4.10 for each of the two plates, charged when new plates are issued. If you move your plates from a car you already own, there is no plate fee. The state reissues plates every six years and the front plate ends with the 2029 cycle. (Neb. Rev. Stat. 60-3,102; DMV Registration Fees and Taxes page)
• Motor vehicle tax — varies. Nebraska's annual motor vehicle tax, paid to the county treasurer when you register. It is a property-tax substitute: a base amount set by the car's original MSRP (before freight), times a percentage that falls each model year, from 100% in the first year to nothing from the fourteenth. 60% of it goes to your school district. It is separate from sales tax, and it recurs every year at the lower rate. Enter the MSRP for the exact figure. (Neb. Rev. Stat. 60-3,185, 60-3,187, 60-3,188)
• Motor vehicle tax — varies. Nebraska's annual motor vehicle tax, paid to the county treasurer when you register. It is based on the car's ORIGINAL MSRP (before freight), times a percentage that falls each model year, and stops at the fourteenth model year. This estimate uses the price you entered unless you also enter the original MSRP, which understates the tax on most used cars. Enter the original MSRP for the exact figure. (Neb. Rev. Stat. 60-3,185, 60-3,187, 60-3,188)
• Motor vehicle fee — varies. Nebraska's motor vehicle fee, paid to the county treasurer when you register: $5, $20 or $30 by the car's original MSRP, reduced to 70% from the sixth model year and 35% from the eleventh. The money goes to cities and counties for roads. It recurs every year. (Neb. Rev. Stat. 60-3,190)
• Motor vehicle fee — varies. Nebraska's motor vehicle fee, paid to the county treasurer when you register: $5, $20 or $30 by the car's original MSRP, reduced to 70% from the sixth model year and 35% from the eleventh. The money goes to cities and counties for roads. It recurs every year. This estimate uses the price you entered unless you also enter the original MSRP. (Neb. Rev. Stat. 60-3,190)
• Alternative fuel fee (electric) — $150.00. Nebraska's registration fee on an electric vehicle, in place of fuel tax. It is $150 every year, charged at the first registration and at each renewal. (Neb. Rev. Stat. 60-3,191(1)(c))
• Alternative fuel fee (plug-in hybrid) — $75.00. Nebraska's registration fee on a plug-in hybrid, in place of fuel tax. It is $75 every year, charged at the first registration and at each renewal. (Neb. Rev. Stat. 60-3,191(1)(a))
• City wheel tax (Lincoln) — $74.00. Lincoln's annual street improvement vehicle tax, $74 for a car, paid to the county treasurer with your registration. You pay it if you live inside Lincoln city limits or its three-mile zoning area (the ZIP choice above separates the two). It recurs every year. (Neb. Rev. Stat. 18-1214; Lincoln Municipal Code ch. 3.20; lincoln.ne.gov/WheelTax)
• City wheel tax (Omaha) — $50.00. Omaha's annual motor vehicle fee, which the city finance department describes as $50 for a basic vehicle with other rates by vehicle type. It is paid to the county treasurer with your registration and recurs every year. This amount is not confirmed from the city's code. (Neb. Rev. Stat. 18-1214; City of Omaha Finance Dept wheel tax FAQ (not retrieved: 403))

• Tire fee — $1.00 per tire (government-mandated). $1 for each tire on a new vehicle, the spare included, collected by the county treasurer at registration. (Neb. Rev. Stat. 81-15,162(1); DOR guidance 6-191 (rev. 11-2021))

• Nebraska charges for the car every year, not only at the sale. At each renewal you pay the motor vehicle tax again at a lower percentage of the original MSRP, the $20.50 registration, the motor vehicle fee and any city wheel tax. For a car with a $35,000 MSRP the motor vehicle tax is $580 in the first model year, $522 in the second, $464 in the third and $406 in the fourth, and nothing from the fourteenth model year.
• You have 30 days from the purchase to register and pay the sales tax at your county treasurer's office. The dealer's In Transit sticker covers the car for 30 days. After that the county treasurer adds interest and a $5 penalty.
• If you trade in a car whose registration has months left, the county treasurer gives you a credit for the unused months of its registration fee, motor vehicle tax and motor vehicle fee against the new car. Ask for it at registration; it is not in this total.
• Some cities add a wheel tax at registration, paid to the county treasurer. Lincoln's is $74 a year. Omaha's is reported at $50 and Hastings, Farnam and Arlington also charge one; those amounts are not confirmed here. Grand Island is reported to have repealed its wheel tax. Ask the county treasurer for your total.

• An electric vehicle pays the $150 alternative fuel fee at every registration, including the one you make when you buy it, new or used, and at each renewal.
• A plug-in hybrid pays the $75 alternative fuel fee at every registration, including the one you make when you buy it, new or used, and at each renewal. A regular hybrid that does not plug in is not listed as charged.

• Registering the car: in Nebraska you register at your county treasurer's office within 30 days. The dealer gives you a Form 6 that shows the sales tax, and an In Transit sticker that covers the car meanwhile. Some dealers can also handle the registration for you through the state's electronic dealer services system, but only if you choose it, for a fee of up to $50. The tax, title and registration are in this total because you pay them either way.
• The sales tax follows where the car is registered, not where the dealer is: 5.5% state tax plus your city's tax of 0.5% to 2% (1.75% in Lincoln). The county treasurer uses the street address on your registration; a PO box is not used. An address outside any city pays 5.5% (6% in Dakota County). Across Nebraska the total runs from 5.5% to 7.5%.
• A city wheel tax adds to registration in some places. The calculator includes Lincoln's ($74) and an estimate for Omaha ($50). Other cities that charge one are not in the total.

Source: Nebraska Department of Revenue — Local Sales and Use Tax Rates; Neb. Rev. Stat. 77-2703.01(11) · rules last verified Oct 11, 2026. Methodology.