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Administration >  DMV > Registration Requirements  
  What Vehicles Must Be Registered and When

Every vehicle in Alaska is required to be registered unless specifically exempted by law. The owner of a vehicle, who is working in Alaska or is establishing residency in Alaska must apply for registration within ten days of entering the state or taking a job within the state. A non-resident may operate a vehicle with a current registration from another state for 60 days.

In order to register a vehicle in Alaska, an individual must submit:

If an individual has purchased either a new or used vehicle from a dealer, the dealer will usually submit all of the documents to DMV.

Vehicles are registered for a two year period. Normally a vehicle is assigned the same month as when it is first registered in Alaska and retains that month even when ownership changes. A vehicle owner with a vehicle registration which has been expired for less than a full year is charged the full biennial fee beginning with the month the registration expired, even if an individual has just purchased the vehicle and the previous owner let the vehicle expire, or the vehicle has been parked while it was expired. The registration starts over is when it has been expired for over an entire year or when the previous owner did not pay registration fees for the vehicle as in the case of a senior exemption or disabled plates.

The Division of Motor Vehicles collects a Motor Vehicle Registration Tax (MVRT) for those municipalities and boroughs that have elected to have this form of personal property tax. The tax rates vary for each location.

Certain motor vehicle owners residing in the Municipality of Anchorage and Fairbanks North Star Borough must have their vehicles inspected for carbon monoxide emission prior to registration. These are generally passenger cars and trucks with a net vehicle weight of less than 12,000 lb., powered by gasoline driven engines and a model year 1968 or newer in Anchorage or 1975 or newer in Fairbanks. If a vehicle is subject to an emissions inspection, the owner must have the vehicle inspected prior to registering the vehicle, and provide proof of an  Emissions Inspection Certificate at time of registration.

If you renew over the Internet, our system automatically checks to assure that the vehicle has successfully completed an emissions inspection within the preceding 90 days.  Please allow 24 to 72 hours for this information to become available to our system.

Alaska law requires that the owner of a vehicle must maintain liability insurance in effect that provides for the following minimum amounts: $50,000 for bodily injury or death of any one person, $100,000 for bodily injury or death for any accident, and $25,000 for property damage. Failure to have liability insurance in effect may result in suspension of a driver's license. A driver is required to certify that there is a policy in effect, as required by law.


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