Question: I plan to store my motorcycle and not drive on public roads. It is currently registered (2015 year) with the city. How do I surrender my single license plate? The website only addresses surrendering plates when moving out of state. Are there any additional documents I need to accompany the plate? What about the balance of tax/license fee, which expires in November? Is it partially refunded?
Answer: To store a vehicle, the registered owner is required to fill out a "Statement of Fact for a Stored Vehicle" affidavit, which can be found online at bit.ly/19mk4VN or picked up at any of the nine satellite city halls.
After filling it out, dating it and signing it, the registered owner should take the form to any satellite city hall along with a current and valid certificate of motor vehicle registration and the license plate(s), said Sheri Kajiwara, director of the city Department of Customer Services.
Official storing of a vehicle stops all future registration fees from being assessed and removes the vehicle from use, which includes parking, on public roadways, she said.
There is no additional fee to place a vehicle in storage.
However, Kajiwara pointed out that the registration must be current, meaning all registration taxes and fees have been paid in full. No refund is given for taxes/fees paid while the vehicle is in storage. (See bit.ly/1bvfyWz.)
Once the owner provides the affidavit and motor vehicle registration certificate and surrenders the plates, he/she will be given a registration certificate with the notation that the license plate was turned in and the vehicle is in storage.
As stated on the affidavit, the license plate will be disposed of once the registration has expired, Kajiwara said.
You weren’t able to find the pertinent information online because it somehow did not "migrate over" to
the city’s honolulu.gov website when it was revised recently.
"We will be working to include this information on our pages," Kajiwara said.
Question: I moved to Hawaii permanently on Aug. 19 after I sold my primary residence in Illinois. I moved into a condo in Honolulu. When must I begin filing state income tax forms? Some people say I must start filing effective Aug. 19. Others say that to be considered a resident of Hawaii, you must be here for 270 days and meet some other conditions. Can you please explain the rules for new permanent residence of Hawaii? With the number of people moving to Hawaii, I am sure other readers want to know the rules.
Answer: Once someone becomes a Hawaii resident, the general rule is that the person is taxed on their "worldwide income," said Mallory Fujitani, spokeswoman for the state Department of Taxation.
This means once you become a resident here, the state will tax all your income.
Individuals who are residents part of the year, as well as anyone who moved permanently to Hawaii in 2014, should file Form N-15 for the 2014 tax year, she said.
Your Hawaii residency would be from Aug. 19 through Dec. 31.
These dates should be entered at the top of the first page of Form N-15, Fujitani said.
She further explained that Column A on Form N-15 is where you report your total income; Column B is where you report Hawaii income.
"In this case, for the 2014 tax year, only income received after Aug. 19, 2014, will be subject to Hawaii tax," Fujitani said.
For more information on how to report specific items, she said to check Form N-15 and N-15 instructions, available on the Taxation Department’s website, tax.hawaii.gov.
Mahalo
To the person who found my handbag and turned it in to Times Super Market on South Beretania Street. When I realized I had left it there, I rushed back and was relieved to see it on the shelf. Mahalo to Times and to the person who turned it in. May you be blessed for being caring and honest. — A Very Grateful Senior
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Write to “Kokua Line” at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu 96813; call 529-4773; fax 529-4750; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.
