Excise Tax Commitments Program

The Registry of Motor Vehicles’ (RMV) Excise Tax Commitments Program sends to municipalities (or their service provider) the excise tax commitments for the purpose of excise billing.  Excise Tax Commitment files are only available to municipalities or their authorized service provider. Each municipality has a file that must   be securely sent or transmitted using a Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) also known as batch file.

Municipalities can receive their community’s Excise Tax Commitment file directly or through a service provider that has been authorized to receive your community’s file. Municipalities can also choose to obtain Business Portal access to perform excise tax related tasks regardless of if a service provider is receiving their batch file.

To participate in the Excise Tax Program and/or to have access to the RMV system,  we require that all RMV Business Partners sign an Agreement for Access to Records and Data Maintained by the Registry of Motor Vehicles (“Access Agreement”) along with additional required documentation for this program.

RMV data contains Driver's Privacy Protection Act (DPPA) protected information, so your business must have a DPPA permitted use to access RMV data.  Your employees, contractors, and/or agents are required to have a background check before they can access RMV data, referring to Section 10 for the Government Access Agreement or Section 11 of the Access Agreement.   

Delivery Method

Excise Commitment files are delivered using the RMV’s Secure File Transfer Process (SFTP) MOVEit™.  You are required to download your file from MOVEit™ for processing in your own system to create Excise Bills. 
 
For more detailed information on the RMV’s Secure File Transfer Process (SFTP), please refer to the MOVEit™ section.

Excise Tax Commitments are delivered every two months starting in January with the last commitment being delivered in November.  Refer to the Excise Tax Commitment Schedule. 

The RMV has multiple methods of access to RMV data and records.  All municipalities must use Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP). This method is used to send and receive what are commonly known as batch files using a managed file transfer solution called MOVEIt™.  You can choose to use a Service Provider or access these files directly.

Business Portal: This real-time free service facilitates individual users logging into a web-based portal displaying native RMV screens. You can apply for business portal access even if you are using a service provider.

Depending on the type of access you have the Business Portal gives you the ability to:

• Inquire on drivers and vehicles
• Recommit excise to another town
• Update customer’s garaging address 

Web Services for Service Providers Only: This option facilitates real-time data exchange between your system and the RMV. They allow you to integrate the sending and receiving of RMV data into your system and business processes. Accounts are established using IP addresses and certificates provided by the carrier.

Municipalities can choose to have their Excise Tax Commitment files sent to a service provider on their behalf; an authorization letter from the municipality must be submitted to the RMV. Refer to the Changing Service Providers section for more details.

Municipality direct Access

Follow steps below to receive your Community’s Excise Tax Commitments directly:

Step 1: Create a signed and dated authorization letter on your municipality’s letterhead stating: 

• That you are requesting to receive your community’s excise tax commitment files directly, rescind authorization for service provider (if applicable) and include the effective date of the request.
• Indicate if you would like Business Portal access or SFTP or both
• Your letter must also include contact information, including address, phone number and email address, letter must be signed and uploaded as a .pdf 

Step 2: Register for access to the RMV's Community Portal as a New Business Partner. You will be required to upload your intent letter and proof of FEIN when registering. Only one person can register per business. (After approved registration, more contacts can be added.)  *If you are an existing business partner and do not have Community Portal credentials, contact rmvbusinesspartners@dot.state.ma.us and request a Community Portal logon. Skip to step 4.

Step 3: Once your registration is approved, you will receive an email with your Community Portal login credentials. This may take up to 5-7 business days.

Step 4: Log into the RMV's Community Portal to complete the process of becoming an RMV Business Partner for the program(s) you have selected.

The person submitting the request will receive notification when the documents are approved or rejected.  End users will receive an email with their login credentials once approved.   

Service Provider

A business may be authorized to become a service provider if they have obtained authorization from a municipality.

Step 1: Create a letter on your business letterhead stating why you need access to the RMV’s data and records.  Indicate the options for which you are seeking access to: SFTP via MOVEit, Web Services and/or Business Portal.

Step 2: Obtain a signed and dated authorization letter on the municipality’s letterhead stating:

• That you are authorized to receive municipality’s excise tax commitment files on their behalf, rescind any authorization for previous service provider (if applicable) and include the effective date of the request.
• The letter must include the processing service provider’s information i.e. company name, address, telephone number, contact person’s name & email address.
• The letter must also include contact information for the municipality, including address, phone number and email address, letter must be signed and uploaded as a .pdf 

Step 3: Register for access to the RMV's Community Portal as a New Business Partner.  You will be required to upload your intent letter and proof of FEIN when registering. Only one person can register per business.  (After approved registration, more contacts can be added.)

Step 4: Once your registration is approved, you will receive an email with your Community Portal login credentials. This may take up to 5-7 business days.

Step 5: Log into the Community Portal to complete the documents needed to become an RMV Business Partner for the program(s) you have selected.

The person submitting the request will receive notification when the documents are approved or rejected.  End users will receive an email with their login credentials once approved.

Changing Service Providers

For municipalities changing their service provider, follow the steps below.

Step 1: Letter can be sent by the municipality or the Service Provider. Create a signed and dated authorization letter on letterhead stating:

• State who the new Service Provider will be to receive the municipality’s excise tax commitment files, rescind any authorization for previous service provider (if applicable) and include the effective date of the request.
• The letter must include the processing service provider’s information i.e. company name, address, telephone number, contact person’s name & email address.
• The letter must also include contact information for the municipality, including address, phone number and email address, letter must be signed and uploaded as a .pdf  

Step 2: Log into the Community Portal to upload the letter.  If you do not have Community Portal credentials, contact rmvbusinesspartners@dot.state.ma.us and request a Community Portal logon.

The person submitting the request will receive notification when the documents are approved or rejected.  Once the Service Provider has been added to the municipality, notification will be sent to the requestor.

The RMV has a central location where business partners can communicate with the RMV.  The RMV's Community Portal is a portal business partners use to submit and receive documentation regarding RMV access to data and records.  New businesses will have a checklist of documents that will need to be completed.

Depending on the method of access, the following documents may be require to be completed in the RMV's Community Portal. 

• Access Agreement – depending on your business type the access agreement will be the standard or government version of the Agreement for Access to Records Maintained by Registry of Motor Vehicles.
  • Visit the RMV's Community Portal, click on: My Business & Programs, click on open details. In the Business Checklists you will find the Access Agreement, click on Complete Online
  • One agreement must be completed and signed by the signatory authority for your business.  The person getting access cannot be the person signing the Access Agreement.
• Business Partner User Request form (if applicable)
  • This form is used to identify each End User that will need access to the Business Portal. Each user that is requesting access to the Business Portal will need to complete this form.
  • It is recommended to have more than one user for coverage in case the current user is out on vacation, etc.
• Service Provider/Self Service Form
  • This form is used to collect the connectivity and access information. One form is needed for business that will be directly applying for all connectivity, except for the Business Portal.
• MOVEit™ Access Request Form
  • This form is used to select the transmission method for your file delivery.
• MOVEit™ End User Request Form
  • This form is used to create End User credentials for the End User(s) that will need access to MOVEit™ solution for file pick up.

If you would like to review the documents, please use the links below. 

• Sample: Agreement for Access to Records and Data Maintained by Registry of Motor Vehicles - Standard Business Partners
• Sample: Agreement for Access to Records and Data Maintained by Registry of Motor Vehicles - Government Business Partners 
• Sample: RMV Business Partner User Request Form (if applicable)
• Sample: Service Provider/Self Service Form
• Sample: MOVEit™ Access Form
• Sample: MOVEit™ End User Request form (if applicable) 

Once approved for receiving Excise Commitment Files, you will be sent the file specifications. 

Yes, for Business Portal users.  Users must watch the ATLAS Business Portal Training/Driver's Privacy Protection Act (DPPA) and Navigation - May 2023 to understand the DPPA law and learn how to navigate ATLAS.

Business Portal reference guides can be found: RMV System (ATLAS) Training

2026 Excise Tax Commitment Schedule

Community Portal- New Registration

Questions on the Excise Program and/or using the Business Portal 
RMVExcise@dot.state.ma.us

Questions on the Excise Program files
Atlas.municipalities@dot.state.ma.us  

Business Portal Access or Password Issues 
Rmvbusinesspartners@dot.state.ma.us

MOVEit Access or Questions 
cots_application_support@dot.state.ma.us