Excise Tax Collectors
Effective July 29, 2026, camper trailers subject to excise tax will be taxed on the basis of length, rather than manufacturer’s suggested retail price (“MSRP”). The law provides for an updated schedule annually that is multiplied by a cost-of-living adjustment based on the Chained Consumer Price Index. Each year’s schedule will be adjusted by MRS on or before September 15 and will apply to camper trailers with registration years that begin in the succeeding calendar year. The camper trailer excise tax schedule will be published annually in Property Tax Bulletin No. 6 – Taxation of Mobile Homes and Camper Trailers.
The length of a camper trailer may be available through documentation provided by the manufacturer of the camper trailer. In circumstances where the length of a camper trailer is not available through documentation provided by a manufacturer, excise tax collectors may find the length of a camper trailer in national vehicle appraisal guides, such as the JD Power Recreational Vehicle Appraisal Guide (formerly the National Automobile Dealers Association’s Guide). In circumstances where the length of a camper trailer has been modified or does not correspond with the length of the camper trailer when manufactured, the camper trailer should be measured along the length of the trailer in towable condition – i.e., it will be towed, meaning pop-outs are retracted, etc. Camper trailer length should exclude the hitch and any equipment or accessories that extend beyond the box length of the camper, such as bicycle racks.
2026 Camper Trailer Schedule for registration years beginning in calendar year 2026.
2027 Camper Trailer Schedule for registration years beginning in calendar year 2027.
Municipal Assessors
Camper trailers that are not operated on public ways and are affixed to the land, and for which an excise tax has not been paid, are subject to the property tax in the municipality where the camper trailer is located. Property affixed to land is taxed as real property; property not affixed to land is taxed as personal property. The Law Court has established the following, three-part test to determine whether property is affixed to land:
- [the camper trailer] is physically annexed, at least by juxtaposition, to land or some appurtenance thereof,
- [the camper trailer] is adapted to the use to which the land to which it is annexed is put, or the camper trailer and the real estate are united in the prosecution of a common enterprise, and
- [the camper trailer] is annexed with the intention on the part of the person making the annexation for the camper trailer to be a permanent accession to the land.
For additional information regarding camper trailers subject to the excise tax, see Property Tax Bulletin No. 6 – Taxation of Mobile Homes and Camper Trailers. For information regarding the camper trailers subject to the property tax, see Property Tax Bulletin No. 13 – Motor Vehicle Excise Tax and Personal Property Tax. For additional questions, contact MRS, Property Tax Division at prop.tax@maine.gov, or (207) 624-5600.