An exemption may be granted if the motor vehicle is owned and registered by the following entities:

The minimum motor vehicle assessment which may be made is $5.00. Therefore, if the value of a vehicle produces an excise amount less than $5.00, an assessment of $5.00 must be made.

A registrant who cancels a registration during a calendar year may qualify for a partial abatement. To be eligible, however, such a registrant must also either (a) transfer title to the vehicle or (b) move out of Massachusetts and register the vehicle in some other jurisdiction. For a registrant who so qualifies, the assessors, not the Registry, must calculate the amount of the abatement for which the registrant is eligible. A registrant will never qualify for an abatement on any vehicle for any month during which the vehicle was registered for any portion of that month.

Excises are prorated on a monthly basis. If a motor vehicle is registered after the beginning of any calendar year, no excise will be imposed for those months, if any, which have fully elapsed before the vehicle is registered. If a vehicle is registered for any part of a month, however, the excise will be due for all of that month. The annual excise due on a vehicle registered after January 1 will be reduced, therefore, by one-twelfth of the full year’s excise for every month prior to the month in which the vehicle was registered.

The excise on any particular vehicle is to be assessed at the place where that vehicle is principally kept, i.e., garaged. The relevant statute, Ch. 60A §6, provides:

“The excise...shall be laid and collected at the residential address of the owner, if an individual, or at the principal place of business in the commonwealth, if a partnership, voluntary association or corporation, as determined by the owner’s registration, except that if a motor vehicle...is customarily kept in some other municipality, the excise shall be laid and collected in such other municipality.”

An excise must be paid within 30 days of the issuance of the bill. Any unpaid bill accrues interest at a rate of 12% per annum from the 31st day to the date of payment. The following steps for collection are set forth in M.G.L. Ch. 60A Sec. 2A:

The Registry of Motor Vehicles annually calculates the value of all registered motor vehicles for the purpose of excise assessment. For most motor vehicles, the calculations are performed electronically using valuation tapes. For automobiles and light trucks, the valuation tape is created by the National Automobile Dealers Used Car Guide Co. (NADA. for heavy trucks and school buses, the tape is created by Maclean Hunter Market Reports, Inc., publisher of the Truck Blue Book; and for motorcycles, the tape is created by Hap Jones, publisher of the Motorcycle Blue Book.

An excise in the amount of $25 per thousand is assessed upon the value of the vehicle as determined in accordance with the depreciation schedule. Prior to 1981 the rate was $66 per thousand. With the passage of Proposition 2 1/2 the rate was set at $25 per thousand. The excise is levied for a full calendar year and is assessed by the community where the motor vehicle is customarily garaged. In those instances where vehicles are registered in the Commonwealth but garaged outside of Massachusetts, the Commissioner of Revenue assesses the excise which is paid into the State treasury. M.G.L.

The excise is based on the value of the motor vehicle as determined by the Commissioner of Revenue upon certain percentages of the manufacturer's list price in the year of manufacture. The excise valuation is not based on the actual purchase price or "book value" of the vehicle. The percentages set forth in the statutory depreciation schedule that are applied to manufacturer's list price are as follows:

In most cases, if the deed has been recorded at least 6 weeks prior to the issue date of the tax bill, the new owner will also receive a copy of the tax bill. If you receive a bill within 6 weeks of the sale, please forward it to the new owner immediately as it is his/her responsibility to make payment. (M.G.L. Chapter 60, Section 3)