How long do I have to transfer a vehicle title in Maine?

30 calendar days from the date of sale — read the caveat: 29-A M.R.S. §603(4) imposes the penalty without naming what the 30 days run from for a private-party application, and the only 30-day period tied expressly to the date of sale is the one §654(2) imposes on licensed dealers. The Secretary of State collects $50 as a penalty. For a licensed dealer, delivery more than 30 but less than 90 days after the sale is a traffic infraction, and 90 days or more is a Class E crime.

How much does a title transfer cost in Maine?

The base title fee is $33. The Application for Certificate of Title (MVT-2) fee, set by 29-A M.R.S. §603(1) and printed on the BMV's own fee schedule. It excludes the optional $10 expedited-issuance fee, Maine's 5.5% sales or use tax on the purchase, the municipal excise tax paid to your town, and the registration and plate fee. A warranty title for an antique auto, antique motorcycle, classic vehicle or horseless carriage is $40 instead, and manufactured housing or a tiny home is $100. A transfer to a surviving spouse is free. Maine charges 5.5% sales or use tax on the purchase price of a vehicle, and on a private-party sale you pay it as use tax to the registering agency on a Use Tax Certificate (STMV6U) before you can register.

Does a vehicle title transfer need to be notarized in Maine?

Sometimes required. Most Maine title paperwork needs no notary — the certificate of title assignment, the MVT-2 application, the bill of sale and the lien forms are all signed under penalties of false statement. Two documents do: MVT-22 in a death-of-owner transfer and MVT-34 for a warranty title on an antique or classic vehicle.

Transferring a vehicle title in Maine

Issued by Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles, Division of Title Services (Department of the Secretary of State). Choose your situation below — the buyer’s and seller’s obligations are listed separately, and every answer links to the official source.

Title fee: $33base title fee
Deadline: 30 daysfrom the date of sale — but read the caveat: 29-A M.R.S. §603(4) states the 30-day clock without naming what it runs from for a private-party application, and the only 30-day period tied expressly to the date of sale is the one imposed on licensed dealers by §654(2)
Documents: 6incl. MVT-2
Where: Agent officeauthorized third party

The seller signs the assignment and warranty of title in the space on the Maine certificate of title at the time they hand over the vehicle, completes the odometer information there, and gives the buyer a signed bill of sale. The buyer then goes first to their own town office to pay municipal excise tax, and pays 5.5% Maine use tax on the purchase price on a Use Tax Certificate (STMV6U) plus the $33 title fee on an Application for Certificate of Title (MVT-2) — a carbon-copy form you can only get at a counter. Maine collects a $50 penalty if a document required to reach the Secretary of State does not get there within 30 days. A vehicle more than 25 years old is title exempt — as of 1 January 2026 that means model year 2000 and older — and changes hands on a bill of sale with no title at all.

10 things this answer does not settle

Maine's title requirement is a rolling 25-year window, so the answer to "does this vehicle even have a title?" changes every 1 January. The BMV states it as "As of January 1, 2026, vehicles with a model year of 2001 or newer must have a title" and "As of January 1, 2027, vehicles with a model year of 2002 or newer must have a title"; form MVT-8 states the same schedule from the other side, as model years that are title exempt. Check the current year against the BMV's own titles page before relying on a title being required or not.
Two BMV publications describe the title application form differently. The Register A Passenger Vehicle page calls it the "Blue title application", while the BMV's January 2024 municipal bulletin says the colour coding was dropped for the Electronic Lien Titling programme and "customers will start using white owner's copy instead of a blue one to register recently purchased vehicles."
The central form of the whole system — MVT-2, the Application for Certificate of Title — is not published online in any form. It is a carbon-copy counter form, so nothing here can show you the questions it asks before you are standing at the counter. The same is true of MVT-16, the Transfer and Reassignment of Ownership form that MVT-8 and MVT-22 both point to.
What your town office can and cannot do varies. The BMV says "Many Municipal Offices will issue registrations" without publishing a statewide list of which ones do, so whether your errand is one stop or two depends on where you live.
The Maine Revenue Services bulletin that governs the tax side of every private transfer, Instructional Bulletin 42, was last revised on 28 October 2019.
Maine's annual inspection requirement is recorded here as simply required, because 29-A M.R.S. §1751(1) opens "Except as provided in this chapter or section 2307, subsection 1" and those exceptions were not read for this record. If you think your vehicle is exempt from inspection, check the statute rather than relying on the flat answer here.
Maine publishes the $50 late-delivery penalty in 29-A M.R.S. §603(4) without saying what the 30 days run from for a private-party title application. The only 30-day period tied expressly to the date of sale is the one 29-A M.R.S. §654(2) imposes on licensed dealers. Treat the date of sale as the safe assumption, and ask the Division of Title Services if you are near the line.
The BMV's Register A Passenger Vehicle page still calls the title application the "Blue title application", while the BMV's own January 2024 municipal bulletin says the colour coding was dropped and "customers will start using white owner's copy instead of a blue one to register recently purchased vehicles." Expect a white form.
The BMV does not publish one consolidated document checklist for a private-sale title application; the list here is assembled from the Register A Passenger Vehicle page, Maine Revenue Services Instructional Bulletin 42 and 29-A M.R.S. §654.
Whether your town office can issue the registration itself, and what it charges for the excise calculation, varies by municipality; the BMV does not publish a statewide list of which municipal offices issue registrations.

Do this first

Before you agree anything, work out whether this vehicle even has a Maine title. Maine titles only vehicles whose model year falls within the last 25 years: as of 1 January 2026 a title is required for model year 2001 and newer, and as of 1 January 2027 for model year 2002 and newer. Motorcycles need a title only at 300 cc or more, and trailers only at an unladen weight of 3,001 lbs or more. If the vehicle is title exempt, there is no title to sign over and you register it on the bill of sale alone.
Take the Maine certificate of title from the seller with the assignment and warranty of title filled in and signed by them in the space provided on the certificate. Do not accept a title the seller has signed but left otherwise blank, and do not accept a promise to post it: 29-A M.R.S. §662(1) requires the owner to execute the assignment at the time of delivery of the vehicle.

Your checklist

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The seller's checklist

At the time you hand over the vehicle, execute the assignment and warranty of title to the buyer in the space provided on the certificate of title, including the odometer information section, and deliver the certificate and assignment to the buyer (or to the Secretary of State). This is the moment the statute fixes — not later, not after payment clears.Official page
If a certificate of lien was ever issued to a lienholder on this vehicle, give the buyer a properly released certificate of lien. 29-A M.R.S. §662(1) makes that the seller's obligation, not the buyer's problem to chase.Applies when: The vehicle has ever been financed.MVT-12
Fill in and sign a Motor Vehicle Bill of Sale for the buyer, showing the purchase price, the vehicle description, the odometer disclosure and the certification that there is no active lienholder. The BMV publishes the form; the buyer cannot register the vehicle without a bill of sale.Official page
Take your registration plates off the vehicle before it leaves. Your registration expires the moment you transfer or assign title or interest in the vehicle (29-A M.R.S. §463(2), §406), and the plates remain the property of the State. They do not go with the car.
Then do one of two things with those plates. Either ask for the plates and registration number to be assigned to another vehicle in your name — $8 transfer fee under 29-A M.R.S. §502(1), with a credit of the full registration fee if you are within the first eight months of the registration year and up to half of it in the last four. Or, if you do not intend to renew or transfer within 6 months, remove the plates and forward them, with the registration certificate, to the Secretary of State.
Once you have delivered possession and done all of the above, your exposure ends: "An owner who has delivered possession of the vehicle and has complied with this section and section 665 is not liable thereafter as owner for damages resulting from operation of the vehicle." Maine publishes no separate notice-of-sale or release-of-liability form to file with the BMV.

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Both of you, together

Complete the odometer disclosure together, in this order: the seller enters the reading with no tenths, the date of transfer, both parties' printed names and addresses, and certifies whether it is the actual mileage, exceeds the mechanical limit, or is not actual — then signs. Only after that does the buyer sign to acknowledge it. "A person may not sign as both transferor and transferee in the same transaction."

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Documents and official forms

The Maine certificate of title, with the assignment and warranty of title and the odometer information completed and signed by the seller in the space provided on the certificateRequired for vehicle models 25 years old and newer. A vehicle more than 25 years old is title exempt and has no Maine title to sign over.
Signed Motor Vehicle Bill of SaleThe BMV publishes a fillable bill of sale with the odometer disclosure and a no-active-lien certification built into it. It carries no form number.
MVT-2Application for Certificate of TitleA carbon-copy counter form. It is not downloadable and is completed at a BMV branch or town office.
STMV6UUse Tax Certificate, with the 5.5% Maine use tax paid or an exemption claimed
Proof of insuranceAn insurance identification card, a letter from the insurer or agent, a binder, or a policy summary document — and it may be shown electronically, including as an image on a phone.
Excise tax receipt, plus the white and yellow copies of your registration application

Also required in some cases

The vehicle has been financed and BMV records still show the lien.

MVT-12Release of Lien from the lienholder

The odometer reading is not the actual mileage, or the odometer was replaced, repaired or broken.

MVT-32Odometer Information

The seller cannot find the Maine title — they must obtain a duplicate in their own name before they can assign it to you.

MVT-8Request to re-issue a Certificate of Title

The transfer of ownership is not being made in the assignment space on the reverse of the title.

MVT-16Transfer and Reassignment of Ownership

Deadlines

Deadline30 calendar days from the date of sale — but read the caveat: 29-A M.R.S. §603(4) states the 30-day clock without naming what it runs from for a private-party application, and the only 30-day period tied expressly to the date of sale is the one imposed on licensed dealers by §654(2) — Buyer: Get the title application to the Secretary of State within 30 days or the BMV collects a $50 penaltyThe Secretary of State collects $50 as a penalty. (For a dealer, late delivery is separately a traffic infraction between 30 and 90 days and a Class E crime at 90 days or more.)
DeadlineRegister the vehicle before it is operated or left on a public way from taking possession of the vehicle — Buyer"A Class E crime if the vehicle has never been registered by the current owner of the vehicle."
DeadlineSend your plates and registration certificate back to the Secretary of State if you will not renew or transfer the registration within 6 months from the expiry of your registration, which happens the moment you transfer or assign title or interest in the vehicle — SellerMaine publishes no penalty for this. The plates remain the property of the State.

Fees and taxes

Charge	Amount	Paid by
Base title fee	$33The Application for Certificate of Title (MVT-2) fee, set by 29-A M.R.S. §603(1) and printed on the BMV's own fee schedule. It excludes the optional $10 expedited-issuance fee, Maine's 5.5% sales or use tax on the purchase, the municipal excise tax paid to your town, and the registration and plate fee. A warranty title for an antique auto, antique motorcycle, classic vehicle or horseless carriage is $40 instead, and manufactured housing or a tiny home is $100. A transfer to a surviving spouse is free.	Buyer
Title application fee (MVT-2)	$33The Application for Certificate of Title fee. It does not include the optional $10 expedited-issuance fee, Maine's 5.5% use tax on the purchase, the municipal excise tax, or the registration/plate fee.	Buyer
Optional expedited issuance ('rush') fee	$10Optional. "An applicant requesting the expedited issuance of a document ... must pay an additional fee of $10 and state the reason for the request. The Secretary of State shall determine if an expedited issuance is warranted."	Buyer
Maine use tax on the purchase (casual sale)	5.5%Varies by the full purchase price of the vehicle, less the value of a creditable trade-in of the same kind; if the price is not documented, the vehicle's fair market value is used.Payable to the registering agency as a prerequisite to registration, on a Use Tax Certificate (STMV6U).Official calculator	Buyer
Municipal excise tax	VariesVaries by the vehicle's manufacturer's suggested retail price and its age — MSRP multiplied by a mill rate of .0240 in year one, .0175 in year two, .0135 in year three, .0100 in year four, .0065 in year five and .0040 in year six.Paid to the town office where the owner resides, before the registration is issued. Maine Revenue Services' own worked example: a three-year-old vehicle with an MSRP of $19,500 pays $263.25. The Property Tax Division gives quotes only to municipal tax collectors, not to individuals.Official calculator	Buyer
Registration (plate) fee — passenger class PC	$35The annual fee for a standard passenger plate. Other classes differ — motorcycle $21, antique auto $30, low-speed vehicle $25. An application made in the last four months of a registration year is half the annual fee. A vanity plate costs $25 more.	Buyer
Plate transfer fee, where you move your own plates to this vehicle	$8Charged instead of a new plate fee when you keep the same number plates on a replacement vehicle, provided the registration fee is the same; if the new class costs more you pay the difference too.	Either party
Temporary registration permit (transit plate), if you must move the vehicle first	$12–$25$12 for a one-trip permit, $25 for a round-trip permit. Valid for up to 10 days.	Buyer

Maine charges 5.5% sales or use tax on the purchase price of a vehicle, and on a private-party sale you pay it as use tax to the registering agency on a Use Tax Certificate (STMV6U) before you can register.

Inspection, emissions, notary and odometer

Inspection: Sometimes required
Every motor vehicle required to be registered in Maine must have an annual safety inspection (29-A M.R.S. §1751(1)); the Maine State Police put it plainly as "Maine law requires all motor vehicles to undergo a safety inspection once a year."
The BMV's own checklist of what to bring to register a privately purchased vehicle does not list an inspection certificate, so the inspection is a standing duty on the vehicle rather than a document handed over at the titling counter.
If you buy a vehicle that is not currently inspected, a transit plate to move it can be issued only where the vehicle "must have a valid inspection or a permit to move the vehicle to an inspection station".
Every motor vehicle required to be registered in Maine must pass a safety inspection once a year, done at a licensed dealership, service station or garage — but the BMV does not list an inspection certificate among the documents you hand over to title and register a vehicle.
Emissions: Sometimes required
The vehicle is required to be registered in Cumberland County — then it must have the annual enhanced inspection instead of the ordinary one (29-A M.R.S. §1751(2-A)).
The enhanced inspection adds a fuel tank cap test on 1974 and subsequent gasoline-powered models and an on-board diagnostic (OBD) check on 1996 and subsequent models.
Outside Cumberland County there is no emissions element; a vehicle not required to be registered in Cumberland County may have an enhanced inspection voluntarily.
Emissions testing in Maine is a Cumberland County matter only: a vehicle required to be registered there gets an annual enhanced inspection instead of the ordinary one.
Notarization: Not requiredMost Maine title paperwork needs no notary — the certificate of title assignment, the MVT-2 application, the bill of sale and the lien forms are all signed under penalties of false statement. Two documents do: MVT-22 in a death-of-owner transfer and MVT-34 for a warranty title on an antique or classic vehicle.
Odometer disclosure: Required, unless you are exempt
The disclosure goes on the reverse of the title itself; only if that space is filled or not compliant does it move to a transfer form prescribed by the Secretary of State (29-A M.R.S. §752(1)).
Exempt: a vehicle that is not self-propelled (29-A M.R.S. §752-A(1)).
Exempt: beginning with model year 2011, a vehicle that is 20 years old or older (29-A M.R.S. §752-A(2)).
Even for an exempt vehicle the Secretary of State may still require odometer information where records or other evidence show a mileage discrepancy.
The seller must give the buyer the odometer reading at the time of transfer, on the reverse of the title itself, and sign for it — then the buyer signs to acknowledge it, and only after the seller has.

What happens to the plates

Maine plates belong to the person, not the car: your registration expires the instant you transfer title or interest in a vehicle, and the plates — which remain the property of the State — come off and either move to your next vehicle for $8 or go back to the Secretary of State.

The seller keeps the plates
The seller may move the plates to a replacement vehicle
The seller surrenders the plates
The buyer gets new plates
The buyer supplies a plate registered in their own name

29-A M.R.S. §463 sets it out: "Registration plates issued by the Secretary of State continue to be the property of the State"; "When the owner of a vehicle transfers or assigns title or interest in a vehicle the registration expires"; and "The registrant may request that plates and the registration number be assigned in the registrant's name to another vehicle." §502(1) prices that: "A person who transfers the ownership or discontinues the use of a registered motor vehicle ... and applies for registration of another motor vehicle ... in the same registration year may use the same number plates on payment of a transfer fee of $8, as long as the registration fee is the same as that of the former vehicle." A standard passenger (PC) plate is $35, a motorcycle plate $21, an antique auto plate $30, and a vanity plate costs $25 more.

How to submit

In person at an authorized third-party office
In person at a state title office

In Maine you title and register in the same visit, but that visit has two halves and the first one is municipal: you pay excise tax at the office of the town or city where you live, and most municipal offices then issue the registration and take the title application too.

Official state links

Source: Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles, Division of Title Services (Department of the Secretary of State). Checked July 31, 2026. Report a correction

Common questions about Maine

How long do I have to transfer a vehicle title in Maine?: 30 calendar days from the date of sale — read the caveat: 29-A M.R.S. §603(4) imposes the penalty without naming what the 30 days run from for a private-party application, and the only 30-day period tied expressly to the date of sale is the one §654(2) imposes on licensed dealers. The Secretary of State collects $50 as a penalty. For a licensed dealer, delivery more than 30 but less than 90 days after the sale is a traffic infraction, and 90 days or more is a Class E crime.
How much does a title transfer cost in Maine?: The base title fee is $33. The Application for Certificate of Title (MVT-2) fee, set by 29-A M.R.S. §603(1) and printed on the BMV's own fee schedule. It excludes the optional $10 expedited-issuance fee, Maine's 5.5% sales or use tax on the purchase, the municipal excise tax paid to your town, and the registration and plate fee. A warranty title for an antique auto, antique motorcycle, classic vehicle or horseless carriage is $40 instead, and manufactured housing or a tiny home is $100. A transfer to a surviving spouse is free. Maine charges 5.5% sales or use tax on the purchase price of a vehicle, and on a private-party sale you pay it as use tax to the registering agency on a Use Tax Certificate (STMV6U) before you can register.
Does a vehicle title transfer need to be notarized in Maine?: Sometimes required. Most Maine title paperwork needs no notary — the certificate of title assignment, the MVT-2 application, the bill of sale and the lien forms are all signed under penalties of false statement. Two documents do: MVT-22 in a death-of-owner transfer and MVT-34 for a warranty title on an antique or classic vehicle.
What happens to the license plates in Maine?: Maine plates belong to the person, not the car: your registration expires the instant you transfer title or interest in a vehicle, and the plates — which remain the property of the State — come off and either move to your next vehicle for $8 or go back to the Secretary of State.

About this page

Everything here is a summary of procedures published by official state title authorities, with a link to the source for each answer.

Unusual ownership, probate, lien, salvage, court-order or identity situations commonly require steps beyond those listed here.

We do not file anything with any agency, and we cannot submit, expedite, or check the status of a transfer. Ticking a box on this site records your own progress in your browser and nothing more.

61 official sources · last checked July 31, 2026 · How this was compiled · Report a correction