2023 Colorado Revised Statutes › Title 42 - VEHICLES AND TRAFFIC (§§ 42-1-101 — 42-21-106) › TAXATION (§§ 42-3-101 — 42-3-314) › Article 3 - REGISTRATION, TAXATION, AND LICENSE PLATES (§§ 42-3-101 — 42-3-314) › Part 1 - REGISTRATION AND TAXATION (§§ 42-3-101 — 42-3-127) › Section 42-3-103 - Registration required - exemptions - rules

(1)
(a)
Within sixty days after purchase, every owner of a motor vehicle, trailer, semitrailer, or vehicle that is primarily designed to be operated or drawn upon any highway of this state or any owner of a trailer coach or of special mobile machinery whether or not it is operated on the highways, shall register such vehicle with the department. A person who violates this subsection (1) commits a class B traffic infraction.
(b)
This subsection (1) does not apply to the following:
(I)
A bicycle, electrical assisted bicycle, electric scooter, or other human-powered vehicle;
(II)
Vehicles specifically exempted by section
42-3-104
; and
(III)
Any vehicle whose owner is permitted to operate it under provisions of this article concerning lienholders, manufacturers, dealers, nonresidents, and fleet owners.
(c)
Repealed.
(2)
An owner of a foreign vehicle operated within this state for the transportation of persons or property for compensation or for the transportation of merchandise shall register such vehicle and pay the same fees and tax required by this article with reference to like vehicles. This provision shall not be construed to require registration or reregistration in this state of any motor vehicle, truck, bus, trailer, semitrailer, or trailer coach that is used in interstate commerce, but registration or reregistration shall be required in accordance with or to the extent that reciprocity exists between the state of Colorado and a foreign country or another state, territory, or possession of the United States.
(3)
Every nonresident person who operates a business within this state and owns and operates in such business any motor vehicle, trailer, semitrailer, or trailer coach within this state shall be required to register each such vehicle and pay the same fees and tax therefor as are required with reference to like vehicles owned by residents of this state. This provision shall not be construed to require registration or reregistration in this state of any motor vehicle, trailer, or trailer coach that is used in interstate commerce, but registration or reregistration shall be required in accordance with or to the extent that reciprocity exists between the state of Colorado and a foreign country or another state, territory, or possession of the United States.
(4)
(a)
(I)
Within ninety days after becoming a resident of Colorado, an owner of a vehicle required to be registered by subsection (1) of this section shall register the vehicle with the department, irrespective of the vehicle being registered within another state or country.
(II)
To register a vehicle that is or was previously registered within another state or country, the owner must:
(A)
Provide the department with documentation of the previous registration that contains the dates of the previous registration or a bill of sale for any vehicle not previously registered;
(B)
Provide the department with evidence, described in subsection (4)(a)(III) of this section, of the date that the owner became a resident of Colorado; and
(C)
Pay, in addition to the taxes and fees to register the vehicle, the vehicle's registration taxes and fees that are imposed in this article 3 and part 8 of article
4
of title
43
, and that are prorated from the date the owner became a resident of Colorado to the date the owner applied to register the vehicle, unless the vehicle is Class A personal property or unless the owner registered the vehicle within ninety days after becoming a resident as determined by the documents and evidence provided under subsections (4)(a)(II)(A) and (4)(a)(II)(B) of this section. Prorated taxes and fees are assessed for a full month for the month the owner became a resident of Colorado and for the month the owner applied for registration and a full month for each month between when the owner became a resident and when the owner applied for registration.
(III)
Evidence of Colorado residency may be a Colorado driver's license or identification, property tax receipt, utility bill indicating the utility service start date, lease agreement or mortgage statement, voter registration card, college enrollment papers or student identification card, tax records, pay stubs or other Colorado employer-issued documents, government or court-issued documents, or other evidence or documents specified in rule. The department shall promulgate rules specifying the documentation and evidence required to comply with subsections (4)(a)(II)(A) and (4)(a)(II)(B) of this section.
(IV)
A person who violates this subsection (4)(a) is subject to the penalties provided in sections
42-6-139
and
43-4-804 (1)(d)
.
(b)
Within forty-five days after the owner has returned to the United States, the provisions of this title relative to the registration of motor vehicles and the display of number plates shall not apply to motor vehicles registered with and displaying plates issued by the armed forces of the United States in foreign countries for vehicles owned by military personnel.
(c)
(I)
Notwithstanding paragraph (a) of this subsection (4) and section
42-1-102 (62) and (81)
, a nonresident shall be exempt from registering a motor vehicle owned by such person if the motor vehicle is a private passenger vehicle weighing less than sixty-five hundred pounds and the person is:
(A)
A nonresident, gainfully employed within the boundaries of this state, who uses a motor vehicle in commuting daily from such person's home in another state to and from such person's place of employment within this state; or
(B)
A nonresident student who is enrolled in a full-time course of study at an institution of higher education located within this state, if the motor vehicle owned by such person displays a valid nonresident student identification tag issued by the institution where the student is enrolled.
(II)
Any person who is exempt from the provisions of this title concerning the registration of a motor vehicle pursuant to this paragraph (c) shall comply with the applicable provisions of the motor vehicle registration laws of such person's state of residence.
(III)
This paragraph (c) shall apply only if the state in which the owner resides extends the same privileges to Colorado residents gainfully employed or enrolled in an institution of higher education within the boundaries of that state.
(5)
The provisions of this title 42 concerning the registration of vehicles and the display of number plates or of other identification do not apply to manufactured homes.
Amended by 2022 Ch. 428, § 2, eff. 1/1/2023.
Amended by 2021 Ch. 462, § 718, eff. 3/1/2022.
Amended by 2019 Ch. 271, § 2, eff. 5/23/2019.
Amended by 2017 Ch. 98, § 2, eff. 8/9/2017.
L. 2005: Entire article amended with relocations, p. 1073, § 2, effective August 8. L. 2007: (1)(c) added, p. 1597, § 1, effective July 1. L. 2009: (4)(a) amended, (SB 09 -108), ch. 5, p. 50, § 6, effective March 2; (1)(b)(I) amended, (HB 09 -1026), ch. 281, p. 1266, § 26, effective October 1. L. 2010: (1)(a) amended, (HB 10 -1172), ch. 320, p. 1487, § 3, effective October 1. L. 2017: IP(1)(b) and (1)(b)(I) amended, (HB 17-1151), ch. 98, p. 296, § 2, effective August 9.
Section 137 of Senate Bill 09-292 changed the effective date of subsection (1)(b)(I) from July 1, 2010, to October 1, 2009.
2022 Ch. 428, was passed without a safety clause. See Colo. Const. art. V, § 1(3).
2021 Ch. 462, was passed without a safety clause. See Colo. Const. art. V, § 1(3).
For the penalty for a class B traffic infraction, see § 42-4-1701(3)(a)(I) .