Sell your car in New Hampshire — the state that skips the red tape
New Hampshire asks less of a car seller than most states do: no sales tax, no notary, no release-of-liability filing, and — for now — no inspection sticker to worry about. You sign the back of the title, keep your plates, and you're done. Here's exactly how it works, and what changed in 2026.
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Pick your metro
Selling from the Queen City, the Gate City, the capital, or the Seacoast? Each market below has its own page — written for that market, not copied from the last one.
What New Hampshire requires when you sell
| Notary | Not required. The back of a New Hampshire title asks for exactly three things: the buyer's name and address, the current odometer reading, and both signatures. The only notarized paper in a typical private sale is a letter authorizing a third party to pick up the buyer's temporary plate. |
|---|---|
| The title form | There isn't one. You assign the title on the reverse of the certificate itself at the time of sale; the buyer then applies for a new title at their town or city clerk's office and pays a $35.00 title fee. Title applications are prepared by clerks, licensed dealers, or lenders — never by private individuals. |
| Cars from 1999 or older | New Hampshire doesn't title vehicles with a model year of 1999 or older. Those sell on a bill of sale instead: form TDMV 22A (Report of Sale or Transfer of a Non-Titled Motor Vehicle), paired with a Verification of Vehicle Identification (TDMV 19A) or a copy of the previous registration or title. Heavy trucks with 3+ axles or over 18,000 lbs GVW stay titled at any age. |
| Lost your title? | File an Application for Duplicate Title (TDMV 18) with a $35.00 fee. Attach a Release of Lien if a lien was ever recorded, and collect every owner's signature on a jointly owned vehicle. Duplicates take roughly 30 to 50 calendar days to issue — start before you list, not after you sell. |
| Protect yourself after the sale | There's nothing to file. New Hampshire has no notice-of-sale or release-of-liability form for private sellers — no deadline, nothing to mail. Your protection is keeping copies of the signed title and bill of sale, plus the fact that your plates never leave with the car. |
| License plates | Plates stay with the seller, always. A private-sale buyer needs a 20-day temporary plate ($20.00, RSA 261:57) to legally drive the car home, and an out-of-state buyer needs a 20-day in-transit registration ($20.00, RSA 261:57-b). You can transfer your plates to a replacement vehicle through your town or city clerk; first-time plates carry an $8.00 plate fee. |
| Sales tax | None. New Hampshire has no sales tax at all, so nobody pays tax on the sale itself. A New Hampshire buyer pays only town and state registration fees when registering; a buyer from another state settles any tax with their home state when they register there. |
| Inspections | Suspended until further notice. Per official DMV guidance dated February 13, 2026, inspection stations may not issue stickers and annual inspections are not required. The suspension followed the Legislature's move to end the program and the collapse of the inspection-vendor contract; litigation is ongoing and the status may change. Drivers remain responsible for keeping any vehicle driven in NH safe to operate under RSA 266. |
Every fee and form number above was checked against the NH DMV's official title-transfer instructions as of August 2026 — rules change (the inspection suspension proves it), so verify anything load-bearing before you sign.
Asked by New Hampshire sellers
Is there really no sales tax on car sales in New Hampshire?
Really. New Hampshire has no sales tax of any kind, so the sale price is the sale price. A buyer registering in NH pays only town and state registration fees; a buyer from Massachusetts or anywhere else settles tax with their own state when they register the car at home. Nothing about tax touches you as the seller.
Does my car need an inspection sticker before I can sell it?
Not right now. DMV guidance dated February 13, 2026 suspends the annual safety and OBD-emissions inspection program until further notice — stations can't issue stickers and inspections aren't required. Litigation over the program is ongoing, so the status could change, and RSA 266 still requires any car driven in NH to be safe to operate. Either way, a sticker was never a precondition for selling.
My car is a 1998 model and I can't find a title — is something wrong?
Probably not. New Hampshire doesn't title vehicles with a model year of 1999 or older, so there may never have been one. Those vehicles sell on the DMV's Report of Sale form (TDMV 22A), paired with either a Verification of Vehicle Identification (TDMV 19A) or a copy of the old registration or title.
What happens to my license plates when I sell?
They stay with you — plates never transfer with a New Hampshire car. Take them off before the buyer leaves; the buyer drives home on a $20 twenty-day temporary plate, or a $20 in-transit registration if they're headed out of state. You can move your plates to your next vehicle through your town or city clerk.