West Virginia collects 6% sales tax on the motorboat title application, form DMV-MB-6, on net cost: purchase price minus a qualifying West Virginia trade-in. A $20,000 boat with no trade-in is $1,200 in tax. Trade a $4,000 West Virginia–registered boat or vehicle that you already paid tax on, and tax drops to $960. An out-of-state trade-in does not get that credit. Title is $15. A lien is $10. An 18-foot motorboat at or above 3 horsepower (or 70 pounds of thrust) pays $45 for a full three-year registration cycle. That $20,000 first-title stack with no trade and no lien is $1,260. West Virginia DMV sets the receipt.
How much is West Virginia boat sales tax and registration?
West Virginia has titled motorboats since July 1, 1989. The tax is not a separate “boat excise” office. It is the 6% line on the title application. Skip that line and you have not finished the title. Registration is a three-year cycle that ends March 31, prorated if you come in mid-cycle. Government boats can be on a no-registration-fee path; other special exemptions are not confirmed in the materials this page uses, so they are not priced as $0 here.
Bring a bill of sale that states purchase price, the hull identification number, and the seller. If the boat was titled before, bring that title with lien releases. DMV has collected motorboat titles for decades; a “too old to title” story is not the 1989 rule. You are applying for a certificate of title for a motor boat, then a registration if the motor meets the power threshold. Tax, title, lien, and registration can all sit on the same trip through MB-6 and the fee chart.
| Deal (first title, ≥3 hp, full cycle, no lien) | 6% tax | Title | Registration | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $20,000, 18 feet, no trade | $1,200 | $15 | $45 | $1,260 |
| $20,000, 18 feet, $4,000 WV trade | $960 | $15 | $45 | $1,020 |
Example 1: $20,000, no trade-in, 18 feet
Scenario: You buy a used 18-foot motorboat for $20,000. Motor is over 3 horsepower. Full three-year cycle. No lien. No West Virginia trade-in.
That $1,200 is the title-application tax. The $45 is the full-cycle Class fee for 16 to 25 feet, not a one-year sticker.
Example 2: Same boat, $4,000 West Virginia trade-in
Scenario: Same $20,000 purchase. You trade a boat or vehicle that is registered in West Virginia, taxes paid by you, allowed amount $4,000 on MB-6.
The trade-in saved $240 of tax. That savings exists only because the trade qualifies under MB-6. An out-of-state registration on the old boat does not.
- West Virginia DMV, form DMV-MB-6 — 6% of net cost; trade-in rules; title $15; lien $10
- West Virginia DMV, Motorboats — fee chart; titling since July 1, 1989
The 6% title-application tax
DMV-MB-6 is where the 6% lives. Net cost equals purchase price minus a credit for a vehicle or motorboat registered in West Virginia with taxes paid by the applicant. That is narrower than “any trade-in.” A boat you just bought in Ohio and now trade does not automatically cut the West Virginia 6%. A car titled in West Virginia that you traded toward the boat can, if it meets the form’s rule.
A dealer can handle the paperwork. You can also mail DMV with a check. Either way, the tax is statewide 6% on that net. There is no local sales-tax extra printed on the MB-6 tax line. Used boats, new boats, and boats bought last week in another state all meet the same 6% unless the net cost is $0 or DMV confirms an exemption this page does not have a dollar for.
Net cost is a form concept. If the seller knocks $1,000 off the advertised price, the purchase price is the number on the bill of sale, not the listing. If they “throw in” a motor, ask whether that motor is in the purchase price. The 6% follows what you report as purchase price minus a qualifying West Virginia trade-in — not a handshake discount that never hits the application.
Example 3: $4,000 out-of-state trade-in denied
Scenario: $20,000 purchase. You trade a $4,000 boat registered in another state.
The old boat still has value to the seller. It has no value as a West Virginia tax credit unless it was WV-registered with taxes paid by you.
Example 4: $0 purchase price on a qualifying $0 transfer
Scenario: The application shows net cost $0 — no consideration. Confirm with DMV that they will process it as $0 tax. Title is still $15.
If any money or an assumed loan sits behind a “gift,” the net cost is not $0. Ask DMV before you treat a family deal as free of tax.
- DMV-MB-6 instructions — trade-in credit only for WV-registered vehicles/motorboats with taxes paid by the applicant
- West Virginia DMV Motorboats — all motorboats titled since July 1, 1989
Dealer, private sale, and West Virginia–only trade-in
Who you buy from does not change the 6%. It changes who writes the check. A dealer may collect tax and submit MB-6. A private seller generally does not. You mail or visit DMV with the bill of sale, the title documents, and payment for tax, title, lien if any, and registration. Private-party boats are not exempt because they are used. A boat advertised “tax not included” still meets the 6% when you title it. The ad is not the application.
The only trade-in this page subtracts is a West Virginia–registered vehicle or motorboat with taxes paid by you, in the amount MB-6 accepts. This page does not add a like-kind-only rule or a dealer-only rule beyond that form.
Example 5: Dealer sale, $20,000, no qualifying trade
Scenario: West Virginia dealer. 18-foot boat. Full cycle. No lien.
Keep whatever receipt proves the 6% was paid so the title application is complete.
Example 6: Private sale, same numbers
Scenario: Neighbor sells you the same $20,000 18-foot boat. You send MB-6 and a check.
The 6% did not disappear because the seller is not a dealer.
- DMV-MB-6 — tax, title, lien, trade-in credit block
- WV DMV Motorboats — dealer or mail with check
No local line on MB-6
The motorboat title application prints statewide 6%. It does not add a county sales-tax row. A $20,000 boat is $1,200 of tax in Charleston and $1,200 at a lake in another county. Local marina fees and property tax, if any, are different bills. They are not an extra percent on MB-6. Do not add your city’s general sales-tax rate on top of the 6% already on the form.
Example 7: Same $20,000 boat, two West Virginia counties
Scenario: First title, no trade, 18 feet, full cycle.
Registration follows length and power, not county.
Example 8: $40,000 40-foot boat, still 6%
Scenario: No trade. Full cycle. No lien.
There is no watercraft cap on this 6% in the MB-6 materials this page follows.
- DMV-MB-6 — single 6% tax line, no local add-on
Title, lien, and three-year registration
Title is $15. Recording a lien is $10. Registration, when the motor meets the 3 horsepower or 70-pound thrust threshold, follows length on a three-year cycle that ends March 31. Mid-cycle fees are lower. The DMV chart and § 20-7-12 are the sources. Full-cycle and the prorated years used on this page:
| Length | Full cycle | Second year | Third year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 16 feet | $30 | $20 | $10 |
| 16 to 25 feet | $45 | $30 | $15 |
| 26 to 39 feet | $60 | $40 | $20 |
| 40 feet and over | $75 | $50 | $25 |
If the motor is under 3 horsepower and under 70 pounds of thrust, you still title. You do not pay those registration-fee classes. A 14-foot jon boat with a tiny motor can be $15 title plus 6% of price, with $0 registration fee. Measure length the way DMV measures it for the class — not “about 16 feet.” A boat that is 16 feet even sits in the 16-to-25-foot band at $45 for a full cycle, not the under-16 band at $30.
The cycle is not your personal anniversary. It ends March 31. If you title in April at the start of a new three-year block, you are on a full-cycle fee. If you title later in that block, you pay the second-year or third-year amount for your length. Ask DMV which year of the cycle you are in so you do not mail a $45 check when the chart says $30, or the reverse.
Example 9: 14-foot boat under 3 horsepower
Scenario: $8,000 purchase. No trade. No lien. Motor below the registration-fee threshold.
Skipping the title because “it is too small to register” is the wrong reading. Title is still required. The fee that drops is the length-class registration charge.
Example 10: 18-foot boat, second year of the cycle, with a lien
Scenario: $20,000, no trade, 16–25 feet, you title in the second year of the March 31 cycle. One lien.
A full-cycle 18-foot registration would have been $45. Coming in mid-cycle is $30 for that length band in year two, and $15 in year three. Confirm the cycle year with DMV when you apply.
- WV DMV Motorboats fee chart; West Virginia Code § 20-7-12
- DMV-MB-6 — title $15; lien $10
Gifts, documented vessels, and low-power boats
If net cost on the application is $0, sales tax is $0 and title is still $15. Confirm that processing with DMV. This page does not add a broader family list, a military exemption, or other exemptions. Government boats can avoid the registration fee. Documented or out-of-state boats still face the sales-tax line on the form unless an exemption actually applies — documentation is not a silent $0.
An inherited boat is not automatically $0 tax unless the application net cost is $0 or DMV treats the transfer as nontaxable. Bring probate or death documents if that is your path, and ask whether title fee and registration still apply — they usually do even when tax does not. A Coast Guard number without a West Virginia title does not finish the 1989 titling rule. Follow DMV’s documented and out-of-state instructions and still budget the 6% unless they tell you the line is exempt.
Moving to West Virginia with a boat you already own is still a title event here. The 6% applies to the purchase or transfer on MB-6. If you already paid sales tax in another state, ask DMV whether any credit appears on the motorboat application. This page does not subtract an out-of-state tax credit. The only credit it subtracts is the West Virginia–registered trade-in described on MB-6.
Example 11: Electric trolling motor on a canoe — still a motorboat title
Scenario: You put an electric trolling motor on a canoe and title it. Purchase price of the vessel as titled is $3,000. Motor is under 3 horsepower / 70 pounds of thrust.
Power can remove the registration fee. It does not remove the title or the 6% on net cost.
Example 12: Documented vessel, taxable purchase
Scenario: You buy a documented boat for $20,000 and follow DMV’s motorboat titling path. No exemption is on the form.
Ask DMV which documents they want. Do not skip the 6% on a guess.
- DMV-MB-6 — tax on purchase/transfer; $0 net cost → $0 tax, title still due
- WV DMV Motorboats — documented/out-of-state titling paths
How to calculate West Virginia boat tax
- Start with purchase price on the bill of sale.
- Subtract a trade-in only if it is a West Virginia–registered vehicle or motorboat with taxes paid by you, in the amount MB-6 allows.
- Multiply net cost by 6%.
- Add title $15.
- Add $10 if you record a lien.
- If the motor is at least 3 horsepower or 70 pounds of thrust, add the length-class registration fee for this point in the March 31 three-year cycle. If it is under that power, registration fee is $0.
- Do not add a local sales-tax percent on MB-6.
Example 13: Walkthrough — $20,000, WV trade $4,000, 18 feet, full cycle, lien
Scenario: Qualifying West Virginia trade. Motor over 3 horsepower.
Without the qualifying trade, tax would have been $1,200 and the total $1,270 with the same lien.
Example 14: Walkthrough — $20,000, OOS trade $4,000, 40 feet, full cycle, no lien
Scenario: The $4,000 trade is registered out of state.
Length changed the registration. It did not change the 6%. The out-of-state trade changed nothing.
- DMV-MB-6 formulas; DMV motorboat fee chart; § 20-7-12
What this page does not estimate
This page does not add exemptions beyond a $0 net-cost line and the government no-registration-fee note. It does not add late penalties, dealer documentation caps, trailer tax, or AIS decals. It does not credit an out-of-state trade-in. It does not charge a registration class under 3 horsepower / 70 pounds of thrust. Military and most gift stories that are not $0 net cost go to DMV — not to a $0 guess on this page.
Example 15: Trailer bought with the boat
Scenario: $20,000 boat and a $3,000 trailer.
Ask DMV about the trailer on the vehicle side.
Example 16: “Military exemption” not on MB-6
Scenario: You have orders and a $20,000 boat.
Unconfirmed exemptions stay off this estimate.
Two complete buying examples
Example 17: Complete deal — $20,000 18-foot boat, no trade
Scenario: Private purchase. Motor over 3 horsepower. Full three-year cycle. No lien.
Add $10 if a lien is recorded. If you title in year two of the cycle, swap $45 for $30.
Example 18: Complete deal — WV trade vs OOS trade
Scenario: Same $20,000 18-foot boat, full cycle, no lien. Compare a $4,000 qualifying West Virginia trade with a $4,000 out-of-state trade.
The boats can look identical on the water. Only Path A matches MB-6’s trade-in sentence.
Common questions
Is West Virginia boat tax 6%?
Yes, on net cost on the motorboat title application. Net cost is price minus a qualifying West Virginia trade-in only.
Does any trade-in reduce the tax?
No. Only vehicles or motorboats registered in West Virginia with taxes paid by the applicant.
Do I pay tax every three years?
The 6% is on the title application for the purchase or transfer. Registration renews on the three-year March 31 cycle at the length-class fee. That renewal is not another 6% on the same boat unless you are titling a new purchase.
What does an 18-foot boat cost to register?
$45 for a full cycle if the motor meets the 3 horsepower / 70-pound thrust rule, $30 in the second year, $15 in the third.
My motor is under 3 horsepower. Is everything free?
Registration fee can be $0. Title is still $15. Tax is still 6% of net cost.
Is there a county boat sales tax?
Not on the MB-6 tax line. Statewide 6%.
Can I mail this in?
Yes. DMV describes mailing with a check, or using a dealer.
What about a gift?
If net cost is $0, tax is $0 and title is still $15. Confirm with DMV. Money or an assumed loan is not $0 net cost.
When does the registration cycle end?
March 31, on a three-year cycle. Full-cycle, second-year, and third-year fees are different. Ask which year you are entering.
Is a 16-foot boat in the cheapest class?
No. Under 16 feet is $30 full cycle. Sixteen to 25 feet is $45. Sixteen feet even is not “under 16.”
I already paid tax where I bought the boat. Do I still owe 6%?
MB-6 collects 6% on net cost. This page does not subtract a credit for tax paid to another state. Ask DMV. The credit it does describe is a West Virginia–registered trade-in with taxes paid by you.
Does an electric motor count?
Thrust of 70 pounds is on the same threshold as 3 horsepower. Under both, registration fee can be $0 and title plus 6% still apply. At or above the threshold, length-class fees apply.
Before you sign
Put the purchase price on a bill of sale you can attach to DMV-MB-6. If you want a trade-in credit, the old vehicle or motorboat must be West Virginia–registered with taxes paid by you — not merely “traded.” Budget 6% of net cost, $15 to title, $10 if a lien will show, and the length-class registration for this point in the March 31 cycle — or $0 registration if you are under 3 horsepower and 70 pounds of thrust.
Measure length before you write the check. Confirm horsepower or thrust so you do not pay a $45 class you do not owe, or skip a $45 class you do. If you are mailing, copy the form, keep the hull number readable, and write the check for tax plus title plus lien plus registration — not for the boat price. The seller gets the purchase price. DMV gets the 6% and the fees. West Virginia DMV sets the amount on the title application and the motorboat fee chart.
- West Virginia DMV, Motorboats
- West Virginia DMV, DMV-MB-6 Application for Certificate of Title for Motor Boat
- West Virginia Code § 20-7-12 — registration fee schedule
This page estimates West Virginia’s 6% sales tax on motorboat net cost, plus title $15, lien $10, and the three-year length-class registration fees from the DMV’s official motorboat chart. West Virginia DMV sets the amount you pay.