Plate Surrender in New Mexico

Surrendering your New Mexico license plates only comes into play during certain title transfer situations. You can read all the details below.

Moving to New Mexico

As a new resident you have 60 days to register your vehicle with the Motor Vehicle Division (MVD) and obtain New Mexico license plates. You do not have to surrender the plates to the MVD, but you may need to surrender them to your old DMV, depending on the policies of your former state.

Before visiting your local MVD office, have a general idea on what plates to order. You can opt for standard license plates, or select from one of many specialized New Mexico plates.

For more information on moving to New Mexico visit our relocation guide.

Moving from NM

Surrendering your license plates after moving out of the state is not required. If you don’t plan on keeping your New Mexico plates try to dispose of properly. If you can’t find a license plate recycler in your new neighborhood, send them to the following address to be recycled:

• Motor Vehicle Division

• Joseph Montoya Building

• P.O. Box 1028

• 1100 S. Saint Francis Drive

• SantA Fe, NM 87504

Before packing the moving truck, check out our Moving Out of New Mexico page.

Selling a Used Car in New Mexico

You must remove your New Mexico license plates from the vehicle. You can then transfer them to a vehicle of the same class or plate type within 30 days of the sales date. If you decide against transferring, or exceed 30 days, surrender the plates to any MVD office.

NOTE: Horseless Carriage plates are the exception. These plates remain with the vehicle, not the seller.

Learn more about selling your vehicle on our Vehicle Title Transfers page.

Buying a Used Car in NM

As the buyer, there are no surrendering of plates. New Mexico license plates stay with the seller. Obtain permanent plates by registering your vehicle with your local MVD office.

For more buying details, jump over to our Vehicle Title Transfers page.

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