New Hampshire car registration and title fees

• Title fee — $35.00. The state's fee for a certificate of title: $35 since January 1, 2026 (it was $25). When you buy from a New Hampshire dealer, the dealer fills out the title application and sends it in with this fee. (RSA 261:20, I(a)-(b); DMV, Purchasing or Selling a Titled Vehicle)
• Title application fee (town or city clerk) — $2.00. The town or city clerk's $2 for checking and filing the title application. (RSA 261:4, IV)
• Title application preparation (dealer) — $2.00. A dealer may charge up to $2 for filling out the title application and sending in the fee; charging more is a violation. Many dealers fold it into their administrative fee. It is a dealer charge, so it belongs in the advertised price. Tick the box above if your price already includes it. (RSA 261:4, IV)
• State registration fee (by weight) — $48.00. The state's fee is set by weight: $42 up to 3,000 lbs, $48 from 3,001 to 5,000 lbs and $66 from 5,001 to 8,000 lbs a year, as of January 1, 2026. Weight is the vehicle's actual weight plus 150 lbs for each adult seat, so most cars land at $48. A large SUV can reach $66. Priced for a standard 12-month registration. Your real period is 5 to 16 months, set by your birth month, and the fee is adjusted to it at the counter. (RSA 261:141, III(g); RSA 261:142; DMV fee estimator)
• State registration fee (by weight) — $66.00. The state's fee is set by weight: $42 up to 3,000 lbs, $48 from 3,001 to 5,000 lbs and $66 from 5,001 to 8,000 lbs a year, as of January 1, 2026. Weight is the vehicle's actual weight plus 150 lbs for each adult seat. A pickup or van usually weighs more than 5,000 lbs that way, so this uses $66. Priced for a standard 12-month registration. Your real period is 5 to 16 months, set by your birth month, and the fee is adjusted to it at the counter. (RSA 261:141, III(g); RSA 261:142; DMV fee estimator)
• Town registration permit fee — varies. Your town or city clerk charges this, not the state, and the formula is the same everywhere: 18 mills ($18 per $1,000) of the maker's list price for a current-model-year car, 15 for last year's model, then 12, 9, 6 and 3 for older ones, never under $5. It stands in for the sales tax and annual car tax other states charge. It uses the original MSRP, not the price you pay; enter the MSRP above, or this uses your price, which understates it on a discounted new car and on any used car. Priced for a standard 12-month registration. Your real period is 5 to 16 months, set by your birth month, and the fee is adjusted to it at the counter. (RSA 261:153, I-IV; RSA 259:51)
• Town clerk fee — $2.00. The town or city clerk's $2 for preparing the registration permit, charged on every registration. (RSA 261:152)
• Municipal agent fee — $3.00. A town or city that finishes the state's part of your registration at its own counter may charge up to $3 for it. Manchester charges the full $3. (RSA 261:74-d; City of Manchester, Explanation of Fees)
• Town add-on fees (waste reclamation, transportation) — $8.00. Some towns add a waste reclamation fee of $3 and a transportation improvement fee of up to $5 when their voters adopt them; others add neither. Manchester charges both, plus $2 for a parking trust fund. This uses $8 as the upper figure for most towns; the real amount is $0 to $8, and a little more in Manchester or Nashua. (RSA 261:153, V-VI; RSA 261:154; City of Manchester, Explanation of Fees)
• License plates (two) — $8.00. $4 for each of the two plates New Hampshire requires, charged the first time you order plates for the car. Not charged if you move your own plates. (RSA 261:75, I; DMV, Vehicle Registrations)
• Registration transfer fee — $10.00. The state's fee to move your existing registration and plates to the new car. (RSA 261:141, VII(b); RSA 261:66)
• Permit fee credit (to claim) — $5.00. $5 to claim a credit for the town permit fee you already paid on the car you are replacing, if it was paid in the same registration period. The credit lowers the permit fee on the new car. It is not subtracted in this total, because it depends on your old registration, so the total can run high if you transfer. (RSA 261:150; RSA 261:66)
• Electric vehicle registration surcharge — $100.00. $100 a year on a battery-electric car, paid into the highway fund. From January 1, 2027 the fee is set by weight: $50 for 1,001 to 3,000 lbs, $100 for 3,001 to 8,000 lbs and $150 above 8,000. Most electric cars stay at $100. Priced for a standard 12-month registration. Your real period is 5 to 16 months, set by your birth month, and the fee is adjusted to it at the counter. (RSA 261:141-c, I (through Dec. 31, 2026; replaced from Jan. 1, 2027 by 2026 c. 235))
• Plug-in hybrid registration surcharge — $50.00. $50 a year on a plug-in hybrid, paid into the highway fund. It stays $50 at any weight from January 1, 2027. Priced for a standard 12-month registration. Your real period is 5 to 16 months, set by your birth month, and the fee is adjusted to it at the counter. (RSA 261:141-c, I (through Dec. 31, 2026; replaced from Jan. 1, 2027 by 2026 c. 235))

• Registration renews every year in your birth month. The town permit fee comes down each year as the car ages, by model year: 18 mills of the original list price in the first year, then 15, 12, 9, 6 and a floor of 3 mills from the sixth year. The state fee stays the same by weight.
• New Hampshire towns tax real estate (RSA 72:6), not cars, so the town permit fee is the yearly charge on the car. The state inspection program is suspended in 2026, so there is no inspection fee at registration.
• Some towns also collect a $10 resident tax and ask for the receipt or an affidavit when you register. It is not in this total.

• The electric vehicle surcharge comes back with every annual renewal. From January 1, 2027 it is set by weight: $50, $100 or $150.
• The $50 plug-in hybrid surcharge comes back with every annual renewal.

• New Hampshire has no general sales tax, and none applies to a vehicle. The cost is registration: the town or city permit fee (a percentage of the car's original list price), a state fee set by weight, a $35 title fee and $8 for plates.
• Registration is set by your birth month, so the first period runs 5 to 16 months and the state and town fees are adjusted to match. This estimate uses a standard 12 months, the same assumption the DMV's own estimator uses.
• You register at your town or city clerk with the dealer's title paperwork within 20 days, on the dealer's 20-day temporary plate. A dealer that is an approved state agent can register the car at the sale. The fees are the same either way, and a dealer may not pay them for you or advertise that it will.

Source: NH Department of Revenue Administration FAQ — 'Does New Hampshire have sales tax?' · rules last verified Oct 11, 2026. Methodology.