To help pay for the new VTRS system and its ongoing operations, as well as compensate Deputy Registrars for the additional work they are now doing, the Legislature passed new fees on motor vehicle transactions.

Effective August 1, 2019, there will be a new $2.25 technology surcharge added to registration renewals (not new-to-fleet registrations), title applications, and duplicate title requests. If a transaction includes both a title transfer and registration, dealers will need to collect $4.50 from their customers.

The second fee change effective August 1, is a $1 increase in filing fees on motor vehicle transactions, meaning title applications and all other vehicle transactions will go from $10 to $11.

Please note: the MNLARS software will include these fees in release 1.16.1, expected on July 28, 2019. The tech surcharge and filing fee increase are applied at the time the transaction paperwork is processed by the Deputy Registrar, not at the date of sale. For example, if a vehicle is sold on July 30 and the paperwork is submitted to the Deputy Registrar on August 1, you will need to collect and submit the tech surcharge and increased filing fee.

The PS2000 form does not list the technology surcharges, and DVS is not planning on updating the form at this time. You will need to handwrite the fees as follows:

A second set of fee increases - on license plates and duplicate stickers - was also passed during the 2019 Session to help offset the state’s costs of license plate production. These fees are expected to be applied in early- to mid-September due to the extra MNLARS programming required to implement them.

A schedule of the increased fees can be found here.