North Dakota car registration fees and excise tax

Five percent, no local add-on

North Dakota does not apply its sales tax to vehicles. The motor vehicle excise tax of 5% is charged on the purchase price of every vehicle bought in or outside the state for use on its roads, and no city or county rate is stacked on top. The Century Code definition of purchase price subtracts the trade-in allowed by the seller and leaves out manufacturer incentives that cut the amount paid. A car received as a gift is taxed on the average value of similar vehicles, as set by the Department of Transportation, so a family transfer is not automatically tax-free. A $12,000 used car from 2015 bought from a neighbor costs $674 to title and plate.

A plate fee built on weight and years

Passenger plates follow a grid in section 39-04-19 with eight weight brackets and four age columns. The lightest cars, under 3,200 lb, pay $73 in their first six years and $49 from the 13th. A heavy SUV or pickup of 5,400 lb pays $142 at first, and the same buyer would owe $1,897 on a $35,000 purchase. Pickups are rated on their gross vehicle weight rating, which usually puts them a bracket or two higher than their empty weight. The NDDOT fee schedule counts years from the first registration, not the model year, so a 2025 model first plated in 2026 begins its six years at the top rate in 2026.

Electric cars and the road use fee

Since there is no fuel tax to collect from a battery car, North Dakota adds a $120 road use fee at each annual registration, and $50 for a plug-in hybrid. Ordinary hybrids pay the regular plate fee only. Montana, by contrast, has no sales or excise tax on the purchase at all.

What sets North Dakota apart

• North Dakota taxes a vehicle purchase with a 5% motor vehicle excise tax instead of sales tax, and no city or county adds to it (North Dakota Century Code § 57-40.3-02).
• The value of a trade-in is deducted from the selling price before the 5% is applied, and manufacturer incentives that reduce the price are excluded (North Dakota Century Code § 57-40.3-01(5)).
• A gift or a transfer for little or nothing is taxed on the average value of similar vehicles set by the Department of Transportation (North Dakota Century Code § 57-40.3-01(5)).
• Registration depends on weight and on the number of years the car has been registered: $93 a year for a 3,200 to 4,499 lb car in its first six years, $81 in years 7 to 9, $69 in years 10 to 12 and $57 after that (North Dakota Century Code § 39-04-19).
• The 2026 fee schedule is based on the year the vehicle was first registered, not its model year (NDDOT).
• A car that first becomes subject to registration during the year pays a monthly prorated fee, with a $5 minimum (North Dakota Century Code § 39-04-19).
• Electric vehicles pay a $120 road use fee and plug-in hybrids $50 at the start of each annual registration period; ordinary hybrids pay nothing extra (North Dakota Century Code § 39-04-19.2).
• Each application for a certificate of title costs $5 (North Dakota Century Code § 39-05-05).

What the North Dakota calculation cannot know

• The registration fee is a full-year amount; a vehicle first registered during the registration year pays only the remaining months under the NDDOT monthly proration schedule, which the form does not ask.
• NDDOT counts the year of registration from the year the vehicle was first registered, not the model year; the engine uses the model year, which can shift a car into the next column a year early or late.
• A pickup truck is registered on its gross vehicle weight rating, which the form does not ask; the engine applies the passenger table to the weight typed.
• No legal cap on dealer documentation fees was found in North Dakota law; type the dealer's fee. Whether a separately stated documentation fee is part of the taxable purchase price was not confirmed, so the engine leaves it out.
• Fees kept by private branch offices or county offices for their service, if any, are not included.