Town Clerk's Office

Automobile Registrations

Title Applications

State Vehicle Registrations

Online Vehicle Registration

Click on the license plate above to renew your vehicle registration online. Online registration will cost up to an additional $1.85 to cover the costs of the online registrar. At present, online registration must be paid with an online check or bank transfer; credit cards may be supported in the future. You may still register your car in person at the town hall, or by mail, as explained in your renewal notice. Only a renewal of an existing registration may be done online; registration of a new vehicle, must be done in person at the town hall.

New residents to the State are required to register their vehicles and obtain a New Hampshire's driver's license within sixty (60) days. Current New Hampshire residents must notify the Motor Vehicle Department of their new address within ten (10) days of their address change. Forms for this are available from the Town Clerk or the Amherst Police Department.

A New Hampshire title application is prepared by the Town Clerk. If there is a lien on a vehicle and the out-of-state registration does not expire within twenty (20) days, the applicant sends the State copy to the Title Bureau in Concord with a title fee and the Bureau will request the lienholder send the out-of-state title. After the lienholder responds, the applicant receives a letter from the Title Bureau advising him that he may take that letter to the Town Clerk's Office and register his vehicle. Other rules apply if the out-of-state registration will be expiring within twenty (20) days.

Registrants holding clear title to a vehicle must submit the original title to the Town Clerk who prepares the New Hampshire title application and registration. Taxes on the vehicle are calculated based on the list price of the vehicle when it was new without the options.

The expiration date of the registration is the owner's birth month unless the owner is a company. The expiration date is then determined by the first letter in the business name. For example, "A" (Amherst Flower Shop) and "B" (The Bake Shop) expire in January. "C" (Chrysler Credit) would have a February expiration, etc. The same schedule is used for leased vehicles.

Vehicles cannot be registered for less than five (5) months, nor over sixteen (16) months. A registrant who comes in in January to register a vehicle and has a birth month of May, would register the vehicle for five (5) months. The vehicle would then be renewed in May for a full year. The same registrant coming in in February would register the vehicle for sixteen (16) months.

In addition, there are registration fees for motorcycles and trailers.

Vehicles weighing 26,001 pounds and over must be processed in a state DMV office and the fees increase based on the weight, however, the Town tax must be paid first at the Town Clerk's Office.

Vanity plates are also available for an additional cost, of $25.

Drivers' licenses

Driver Education is required for persons under the age of 18. Parental or guardian permission is also required for application of a driver's license or registration for those under the age of 18. Testing and issuing of the license is regulated by the New Hampshire Division of Motor Vehicles. You may apply for a license at any of the DMV Driver Licensing Office substations. The closest to Amherst are these:

Harris Pond Mall - Route 3 Merrimack, NH 03054 603-889-0146 Monday-Friday 8:15 am-4:15 pm

4 Meadowbrook Drive Milford, NH 03055 603-672-3109 Thursday & Friday 8:15 am-4:15 pm

State Registration Agents

The Town Clerk and Deputy Town Clerk are both municipal agents for the State. This means that we are allowed to process State registrations, renew vehicle licenses and process new plates and transfers. Plates are available for new vehicles with gross vehicle weights of 26,000 pounds or less. Transfers and renewals may also be processed for vehicles, motorcycles and trailers which do not exceed 26,000 pounds. A $2.50 agent fee is collected per registration. All other vehicles are handled by the State at Motor Vehicle Substations.

Vehicle Inspections

On a newly registered vehicle, State inspections are required within ten (10) days after the registration is processed. Vehicles being renewed must have an inspection during their renewal month, however, there is a ten (10) day grace period into the following month.