Obtaining a Satisfaction of Judgment, Registration Clearance or Vehicle Release

New York State will not register a vehicle or renew a registration for persons having 3 or more outstanding tickets and/or camera violations in in judgment within an 18-month period. If a motorist has 5 or more outstanding parking tickets in judgment within a 12-month period, vehicle registration will be suspended. If you cannot obtain or renew a registration due to outstanding parking debt, you must resolve the tickets, either by paying them or by having them dismissed at a hearing.

Satisfaction of Judgment
A Satisfaction of Judgment certifies your parking debt has been paid or the tickets have been dismissed.

Registration Clearance 
A Registration Clearance certifies your parking debt has been paid or the tickets have been dismissed. It allows you to obtain or renew your vehicle registration at the NYS Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) in person. If you prefer to pay all of your parking judgment debt online you will not receive a Registration Clearance however, you must also renew/register your vehicle online with the DMV. Just pay your judgment debt online and register your vehicle with the NYS Department of Motor Vehicles online. (Note: After paying online, you will have to wait up to 48 hours to register your vehicle with DMV for payments received before 6pm. For payments received after 6pm it will take up to 72 hours.)

Vehicle Release
A Vehicle Release certifies your parking debt has been paid or the tickets have been dismissed and allows you to redeem your towed vehicle.

How to Get a Satisfaction, Clearance or Release
Satisfactions, clearances, and releases are only issued after all judgment debt has been resolved, even if you are currently participating in a payment plan. If you need any of these documents and are not disputing the outstanding tickets, the fastest way to obtain one is to pay the full amount of the judgment debt in person at any one of Finance's Business Centers. You can pay with US currency, a certified or cashier's check or a money order drawn on a US bank; American Express, Discover, or MasterCard are accepted. The credit card must be in the vehicle owner's name.

Once the debt is paid, you must ask for an individual satisfaction, clearance, or release. These documents are not automatically given. You must then bring your documents to the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles in order to register your vehicle or redeem your towed vehicle.

Taxi and Limousine Plate Clearances
The City of New York Taxi and Limousine Commission does not issue licenses to Taxi and Limousine drivers who have outstanding parking tickets and/or camera violations. The Business Centers also issue individual Taxi and Limousine Plate Clearances when the driver or owner resolves the full violation debt owed.

If you have numerous vehicles with outstanding violations and need to obtain more than one Taxi and Limousine Clearance, you must contact Finance.

Write:
NYC Department of Finance
Collections Division, Dunning Unit
59 Maiden Lane, 28th Floor
New York, NY 10038