Question about registering car from out-of-state

Submitted by RAiD78 t3_123ngz6 in massachusetts

I'm moving to MA soon, but I'm in a weird situation. I bought (financed) my car new from dealer in State 1, and it is registered in State 1 until 2024. I have State 1 plates as well. I moved to State 2 in mid-2020, as the pandemic was in full swing. It was borderline impossible to get an appointment with the local DMV, so I never bothered to register my car in State 2 (yes, I'm fully aware this is not legal.) Fast forward to now, and I get a job offer in MA. I move in a few weeks. I discover I don't even have my registration card in my car. For what its worth, I do have the purchase agreement in my car.

MA RMV has a page on this here: https://www.mass.gov/how-to/transfer-your-registration-and-title-from-out-of-state . However, there's some things that I don't fully understand, and I want to make 100% sure I have everything needed before going to the RMV in MA.

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  1. The site says as follows "If there is a lien against the vehicle, you will be required to surrender your out-of-state registration rather than your out-of-state title. In this case, the application must note the complete lienholder information and the out-of-state title number." The lienholder info and out of state title number will be easy to get from whoever I'm financing the car from. However, what exactly does "surrender your out-of-state registration" mean? The plates? The card?
  2. The site also says "Along with the completed application, you must submit the following documents: Your current out-of-state registration, if the vehicle was exempt from title due to its age or currently has a lienholder." Again, what is considered my "out-of-state registration" in this case?

Thanks

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Comments

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dogmom603 t1_jdvd0s2 wrote

I think you need to get a duplicate registration from the state it is currently registered in.

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tomphammer t1_jdvdis0 wrote

Get a copy of the registration from state 1 and bring it with you. That should be enough.

Make sure you have your insurance company get you a stamped copy of the RMV form that proves you’re insured. You won’t be able to proceed without it.

Also make sure you print out the affidavit form from the RMV stating when you bought the car. The point of sale paperwork isn’t enough you have to fill out their form.

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phonesmahones t1_jdw1l10 wrote

Used to work at the Registry.

  1. Surrendering your out of state reg means you turn over your registration, which will be cancelled in whatever state you’re from upon registering your car in MA. Registration means plates and actual registration card. Bring your registration and plates from state 1. Don’t even acknowledge the state 2 stuff when you go, you’ll just be over complicating.

  2. Bring your current registration that matches the plates on your car. Again, I wouldn’t go out of my way to tell anyone you lived in another state and didn’t register there - it’ll just confuse everyone and someone will find a way to overcomplicate everything. If you don’t have a copy of your registration, get a dupe.

Edit: Talk to your insurance company before you go; you’re going to need a current insurance stamp and an RMV-1 form (or whatever the new version of it is called). Basically, you need a completed application with your insurance company’s blessing in writing, on the form.

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ahecht t1_jdvdkeo wrote

Your registration is the piece of paper you got from State 1.

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Smackulater t1_jdvhf38 wrote

I hate to piggyback off of someone else's question, but I am autistic and the instructions on the RMV page are difficult for me to follow. Would anyone be able to create a step-by-step guide to help with this? I've tried to read the page on three separate occasions and create my own but I am freaking out.

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caffeine5000 t1_jdvuff1 wrote

I’m going to be honest. I read the page several times, brought everything it Sid I needed, and then still had to make a second appointment. It’s very common, unfortunately. So, don’t stress. Do the best you can. And hope you get a nice person helping you, like I did. It made things so much easier. I swear they make these things vague or tricky on purpose! Haha!

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dr_sm_a t1_jdvpcfv wrote

question for the OP - do you still need an appointment for car registration? I'm trying to register a car from out of state too.

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remotehuman t1_jdveq8h wrote

Speaking from MA RMV terms, the “registration” is the plates. We call the paper proof registration as well but when you go into the RMV you will need to have a RTA (registration and title application) filled out along with a stamp from your insurance and you will have on it “new registration”.

The RMV will be able to locate your current registration information using your plates, you will want to surrender the license plates off of your car to the RMV and they will issue you new ones.

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RAiD78 OP t1_jdvf6pn wrote

So to be clear, as long as I'm able to fill out everything on the RTA, and I currently possess the plates of the state in which I'm registered, I should be fine?

Either way, I'm going to try to get a copy of my registration from state 1.

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batman3415 t1_je3l46i wrote

OP, this is NOT correct. The RMV can't look up out of state registrations. You need to get a copy of your registration from the state you're coming from. A photocopy of the title from the lien holder should also work. Also, there are some states (like New York and Montana) that are "title holding states". If you're coming from one of those states, then the original title is required.

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ahecht t1_jdvjl6a wrote

I could've sworn that I got to keep my old NH plates when I moved back to Massachusetts and got MA ones.

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dr_sm_a t1_jdvpkmu wrote

it seems some states let you do that.

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caffeine5000 t1_jdvu8jt wrote

Yep! Texas is another one that lets you keep your plates.

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tomphammer t1_jdw3hec wrote

Yeah my partner moved here from Indiana and we just transferred her car. They didn’t take her plates, they took her paper registration.

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