Online Payments

Dog Licenses and Vital Records

You can order and pay for a birth certificate, a death certificate, a marriage certificate or your dog license on line. Please note that if you are purchasing a dog license after March 30 and you are not a new resident or the dog is not new to you, you are subject to a late fee. Mass General Law requires that dogs over the age of 6 months be licensed within 30 days of moving into town.

Click here to order Birth Certificates, Marriage Certificates, Death Certificates, and/or Dog Licenses online.

Tax and Water Bill Payments

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You can pay your Real Estate Property Tax, your Personal Property Tax, your Motor Vehicle Excise Tax Bills and Water Bills online using our service above. You can also send electronic checks directly from your own bank or financial institution. Please include the type of tax payment and account/bill number you are making on the memo line of your electronic check.

This service allows you to use either an electronic check from your bank account or your debit/credit card. There is no charge to sign up for this service but there is a charge if you use your debit/credit card.

Electronic Checks will be charged $0.40 starting December 1, 2019.

The fee for a credit card payment is a percentage of the tax owed and is usually higher. A payment calculator is provided for your convenience when you register. These fees are charged by the financial institutions and NOT by the Town of Lancaster.

Motor Vehicle Excise Bills

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Every motor vehicle and trailer registered in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is subject to the motor vehicle excise unless expressly exempted. Registering a motor vehicle automatically triggers the assessment of excise, which is calculated at a rate of $25.00 per $1,000.00 of value. The Registry of Motor Vehicles is responsible for this valuation. Motor Vehicle Excise Tax is assessed on January 1 of each year. Vehicles registered during the year are issued a pro-rated excise tax bill for that year.

All of the information on your motor vehicle tax bill comes from the Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV) to the town. The vehicle owner must contact the insurance company and the Registry of Motor Vehicles to make address and other changes on a motor vehicle excise bill.

The Town mails motor vehicle excise bills to registered owners once a year or after a change in registration. Payments are due 30 days from the date of issue of the bill.

If the bill is not paid on the due date, a demand notice will be mailed adding a $15.00 fee plus interest. If an excise bill remains unpaid for 14 days after the issuance of the demand, the tax collector may issue a warrant to a Deputy Collector, which will add collection fees and could end with a mark at the Registry of Motor Vehicles. This mark at the RMV will prevent the registered owner from renewing a driver’s license or registering another vehicle.