Car Registration

Registering your car or truck in Michigan is a relatively painless process. A registration is good for a year (it expires on your birthday) and can be renewed in person at any Secretary of State branch office, by mail, using a touch-tone phone, or online. A registration is what allows you to get the license plate that makes your vehicle legal to drive on the road.

For a new registration, you’ll need to visit a Secretary of State branch office. Bring your proof of Michigan no-fault insurance, proof of ownership (the title), and either cash, a check, or a money order. Branch offices do not accept credit or debit cards.

Fees

Registration fees in Michigan are based on the original manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP) of your vehicle at the time you first titled it. So a brand-new Mercedes will cost more to register than a brand-new Taurus―and will remain more expensive to register for several years. Your registration fees will drop a bit each year after the initial fee is set.

If you’ve bought anything older than a 1984 model, your registration fee will be based on the vehicle’s weight. So, yes, that ’51 Caddy will cost more to register than the ’83 Challenger.

To find out what you’ll pay for a particular vehicle, call the Record Information Unit at (888) 767-6424 or visit a Secretary of State branch office.

Renewing Your Registration

If you’re renewing your registration, you’ll receive a renewal notice about 45 days before your license plates expire. If everything is correct on your notice, simply return it with proof of insurance and your payment (the fee is printed in a pink box on the far right side of the notice).

You can pay by check, money order, or credit card (Visa, MasterCard, or Discover). Don’t send cash.

If your address has changed, just cross out the old one and write in your new address. It’ll automatically be updated on your registration. If there are any other errors on the registration, you’ll need to go to a branch office to sort them out.

Online

You can renew your registration online if:

• Your address is correct on your renewal notice.

• Your name and vehicle information is correct.

• Your renewal notice has a PIN.

• You have a valid Visa, MasterCard, or Discover credit card.

By Phone

You also can renew by touch-tone telephone 24 hours a day, seven days a week by calling (517) 334-9444. You can renew by phone if:

• Your address is correct on your renewal notice.

• Your name and vehicle information is correct.

• Your renewal notice has a PIN.

• You have a valid Visa, MasterCard, or Discover credit card.

A PIN will be printed on your renewal notice if your insurance company electronically verifies your insurance with the Secretary of State (SOS). Check with your agent, because not all companies verify your insurance electronically.

Your plate tabs should arrive within a week.

Non-Operational Vehicles

There are no free passes for nonoperable vehicles. If you place your vehicle in storage and allow the registration to expire, Michigan will fine you with a $10 late fee when you try to re-register it. If you allow it to expire for longer than six months, the SOS will penalize you with a 24-month registration renewal fee.

Re-registering requires no affidavits or proof of storage. Just visit any Secretary of State branch office with your old registration and the ability to pay all applicable fees.