Pretty much as the title says. I'm looking at a car with 7 years of back taxes owed. If I ship it to the big island, would I have to pay the back registration at the Honolulu rate, or the big island rate? The difference would be a few thousand dollars. Curious if anyone on here knows.

Pretty much as the title says. I'm looking at a car with 7 years of back taxes owed. If I ship it to the big island, would I have to pay the back registration at the Honolulu rate, or the big island rate? The difference would be a few thousand dollars. Curious if anyone on here knows.

To ship it to Hawaii Island, you'll need a valid registration, so you may not have a choice.  Registering on Oahu may be the only option. 

You must register the vehicle in the county where you reside.  If you can appear at the Hawaii County DMV with a Big Island address, you might be able to get them to register it a little cheaper at Big Island rates for the current year, but the past year's taxes will probably be Oahu-based.

This is the problem with having a county-by-county system versus one system for the whole state.  I guess it's fairer so people on smaller islands aren't subsidizing larger counties.

Best way to find out your options and the costs is call the DMV directly and have them look at your registration records.  Let them know you are moving, and ask what you need to do to register in Hawaii County while satisfying the late tax liability.

If it were me, I'd take the tags, last registration a current safety inspection and title to the Big Island DMV (hopefully not a trip just for this), and have a local Hawaii Island mailing address on hand.  Ask them to register the car there, and then pay whatever back taxes are owed.  That way you have a registered vehicle when it ships. 

Like I said, the taxes are already in the system for Oahu.  I doubt that can be changed without proving you moved to Hawaii County 7 years ago.

Good luck.   

https://www.dmv.org/hi-hawaii/car-registration.php

When I moved to the BI in 2014, the cost to register my Ram 2500, Acura MDX and Toyota Matrix combined was almost $100 less than what I was paying on Oahu for my truck alone.

Contact DMV and ask them about paying the back taxes. They may only charge you for one year. It depends on the value of the car. I know a couple people who had cars stored without turning in the plates for years (one was for over six years) and only had to pay for the current year to have it registered. They told the DMV guy they want to sell the car. I personally have contacted DMV about registering a car with multiple years of back taxes and was told I have to pay all back taxes. The reason was that car was too valuable to junk. They told me that if the back taxes were more than the car was worth they would settle for one year of taxes instead of nothing. The decision is apparently made on the spot based on their registration records. So if it's a Shelby Cobra or a Hemi Cuda, never mind.

Contact DMV and ask them about paying the back taxes. They may only charge you for one year. It depends on the value of the car. I know a couple people who had cars stored without turning in the plates for years (one was for over six years) and only had to pay for the current year to have it registered. They told the DMV guy they want to sell the car. I personally have contacted DMV about registering a car with multiple years of back taxes and was told I have to pay all back taxes. The reason was that car was too valuable to junk. They told me that if the back taxes were more than the car was worth they would settle for one year of taxes instead of nothing. The decision is apparently made on the spot based on their registration records. So if it's a Shelby Cobra or a Hemi Cuda, never mind.

Good advice. They are very forgiving, and happy to accept two or more years of registration fees. One of our cars had an expired registration for that period of time. Wife's fault. It was still insured during that time, but never driven. The only hitch was getting the vehicle inspected. That required a tow to a Cutter dealer. Pleasantly surprised how good their mechanics are compared to those you find at gas stations.