Moving to Connecticut: Your Checklist for License, Registration, Emissions, Insurance and Voting

Connecticut gives new residents 90 days to transfer a driver’s license and 90 days to register a car [1][2]. Most of the work happens at the DMV, by appointment, after an emissions test or VIN check for your car [1][2]. Voter registration has its own deadline, 18 days before an election, with same-day registration as a backup [5][7].

1. Insure the car

Connecticut’s minimum liability coverage is [4]:

• $25,000 for bodily injury to one person,
• $50,000 for bodily injury per accident,
• $25,000 for property damage per accident,

or a $50,000 single limit for bodily injury and property damage combined. You also have to carry uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage of at least $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident [4]. You’ll need proof of Connecticut-compliant insurance to register the car [2].

2. Get an emissions test or VIN check

Before you register, take the car to an emissions test center [2]:

• Older than four model years: needs an emissions test.
• Newer than that: no emissions test, but it needs a VIN verification.

Either way, you’ll get a vehicle inspection report to bring to the DMV [2].

3. Register the car within 90 days

A car registered in another state can be driven in Connecticut for 90 days after you establish residence here without first registering it [3]. The DMV says the same: you have 90 days to transfer your registration [2].

Registration transfers are by appointment only, at a DMV hub office or the DMV branch in Enfield [2]. Bring [2]:

• the original title (not a copy), when applicable,
• proof of Connecticut insurance,
• acceptable ID,
• your emissions or VIN inspection report,
• a completed Form H-13B, Application for Registration and Certificate of Title,
• and payment for the fees.

The car tax

Connecticut towns tax motor vehicles along with other property, and the mill rate for cars is capped at 32.46 mills in towns where the rate for homes and other property is higher [8]. Keep up with it: the DMV won’t register a vehicle if property taxes are delinquent [2].

4. Transfer your driver’s license within 90 days

Once you establish residency, you have 90 days to transfer your out-of-state license [1]. Your current license must be valid, or expired for no more than two years [1].

How it works [1]:

• Make an appointment online. The DMV warns of long waits without one.
• Take a vision test at a full-service office.
• Pay the fees: a $40 application fee and an $84 license fee. If you pay by check, bring two separate checks made out to “DMV.”

5. Register to vote

You can register online through the Secretary of the State’s voter registration site [5], or in person at a session of your town’s registrars of voters [6].

When registration closes: the pre-election cutoff is 18 days before Election Day [5]. On that 18th day, registrars hold an in-person session from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., and the law makes it the last session for admitting new voters before the election, apart from limited exceptions [6].

If you miss the cutoff: Connecticut has same-day registration for regular elections [7]. Go in person to your town’s designated location during the early voting period, or on Election Day by 8 p.m. [7]. You’ll need ID and proof of your address, such as a utility bill [7].

Quick checklist

• Buy Connecticut car insurance that meets the minimums, including uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage.
• Get an emissions test (or a VIN check for a newer car).
• Book a DMV appointment and register the car within 90 days.
• Transfer your driver’s license within 90 days.
• Register to vote at least 18 days before the next election.