Registering and titling a vehicle in Vermont: new residents, purchases and renewals

How to register and title a vehicle in Vermont after buying from a dealer or a private seller or moving from another state, how the purchase and use tax is worked out, and how to renew online, by mail, in person or at a town clerk.

Guide · Vermont · Vehicle registration · Titles · updated October 29, 2026

Vehicle registration and titles in Vermont are handled by the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), part of the Agency of Transportation, the same agency that issues driver's licenses. Most transactions use one form: the Registration, Tax and Title Application (form VD-119). You can use it for a new registration, a transfer, a renewal, a title, a tax payment, adding or removing an owner, and a lease buyout. The DMV also has a Registration Required Documents Wizard that tells you which documents and forms your case needs.

Who can register a vehicle

To register a vehicle in Vermont, you must be a Vermont resident with a Vermont-issued credential, either a driver's license or a non-driver ID card. The DMV also allows some people without one:

• Part-time residents who show one document tying them to Vermont, such as a property tax bill, a lease, a utility bill or a homeowners/renters insurance document
• Students with an ID from a Vermont college, university, trade or vocational school
• Contract employees with a Vermont Employment Certification (form VN-106) or an employment contract with a Vermont business

Purchase and use tax

Vermont charges a purchase and use tax when you register or title a vehicle. It is a percentage of the purchase price or the J.D. Power clean trade-in value, whichever is greater, minus any trade-in or other allowable credit. You can estimate it in advance with the Tax Estimator on mydmv.vermont.gov. If you register by mail, include a printed J.D. Power valuation dated within the last seven days.

Buying from a dealer

If you buy from a Vermont dealer, the DMV says that in most cases the dealer handles registration and titling for you. If you buy from an out-of-state dealer, you submit form VD-119 and the fees together with these documents from the dealer:

• The Manufacturer's Certificate of Origin or the title
• The bill of sale and odometer disclosure statement

Buying from a private seller

From the seller, you need:

• A properly assigned title. All owners on the title must sign as sellers, your name must go on the "transferred to" line, and any liens must be released.
• A bill of sale and odometer disclosure statement. Form VT-005 covers both. The odometer statement is required for model year 2011 or newer.
• A VIN verification, if the title is branded salvage.

Submit these with form VD-119 and the fees.

Vermont does not require a title for every vehicle. If a vehicle from 2009 or older is registered in Vermont in your name, the registration certificate is your ownership document. When you sell it, give the buyer that certificate and a signed bill of sale. The DMV recommends getting a title if the buyer plans to register the vehicle in another state. The DMV checks the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System on every title and registration transaction and may ask for more documents.

If there is a loan on the vehicle, the title goes to the lender within three weeks of your registration being processed. If you lose a Vermont title, you can request a replacement online, at a DMV office, or by mail with form VT-004.

Moving to Vermont with a vehicle

You must register your vehicle in Vermont no later than 60 days after moving to Vermont. If your out-of-state registration expires sooner, you must register before it expires. You need:

• A completed form VD-119
• The title. If a lender holds it, you must come in person to a DMV office with the lender's full name and address and your original registration from your previous state.
• A current odometer reading
• Proof of any purchase and use or sales tax you paid to another state
• The fees

The DMV values the vehicle using J.D. Power and credits tax you already paid to another state on that vehicle. If that tax was less than Vermont's, you pay the difference. No credit is given for property or excise tax. The Vermont driver license and ID card guide covers the separate 60-day rule for your license.

Insurance and inspection

The DMV says all vehicles must have liability insurance of at least the statutory minimum. After registering, you have 15 days to get the vehicle inspected at a Vermont-licensed inspection station. Inspection stations are privately owned businesses licensed by the DMV. Vermont requires both safety inspections and emissions inspections.

Renewing your registration

• Online through myDMV. This works for most vehicle types. You get a temporary registration valid for ten days, and the permanent one is mailed to you.
• By mail: send your signed renewal notice with a check or money order in the envelope provided, addressed to DMV, PO Box 1308, Williston, Vermont 05495-1308. The DMV says this address is only for renewals that use the mailed notice. The permanent registration arrives in about ten business days.
• In person at a DMV office, with your signed renewal notice and payment.
• At a participating town clerk. You need the preprinted notice, the registration must expire in the current month or one of the two previous months, and the clerk charges its own processing fee. The Vermont DMV visit guide has the details.

You can renew up to 60 days early and up to three years after expiry. If you lost your renewal notice, renew in person or by mail with a completed registration form.

Plates and transfers

Vermont law requires plates to be displayed clearly. If you get one plate, it goes on the rear of the vehicle. If you get two, one goes on the front and one on the rear. Plates must be horizontal, securely fastened and legible.

To move your Vermont registration and plate to another vehicle:

• Complete form VD-119 and enter the plate number you are transferring.
• Complete Section 8 of the form, or include your current registration with its transfer section filled in.
• The vehicle you are transferring from must change legal owner first.

For offices near you, see the Vermont DMV office list.