You can apply for a New York State registration and a title certificate by mail from outside of New York. You will need to mail these items to a local DMV office [2] 1
You must contact the motor vehicle agency in the other state to determine if their laws require that you register your vehicles there. The definition of "resident" is different in each state. Read the NY State definition of 'resident.' 5
Once we process your application, we will send you these items in one package
Put the 10-day Inspection Sticker on your vehicle when you enter New York State (not before). Mark the box on the sticker that indicates you entered New York, and write the date you entered.
We will send you your title certificate separately. Allow up to 90 days to receive it from us.
It will take longer to receive your documents if you are outside of the United States.
To get your registration documents by express mail, enclose a pre-paid, pre-addressed express mail package with your application. Make sure the package can contain vehicle plates.
To have your registration documents mailed to an address that is different from what will be printed on your registration document, include a separate note with your Vehicle Registration/Title Application (PDF) [3] (MV-82), and clearly print the alternate address. Do not write the alternate address on your application. If you do, DMV will prints the alternate address on your registration document and registration record.
The DMV sends the title certificate to the mailing address on your registration application. The DMV cannot send the title certificate to another address.
Read the instructions for how to register an imported [5] vehicle.
Read the instructions for how to register a vehicle for someone [6] else to learn how to do this.
See acceptable proofs [7] for other vehicles (older than 1973, manufactured homes, boats, trailers, ATVs, snowmobiles, gifted vehicles, vehicles with deceased owners).
Your insurance company will:
1) give you 2 barcoded original NY State Insurance ID cards (see a sample [8]) or provide you with access to your digital electronic NY State Insurance ID Card
2) send an electronic notice of insurance coverage to the DMV (your insurance agent or broker cannot file this notice)
Your NY State Insurance ID cards and the electronic notice together verify your coverage. We need both.
You must register your vehicle within 180 days of the effective date on your Insurance ID Card. Provide one copy or form of your Insurance ID Card with you. The DMV office will keep the paper card. Keep the other paper card with the vehicle as your proof of insurance. Anyone operating your vehicle must be able to provide proof of insurance.
Learn more about NY State Insurance Requirements [9].
You must be at least 16 years old (except for ATV registrations).
A NY State Driver License, Learner Permit, or Non-Driver ID card that is current or not expired for more than 2 years can serve as proof of both identity and age.
If you don’t have one of these, see other kinds of proof [10] you can use.
If you are traveling and your registration expires, you should determine if the other state can issue an "in-transit" permit, which allows you to transport a vehicle to New York so that you can register it.
Definition of New York State Resident
Section 250 (5) of the Vehicle and Traffic Law defines the term 'resident.' The law defines a resident as a person who lives in NY State with the intent to make NY State a "fixed and permanent" place to live. To live in a house, a home, an apartment, a room or other similar place in NY State for 90 days is considered "presumptive evidence" that you are a resident of NY State. A police officer can use this evidence as the reason to issue a traffic ticket if you drive in NY State without a driver license or vehicle registration issued by NY State.
A judge considers the law and the evidence of your intent and decides if you are a resident of NY State. For example, if you pay taxes or your children attend school in another state, a judge considers these facts to decide if your intent is to make NY State a "fixed and permanent" residence. The DMV will not decide if you are a resident of NY State, if you must get a NY State driver license, or if you must register your vehicle in NY State.
According to this law, students from other states or from other nations who attend school in NY State are normally not considered residents of NY State.
Links
[1] https://dmv.ny.gov/print/1970
[2] https://dmv.ny.gov/offices/county-offices
[3] https://dmv.ny.gov/forms/mv82.pdf
[4] https://dmv.ny.gov/node/2086
[5] https://dmv.ny.gov/node/1972
[6] https://dmv.ny.gov/node/1971
[7] https://dmv.ny.gov/node/1986
[8] https://dmv.ny.gov/node/2130
[9] https://dmv.ny.gov/node/114
[10] https://dmv.ny.gov/node/4071
[11] https://dmv.ny.gov/forms/mv821.pdf
[12] https://dmv.ny.gov/forms/id82.pdf
[13] https://dmv.ny.gov/forms/mv82al.pdf
[14] https://dmv.ny.gov/forms/mv82gr.pdf
[15] https://dmv.ny.gov/forms/mv82ja.pdf
[16] https://dmv.ny.gov/forms/mv82pt.pdf
[17] https://dmv.ny.gov/node/2063