Motor Vehicle & Excise Tax

Under Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 60A, an excise shall be assessed on every motor vehicle and trailer registered during the calendar year.

Excise Abatement Application Form

Download a copy of the Motor Vehicle Excise Abatement Application Form (PDF).

  1. Bill Computation
  2. Motor Vehicle Abatements
  3. Exemptions

The amount of the motor vehicle excise due on any particular vehicle or trailer in any registration year is calculated by multiplying the value of the vehicle by the motor vehicle excise rate. That rate is fixed at $25 per thousand dollars of value. The value of applicable percentage for that year of the manufacturer's suggested retail price for that vehicle. The applicable percentages are set out in Ch. 60A §1 as follows:

YearPercentage
In the year preceding the year of manufacture50%
In the year of manufacture90%
In the second year60%
In the third year40%
In the fourth year25%
In the fifth and succeeding years10%


The manufacturer's list price for any particular vehicle is the price recommended by the manufacturer as the selling price of that vehicle when new. It is the manufacturer's list price rather that the actual purchase price which will control for purposes of calculating the motor vehicle excise as described by the Registry of Motor Vehicles.