Valid for 30 Days
Bought a vehicle in Maine? Your temporary plate gives you 30 days to complete registration at your town or city office. Remember — excise tax must be paid before permanent plates can be issued.
Who Issues Maine Temporary Plates?
Licensed Maine Dealers
When you buy a car from a licensed in-state dealership, the dealer will prepare the official title application and handle your state fees. As part of the transaction, the dealer will issue you a temporary plate free of charge. Dealerships are legally prohibited from billing you a separate surcharge just to generate this temporary tag.
Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV)
If you buy a car through a private-party transaction, dealerships cannot assist you. You can obtain a valid temporary transit plate or complete your title transfer directly through your local town or city hall office, or through a BMV-authorized agent.
Buying From a Private Seller in Maine
In Maine, plates stay with the owner, not the vehicle. When an individual sells a vehicle, they are legally required to remove their metal license plates. Because you cannot drive a vehicle home without visible plates, you must secure a temporary transit permit or complete your registration prior to driving on public highways.
Private sellers have zero authority to generate or issue temporary operating permits. You must visit your local town hall to pay your municipal excise tax or purchase a short-term 10-day temporary transit plate from the BMV before driving the vehicle home.
Excise Tax Requirement
Maine requires that your municipal vehicle excise tax be paid to your town or city before your permanent registration can be issued. This is a separate step from the state registration fee. The excise tax is calculated based on the vehicle’s original MSRP and scales downward annually as the vehicle ages.
New residents have 30 days from establishing Maine residency to register their vehicle. Before you can obtain permanent plates, you must first pay your local excise tax at your town office.
Display Requirements
An improperly mounted or obscured paper temporary tag is an immediate target for law enforcement traffic stops. Maine vehicle code dictates specific rules for how temporary documents must be displayed:
- Exterior Placement Only: Temporary paper plates must be firmly fastened to the vehicle’s exterior license plate bracket on the outside of the vehicle.
- Complete Visibility: All printed information, including the exact date of issuance, expiration tracking codes, and barcodes, must remain completely clean and free of mud or road grime.
- Secure Attachment: Secure the paper with proper license plate mounting screws to prevent it from swinging, folding over, or tearing away at highway speeds.
Prohibited Display Violations
DO NOT tape the permit inside your rear window
Placing your temporary plate behind a rear windshield glass panel is illegal. Glass glare, deep window angles, and factory or aftermarket window tints can easily block an officer’s view or an automated toll camera scanner.
DO NOT alter or cover the permit
Never place colored license plate borders, decorative frames, or tinted clear protective plastic sleeves over the temporary paper tag. Altering any printed numbers voids the document instantly and can lead to immediate criminal charges for vehicle registration fraud.