NJ is now charging a convience fee to renew registration online

[Vince_nj1]

NJ has a pretty good system that allows you renew your registration on-line and pay with a credit card. It has been up an running for a few years now. The past few years I remember a survey popping up asking how you like the website. Well the results must have been positive, because now they hit you with a "convience fee" of $2.00 to use it. And you don't know its there until you come to the payment screen. :smt013

My trailer registration used to be around $6. (if I remember correctly) Now it is $18 with a $2 convience fee. I'm not paying it. I'm mailing in a check. Just another BS tax.

I have 6 registrations that I have to renew. (2 jetskis, 1 trailer, 1 motorcylce, 2 vehicles) NJMV can now process 6 checks.

 

[douglee25]

They had a convenience fee for the past 2 years online. I paid it hastfully. After the registration process this year, I filled out the survey and explained how their 'convenience fee' was anything but a convenience.

Doug

 

[tmhudson2]

It's for their convenience, not yours.

 

[billandamy]

The funny thing is, they are now making even more money on registrations because it is that much less labor you have to pay.

I really wish I could run my business the way the guberment does. I'd love to tack on a few bucks here and there on my clients for when they use our bathroom or take some water or coffee.

 

[Alex F]

C'mon guys, you're picking on such small things like $2. BTW, it's been like this for at least past year or two. It's not like there's anything we can do to change that. So, I just pay for the convenience (at least for me it's more convenient to click few bottons than sending a check). We've got much bigger issues to address.......wait til you get the property reassesment bill. Economy is in resession and they're trying to raise property tax, fr....n briliant.

 

[billandamy]

C'mon guys, you're picking on such small things like $2. It's not like there's anything we can do to change that. So, I just pay for the convenience (at least for me it's more convenient to click few bottons than sending a check). We've got much bigger issues to address.......wait til you get the property reassesment bill. Economy is in resession and they're trying to raise property tax, fr....n briliant.

It's just one of a whole. $2 here, a few dollars there, and suddenly a whole new tax is created somewhere else. It is double taxation in my opinion. One of the things we supposedly got away from in the late 1700's, and a foundation we strived for.

It isnt the money per se, just the fact that you dont have a choice, nothing you can do about it.

ANywhere else in life, if I dont want to pay it, I can elect not to purchase said item and most likely find it somewhere else. The open market dictates, for the most part, what a consumer will pay.

This is not the case. I HAVE to register a vehicle/vessel/trailer etc. So they can decide whenever they want to simply double tax us, and we cant do squat about it because too many people say "it's onjly $2"

 

[midway]

I live in Georgia, they have had a fee for the car/trailer tags for several years for online, now the state is going the same way with hunting and fishing license renewals and probably boat registration renewals, computers are old so they are farming out to an outside source, hence the fee, less expensive than replacing the computer system, which is probably true. They just sign a contract and these guys take over. You will no longer be able to walk into the normal places that sold hunting and fishing license and buy one except in real remote areas that the internet is not common in.

 

[EKM]

Pay by mail convience fee...how stupid is that for the state. Once I realized I was paying $2 for each registration x 10 registration for cars and various toys, I started mailing them in. I usually put a few in each renewal env....no skin off of my nose.

 

[uraldyx]

It isnt the money per se, just the fact that you dont have a choice, nothing you can do about it.

On the contrary you do have a choice. It is a convenience charge. Thus many people would rather pay the $2 and submit it online rather than fill out the forms and mail it in or drive to the local BMV. Vince_nj1 made the choice not to pay it and filled it out the forms and send the checks in just as Alex F decided to pay the charge for his convenience. We all make a choice when we purchase our boats. We do the research on them as well as the cost of operating them, registration being one of the costs. As much as we think they are needed, they are still a luxary item. I agree we do not have to like the fees, however we have all made the choice own our boats.

 

[billandamy]

On the contrary you do have a choice. It is a convenience charge. Thus many people would rather pay the $2 and submit it online rather than fill out the forms and mail it in or drive to the local BMV. Vince_nj1 made the choice not to pay it and filled it out the forms and send the checks in just as Alex F decided to pay the charge for his convenience. We all make a choice when we purchase our boats. We do the research on them as well as the cost of operating them, registration being one of the costs. As much as we think they are needed, they are still a luxary item. I agree we do not have to like the fees, however we have all made the choice own our boats.

They know most people will now do this online, thus it is an easy way to reap the rewards of people not taking an hour lunch break or other time to sit there for an hour ;-)

Again, it goes to people saying "its only $2" so they pay it.

They are taking advantage of a situation.

 

[timinfla2]

It's just one of a whole. $2 here, a few dollars there, and suddenly a whole new tax is created somewhere else. It is double taxation in my opinion. One of the things we supposedly got away from in the late 1700's, and a foundation we strived for.

It isnt the money per se, just the fact that you dont have a choice, nothing you can do about it.

ANywhere else in life, if I dont want to pay it, I can elect not to purchase said item and most likely find it somewhere else. The open market dictates, for the most part, what a consumer will pay.

This is not the case. I HAVE to register a vehicle/vessel/trailer etc. So they can decide whenever they want to simply double tax us, and we cant do squat about it because too many people say "it's onjly $2"

That's exactly right - Tyranny and oppression is not one fell swoop, it's a death from one thousand cuts. There is a slow march by the government that will soon be making major decisions for you as we are far down the nanny-state slope. And all they ask for in return is the majority of the money you earn through your blood, sweat and tears.

Is $2 something to get mad about? Not really - what pisses me off is the gall of the bureaucrat that knew he could get away with it because the average citizen is already so used to these little govt hit jobs that we don't even blink.

 

[billandamy]

the average citizen is already so used to these little govt hit jobs that we don't even blink.

Better way to state it than anything I wrote previously.

 

[The Bill Collector]

State of Washington has no such convenience fee, but then of course my annual boat tabs are over $1,000.00 each year.

Now the local county I live in has learned of this new revenue stream and so when I renew my dog's license they ding me for the $2.00 convenience fee if I do it online..... So it's a .42 cent stamp and I net $1.58 in savings and with diesel currently running $2.50 gallon I'm getting almost 2/3 of 1 gallon....!!!:smt038

 

[Jack F]

How about getting a tax refund from the State and the next year a 1099 for that refund?

 

[douglee25]

How about getting a tax refund from the State and the next year a 1099 for that refund?

How can they do that? That's double taxation.

Doug

 

[Mr Salt]

If you do some math you will find out that the NJ Convenience fee about equals the charge that the credit card processor will hit the state with. I hate like hell to defend the state, but I have to at this moment. Having said that the use of the compute for renewing motor vehicle registrations should reduce the manpower that is required to process them---perhaps to -0-. The state would have to terminate employees to offset the credit card processor fees. What did I say the State of New Jersey reduce its head count--God forbid.

Mr Salt
2001 540 CPMY
Caterpillar C-12s
Cape May, NJ :huh:

 

[Vince_nj1]

Everyone knows its cheaper to process the transaction on line, since there is no manual intervention. If anything, they should charge a processing fee for mailing in a check. It's just another way the gov trys to raise money with out calling it a tax.

A few other examples of NJ extracting more $ from me.. (As if my real estate taxes arent high enough)

Tax filings:
When filing your tax return, you can mail it for free or pay a fee to do an electronic submission..

EZ-pass:
First it was free with discounted tolls, now the toll discount is gone and there is a $1 monthly service fee while they float a $25 balance. (multiply $25 by every EZ-pass holder and see how much money they grabbed)

Auto Leases:
Then there was the policy change for leasing a vehicle. It used to be that you would pay sales tax with each payment, now you are required to pay the sales tax on all of the payments up front and pay for 4 years of registration. If your vehicle is totaled or stolen you have to apply for a refund.

 

[Jack F]

How can they do that? That's double taxation.

Doug

Massachusetts

 

[Vince_nj1]

What did I say the State of New Jersey reduce its head count--God forbid.

Speaking of NJ headcount.. I have a good friend who is a Police Sergeant in North Jersey.. He is making over 100K and he tells me that his raise will be over 6% this year. He expects to retire at 55 with 80% of pay.

80% of pay at 55 and 6% a year in raises.. nice.

I can't remember the last time I saw a corporate pay raise average more than 4%. I think the average pay raise in my company is going to 3.2% this year.

 

[Vince_nj1]

How about getting a tax refund from the State and the next year a 1099 for that refund?

Its only added back as income if you itemized your deductions in the prior year and included state taxes paid as a deduction.

So lets say you actually paid $5000 in state taxes in year 1 (either through witholdings or estimated payments).

When you file your federal tax return for Year 1 in April of Year 2, you would list $5000 state taxes paid on your schedule A.

Then at the same time you complete your state tax return for Year 1 and determine that you should only have paid $4000 which entitles you to a $1000 refund.

When this happens you are required to add the $1000 refund back to your income in year 2. The net effect is that you only get a deduction for the actual net tax paid of $4000.