AutoTaxCalculatorVermont auto sales tax: 6% purchase and use tax
Vermont car tax = 6% × (price − qualifying trade-in − qualifying private sale). A $32,000 car with a $9,000 trade-in owes $1,380.
32 V.S.A. § 8903 charges 6% of the taxable cost when a Vermont resident buys a pleasure car, motorcycle or motor home, or a vehicle weighing up to 10,099 pounds. The same 6% is due as a use tax when you first register a vehicle bought elsewhere, and as a titling tax when you title one. There's no local add-on, so the rate is the same in Burlington, Rutland or a hill town. For heavier vehicles, the tax is 6% or $2,486, whichever is smaller.
The purchase price is the full consideration you give for the vehicle: cash plus the value of any property or services you hand over in exchange.
The trade-in credit
Vermont's trade-in credit has a condition attached. The value the seller allows on your trade-in is excluded from the taxable cost only if:
- you previously paid Vermont purchase and use tax on the vehicle you're trading, and
- it's owned and registered or titled by you, with no change of ownership since then.
Trading in a car you just bought without registering it, or one held in someone else's name, won't reduce the tax.
Selling your old car yourself
Here's where Vermont is unusually generous. If you sell your old car privately instead of trading it in, you can still get credit. The amount you receive from selling a vehicle last registered or titled in your name is excluded from the new car's taxable cost if the sale happens within three months after your purchase. The credit is capped at the clean trade-in value of that make, model and year in J.D. Power Values or a similar guide. You report it on a form from the DMV and claim a refund of the tax you've already paid.
For members of the Guard or U.S. Armed Forces, the three months are extended day for day while activated or deployed outside Vermont, plus 60 days after return. Insurance money works the same way: an insurer's payment within three months before the purchase, for a vehicle traded in before repair or totaled and sold for dismantling, can also be excluded.
Title and registration fees
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Certificate of title (new or after transfer) | $42.00 |
| Security interest noted on title | $14.00 |
| Pleasure car registration, 1 year | $89.00 |
| Pleasure car registration, 2 years | $163.00 |
| Battery electric infrastructure fee (through 2026) | $89 / $178 |
| Plug-in hybrid infrastructure fee | $44.50 / $89 |
The battery electric fee equals the regular registration fee. The statute repeals that subsection on January 1, 2027, so check with the DMV for registrations starting in 2027. Plug-in hybrids pay half the regular annual fee, or the full annual fee for a two-year registration.
Worked examples
$32,000 SUV with a $9,000 trade-in that you registered and paid tax on
- Taxable cost: $32,000 − $9,000 = $23,000
- Tax: $23,000 × 6% = $1,380.00
- Title $42 + one-year registration $89
- Total: $1,511.00
$30,000 car, then you sell your old car privately for $8,000 two months later
- At registration you pay 6% of $30,000 = $1,800
- After the sale, the $8,000 is excluded (if it's within the old car's clean trade-in value): 6% of $22,000 = $1,320
- You can claim the $480 difference back from the DMV
Exemptions
- Family transfers: to a spouse, parent, child, sibling, grandparent or grandchild, during life or after death, or to a trust for them, if the vehicle was registered or titled in Vermont in the original donor's name.
- Tax paid elsewhere: if you or your spouse paid sales or use tax in another state, Vermont charges only the difference. Bring the other state's title and proof of the tax payment.
- Divorce: transfers of a Vermont-registered vehicle to a former spouse within one year after the divorce is final.
- Accessibility: one vehicle with adapted controls or a mechanical lift for a person with a permanent disability, once certified by the Commissioner.
- VA-assisted vehicles: a vehicle bought by a veteran with VA financial assistance, or its replacement.
Frequently asked questions
Do I pay Vermont tax on a car bought in New Hampshire?
Yes. New Hampshire has no sales tax, so you'll pay Vermont's full 6% use tax when you register the car in Vermont.
What if the price on my private sale seems too low?
If the amount paid doesn't reflect actual value, or the paperwork looks incorrect, the Commissioner can set the taxable cost at the clean trade-in value of the same make, model and year.
Is the tax charged on a leased car?
Yes. For a lease, the taxable amount is the vehicle's acquisition cost minus its lease-end value as stated in the lease. Charges for excess wear or mileage at the end of the lease are taxed at 6% too.
Sources
- 32 V.S.A. § 8903: Purchase and use tax imposed
- 32 V.S.A. § 8902: Definitions, taxable cost and credits
- 32 V.S.A. § 8911: Exceptions
- 23 V.S.A. § 361: Pleasure car registration fees
- 23 V.S.A. § 2002: Title fees
This calculator gives an estimate. Vermont DMV calculates the final amount. How we calculate