TITLE XXI
MOTOR VEHICLES

CHAPTER 261
CERTIFICATES OF TITLE AND REGISTRATION OF VEHICLES

Certificate of Title

Section 261:3

    261:3 Exempted Vehicles. –
I. No certificate of title need be obtained for:
(a) A vehicle owned by the United States or owned or operated by the New Hampshire National Guard;
(b) A vehicle owned by a manufacturer or dealer and held for sale, even though incidentally moved on the highway or used for purposes of testing or demonstration; or a vehicle used by a manufacturer solely for testing;
(c) A vehicle owned by a nonresident of this state and not required by law to be registered in this state;
(d) A vehicle regularly engaged in the interstate transportation of persons or property for which a currently effective certificate of title has been issued in another state;
(e) A vehicle moved solely by animal power;
(f) An implement of husbandry;
(g) Special mobile equipment;
(h) A self-propelled wheelchair or invalid tricycle;
(i) A snowmobile as defined in RSA 259:102;
(j) Trailers with gross weight of less than 3,001 pounds, and any boat trailer over 3,001 pounds whose manufacturer's model year is over 10 years old;
(k) Any motor vehicle whose manufacturer's model year is before the year 2000, except heavy trucks and truck-tractors whose gross vehicle weight exceeds 18,000 pounds.
(l) A roadable aircraft as defined in RSA 259:91-a.
II. RSA 262:1 to 5 inclusive do not apply to:
(a) A vehicle moved solely by animal power;
(b) An implement of husbandry;
(c) Special mobile equipment;
(d) A self-propelled wheelchair or invalid tricycle.
III. For any vehicle where a certificate of title need not be obtained pursuant to this section, a person may obtain a voluntary title for such vehicle by submitting to the department a previously issued, current or expired New Hampshire certificate of registration, a valid out-of-state certificate of title, an application for a certificate of title, or a current New Hampshire vehicle identification number verification form as prescribed by the director. For the purposes of this section, a temporary registration issued pursuant to RSA 261:57 shall not meet the requirement of a previously issued New Hampshire certificate of registration.

Source. RSA 269-A:2. 1967, 357:1. 1969, 488:3; 504:1, 2. 1977, 458:1. 1981, 146:1. 1989, 54:1. 1998, 202:1-5. 2006, 90:11, eff. July 1, 2006 at 12:01 a.m. 2014, 262:1, eff. Jan. 1, 2015. 2020, 33:32, eff. Sept. 22, 2020. 2026, 169:1, 2, eff. Aug. 18, 2026.