Everything, the website is not user friendly. Two years in a row they don't send out registration renewal. Kiosk won't work, on hold multiple times for over 47 minutes only to be hung up on. Last month dropped in to register new vehicle, 3 hour wait time. Extremely inefficient. But hey if I didn't want to register my vehicle for the last 10 years and park anywhere and accumulate trash for a year no one would say a word. read more

Simple instructions to renew your registration . I thought it would be more difficult but it was quite easy. read more

Thank you for everything that you do for the Oregon community! I am currently working in a temporary job out of state and my license expired on my birthday a week ago. Since I have to rent a car while I'm out of state, I have been stressed thinking about renewing my license. Your online system and your personnel made all those worries disappear. I went online and the system was extremely easy to use and fast. I also called the customer service number and your staff conformed that my request was being handled in a timely manner and that I would receive my updated license in a matter of days. I have not always been an Oregonian, and I can tell you that other state DMVs are hell. But not you. You guys are rock stars, and my family and I highly appreciate the quality service you provide. "She flies with her own wings" read more

The virtual assistant that DMV uses is worthless. It gets everything wrong. One of the month stickers fell off my license plate and the virtual assistant dragged me down numerous rabbit holes before transferring me to a human. read more

The lady working the reception desk today 12/10/2025. At the Oregon South Salem DMV Is by far the rudest person I have ever talked to zero people skills seems to think i work for her if she does not like her job maybe she should quit I was hoping this crappy attitude with people at the DMV had got better I was wrong she does not have to be so snippy and condescending to people ! read more

It's really hard to recommend a DMV, but they get things done and pretty quickly for the town

Minus 400 stars. Kn hold for 47 minutes, Tuesday afternoon. Just hung up, it's hopeless. It's 4:07 pm. Dumpster fire state, mismanaged and misdirected, it's achieved an all-time low. Ineptitude arrogance, condescension and NO CUSTOM SERVICE. Positively abysmal. read more

I know it's unpopular to give a good rating to the DMV, but I have to because I just had a very good experience. I made a big mistake, and I was so worried it would take hours and hours to resolve and maybe a bunch of money too. I called in and waited in the queue. It was less than ten minutes. Probably just by chance of when I called, and had I called at another time I might have not rated the DMV so highly. A representative named Johnny answered. Johnny listened to me describe what I had done and offered me a nearly painless solution. The solution cost me all of ten bucks and ten minutes of my time. Yay! Thanks Johnny. read more

On 11/20/2024, I called the Salem branch of the Oregon DMV. After a decent wait I was able to get the process started for my travel trailer registration. The customer service rep, an individual I wish I could name, took great pride in helping me from start to finish. This individual was very professional, kind and extremely knowledgeable of the process of online registrations. I was multitasking at the time thus making a few errors in the process. Patience, pride in work, and just great customer service was exactly what I received. Thank you so much to the individual that assisted me....a job well done read more

First of all "Chris" is a God Send to all who enter this place. Looks like an FBI field office from the outside. But after you get here and plead your case she moved heaven and earth to make it Happen. The normal process to do this is mail it in and wait approx 3 weeks to process the paperwork because of shortages, but I took it upon myself to drive up here and initially she looked at me like I was nuts but once I told her my story she made it happen with the help of 3 other office staff. After 38yrs my son and I are now in business for ourselves. This has been a dream for a lot of years but always was to afraid of rejection to do anything about it. But once you put your fears away and face them head on with the help of wonderful people like Chris it can happen. Thank you so much for all you did today for me. God Bless your special like your Unicorns. Respectfully M. Hudson read more

seem to do an adequate job getting title out to us after mailing it in, havent had a problem thus far.

If you're calling, call early in the day. It helps a lot. Hilmi with Salem DMV Headquarters did a fantastic job of helping me to understand the salvage title and re-issuing of a rebuilt title procedure, when dealing with a California insurance company, whose insured driver backed into my car at a high speed, totaling it, while I was on vacation. Hilmi spent 20 minutes on the phone with me, simplifying the procedures I'd need to follow, making sure that I was taking all the right steps to keep my vehicle and keep driving it. 1: apply for salvage title. 2: provide proof to insurance company. 3: receive payout. 4: fix it enough to drive it (if it's still drivable--which it is, since it is just a body panel and a door that got dented). 5. reapply for a new reconstructed title after I have repairs done and my mechanic say it's still drivable. 6. carry my old plate over if it's still good. I now get the insurance payout, I get to fix the car enough to drive it on my own, and I get to use the money from the insurance company to use for those repairs. Anything left over, I keep. They provide payment in the value of the vehicle. I also had the option to relinquish my vehicle to the insurance company, and they would pay more, but I would have to buy a whole new car. Since I know some people who do rebuilds all the time, it was easy to find someone to fix the dents and have a little left over for a rainy day and other car costs down the road. Hilmi called the DMV office at Mall 205 to make sure that they would take my form in person and give me proof right there, to send to the insurance claims office. He was polite, patient, and extremely knowledgeable. I would also like to give a shout out to Leslie at the DMV at Hayden Meadows for being knowledgeable and helpful as well. Just a great experience. I've had nothing but good times with both offices. I don't know why so many one star reviews are being posted here. Maybe it's not customary to give the DMV a five star rating, and that said, I think it's really important to give props where props are deserved. Thank you DMV, Oregon. Please keep doing a great job. It's helpful to make an appointment so that you get taken care of right when you get in. If you do, they won't take you early, but you'll be able to manage your time better. And, I do walk in and take a number sometimes, and it usually goes pretty quickly. Overall, great agents. I'm not sure why the information desk agent at Mall 205 DMV told me that I had to mail in a salvage title request and that I would not be allowed to submit it in person. Hilmi straightened that out with his manager, when they placed me on hold and took the time and trouble to call Mall 205 and confirm that I'd be able to submit my form in person. Lastly, unpopular opinion time. I don't blame the DMV for taking a long time on the phone sometimes. The more people who come to Oregon, the fewer resources we have available. That's not to say that people didn't get f***ed over during COVID. I know some of us were applying for duplicates and re-registered licenses and got caught without a way to renew. That, and Portland (and Oregon) overall have become super popular. With some people still making and moving here with big families, all those children grow up and want to drive cars. The more people we have, the more needs arise. It makes everyone unhappy. Thank you again, Leslie and Hilmi, and everyone else working for the DMV. It's a thankless job, and I have had conflicting information from multiple agents at various locations; however, I want to make sure the good agents and offices get their good reviews. Thanks DMV HQ and Hayden. read more

What a futile trip to tail chasing land. Purchased a 2020 Subaru Ascent from Wilsonville Subaru in June. Almost October, and the registration and license plates ate nowhere. Dealership has been awful to try and deal with. DMV got hands off! After Covid, and got a couple emails stating no appointments, do it online..., blah, blah. Hello, Wilsonville Subaru? Can you help? " Do not worry, its Covid time!" Like in the south when a simple task can take a few months? No, I was conned, and stupidly believed them. Then, the whole damn state caught on fire! If you are thinking about any transaction w a vehicle in Oregon right now..,,DON'T!! Getting your vehicle registered will suck the life blood from you. If you were senseless enough to buy a vehicle at Wilsonville Subaru , don't expect them to render assistance. They will just cackle while you go lifeless from the blood loss! Can we just have cars w no registration? read more

I sent in my application for Oregon license plates July 2020, waited 10 weeks and heard/received nothing. Finally, in November I called Salem and was told something was missing on my paperwork so they returned my application, VIN inspection and title to me Sept 8th. I asked "what address did you send it to?" They goofed, sent it to a SE street number and I live in NE, and the wrong street number." I was told, "we get 1400 pieces of mail a day and we have 'flagged' yours - when it's returned we'll send it to you." I am a calligrapher, my writing is very clear, the person addressing the envelope goofed big time. The envelope was never returned to the Salem office. (7 months ago!) I have since paid for and received a duplicate WA title, I will have to pay for a new VIN ID check. I don't really want to mail this to Salem office again for plates. When will car license plate offices open for IN PERSON SERVICE? I was able to get an Oregon driver license quite easily months ago. read more

They can't help doing anything but pass the buck. Why do you have your address on papers if you can't help? Receptionist was very snooty.

*Attention DMV legal team** My legal rights have been violated by the DMV . I have the legal right too Renew my license Up until the very day of my birthday, Which was taken away from me by the DMV when they closed the DMV to walk-in appointments. The DMV did not provide a Viable alternative in order for me to complete my obligation by the due date. The only way to renew my license was to make a appointment, but it was a 2 month backup to get a appointment. I went to the DMV weeks before my final due date but the DMV was closed to walk ins. I went home and made an appointment but the backup was 2months which put my appointment after the deadline. The DMV put up barriers and gates which made it Impossible for me to fulfill my obligation by the due date. After doing some research I found that I'm not the only person experiencing this issue, there are a lot of us out here that have had our legal rights taken away from us by the DMV. This will cost hundreds maybe thousands of people extra charges and extra time. They will have to take time off work, for example I will have to take off 2days off work and pay extra charges. I feel any reasonable person could see I did everything possible to fulfill my obligation by the due date. The DMV could and should give me and others a Extension . it's the only right thing to do under the Circumstances. read more

Sandra at the Salem DMV is the kindest and most patient employee you have. She brightened my day and it's people like her that remind me that something as daunting as the DMV can be so pleasant when you hire the right people. Thank you Sandra! -Andrea read more

Only gets 1 star so that I can post a review. Oregon does not release your liability when you file a Bill of Sale. This means that you are responsible (as the registered owner) for this vehicle until the new owners file a registration. I have been receiving toll booth invoices from other states for a vehicle I sold (and filed a Bill of Sale for) nearly a year ago. In order to file the required paperwork to release my liability for these charges in several other states, I need the Oregon DMV verification of the Bill of Sale filing date. This information is not available on your DMV2U account as it only notes a flag that a Bill of Sale has been filed. After waiting on hold for over 40 minutes I was hung up on by the DMV employee when I got mad that I had to pay for the documentation of my filings. It is preposterous that I have to pay for a record of my own filings, gather all of the documentation I have already sent to Oregon DMV, and file appeals affidavits in other states because Oregon DMV gives prior owner information to states on vehicles that are being driven illegally by the new owners. Filing a Bill of Sale should release the ownership of the vehicle from the seller and the vehicle registration should be canceled if the buyer does not file for registration within the 30 day date of sale period. read more

Why with all the increased fees are drive tests scheduled 3 months out? The local woodburn and Salem offices are great and helpful but unfortunately have to use the main DMV to schedule tests. Something is wrong here when people have to resort to using shady second rate companies like odec to take their tests, with the outrageous fees being paid to them, dmv needs to open more testing centers read more

As a Washington resident I'm spoiled by quality and quick service. I came to pay a licence reinstatement fee the front desk told me they need to call verify the ticket is paid. It's 2019 you can't just log into a database and get that info also im forced to either mail in payment or physically go into an office I can't pay by phone or by secured payment on the internet. Maybe with the revenue you're going to generate from tolling i5 and 205 you could put some money into updating your outdated dmv. read more

I have been trying to get a hold of the dmv for 3 hours. Every time someone answered they would hang up on me. I know it is not my phone because I called a lot of other people today to make sure and it works just fine. I even tried my friend's phone but still the same result. Fix your shit DMV, this is unprofessional and I can't get a hold of anyone to help me. read more

If you have an out-of-state lien/loan on your car, be warned that the process for registering and getting your plates can, and likely will, take 4+ months. And over $300. Yes, seriously. What doesn't help is that there is next to no USEFUL info on the site, so I was completely blindsided by both the costs and time. Here is a summary of the process thus far: 1. I started the process for getting new plates and registering on 12/17/2017. I took a basic knowledge test ($7) due to being out of state, and a VIN inspection (~$10 I believe, might be $7 as well). The paperwork itself is easy. The fees total a little over $200 or nearly $400 depending on what kind of car you're registering. I had to submit a packet of paperwork to my lienholder, and then wait for them to send everything to the Salem DMV. In theory, the Salem DMV would then log all my info and everything would be peachy. That day I received 1 of 2 allowable trip permits. Each one is $32 and lasts 21 days. 2. I received a letter from my lienholder stating that they mailed everything on 01/05/2018, via express. So it would have gotten there on 01/08/2018 at the latest. At this point I was thinking "Awesome! I'll have my plates in a couple weeks!" Yeah, no. 3. ^That same day I went to the DMV again to get my 2nd (and last) trip permit. Again, $32 and only lasts 21 days. At this point I was under the impression that my plates would arrive in the mail soon. 4. On 01/25/2018 I visited the DMV because my last trip permit was about to expire. I was told they could possibly give me a temporary tag, IF my paperwork had been logged by the Salem DMV. At that point I'm thinking "Well, obviously they logged it by now, it arrived nearly 3 weeks ago." WRONG. Was told I could either pay another $200+ fee to get a temp tag (and redo and resubmit ALL MY PAPERWORK), or to just go **** myself in so many words. I also found out that it can take 3-5 weeks after everything has been processed to get my plates. So now it's 01/31/2018 and I've been calling and have been told that my paperwork still isn't logged. At this rate I may not get my plates until March or April, and that's assuming everything has gone smoothly. Wth! I have registered and plated this exact car in 2 other states and both times it was an in-and-out affair, and certainly much less costly. Get your **** together Oregon. At the very least, update your website with usable information and warn people that you are completely inept and understaffed. read more

Every person that works at this facility is a fucking dumbass. None of the people know anything about anything, they send you on a fucking goose chase in order to register your car from out of state. I have been trying to register my car for 3 fucking months. THEY CASHED MY CHECK AND TOOK MONEY FROM MY ACCOUNT BUT REFUSE TO SEND ME MY NEW OREGON PLATES. They make things 100% more difficult then they need to be, they are rude, disrespectful and don't give a flying fuck about what they put people through. I should not have to jump through this many hoops just to register my car, at this point, its the DMVS own pathetic fault that I am illegally driving with expired tags. every. single. employee there. Is. garbage. read more

I tried calling Salem DMV headquarters to check the status of my replacement title. I had to mail in a paper application and check old-school style because there is no option for doing so online or in-person. Several weeks had gone by and I hadn't heard anything. I had to wait 45 minutes just to get through to someone. I asked about some concerns I had for the application, including the correct amount of money I am expected to pay. I explained that we weren't able to get through previously because the phone just hung up on us or because of incredibly long wait times. I explained that we had perused the website to the best of our ability but still couldn't get a clear or concise answer on the amount. With no apologies whatsoever said 'customer service' rep said I had the wrong amount. By less than $5. I was then told that because they are short their demanded fee my application will most likely be thrown out. I have been waiting several weeks already. I asked if they could make a note to save the application so I can just resend the check, but apparently it's impossible. Look, everyone is inundated and overwhelmed with COVID related issues, but frankly the Oregon Dmv's response is an abysmal failure to process important and time-sensitive materials properly. In the midst of basically no in-person transactions or very limited ones, you would think they would at least take the time to update their website and make it easier to do self-service on-line in a modern and efficient manner. It is appalling and ridiculous that in the midst of this crisis we are all additionally being sent back to 1980 where there are no modern amenities or services available. In this world where I am still expected to have my title to register my car in my new state of residence this lack of understanding and basic effort is disgusting. Now I have to resend my entire application. And it could be two months, maybe more before it's even processed!! HA!! In the meantime, what do I do about the registration needs of my current state? THEY are kind enough to at least give me a little extra time. In the entire conversation I had with this person I did not receive one apology or bit of understanding. I asked several times if there was ANYTHING they could do to help, and got a resounding "NO". All they were able to do was tell me they would need more money to simply send me an extra copy of a title that already exists!! I'm so disgusted with Oregon DMV. In the midst of a crisis it is YOUR JOB AND RESPONSIBILITY TO FIND NEW WAYS TO ADEQUATELY SERVE AND CARE FOR THE PEOPLE'S NEEDS. "NEEDS" I say because you are forcing making them as needs. So MAKE IT ACCESSIBLE, REASONABLE, MODERN, EFFICIENT AND FAIR. You are taking out your own failures and disorganization on innocent people. And that's unacceptable. read more

Screwed up filing my medical card for my CDL and are now threatening to cancel my CDL privileges indefinitely... because of a mistake they made. I'm going to make sure if I miss any work because of their error that I'm paid back for any time I missed. read more

Be warned, DMV headquarters loves wasting people's time. I am out of state and needed to get a title for a trailer from my mother who passed away. She did not register it in her name for whatever reason but I had paperwork to back up ownership. I had a Power of Attorney, but not a bill of sale. For 10 months it was back and forth the mail. They would take 30 days to respond, so contacted a phone rep twice before sending the mail out. Each time they would say "this is all we need." It was never the case, they kept asking for more and new things. Instead of being up front about all the documents needed, they kept changing the requirements and kept wasting time. I finally have the title but only after 10 months. read more

So I know that not that many people have anything good to say about the DMV, but this is an important piece of information that needs to be known by the public: When I recently moved to Salem, OR around 6 months ago and applied for a driving license up here, there were a number of sample tests available on the website for practice. Now that my Mom is applying for a driving license and she desired to review these tests on line prior to taking the real test, they are now NO LONGER AVAILABLE. When I called and spoke to the customer service rep, Josh, (who graduated from somewhere special I believe) he stated that the tests were no longer available and he does not know why they have been removed from the website... well Josh, let me enlighten you to why they are no longer available. Everyone knows that there has been a migration of population to Oregon from both California and Utah... Oregon Bureaucracy has noticed this as well and has there for instituted regulations to make it more difficult in order to obtain your driving privilege... thus removing the on-line sample tests not allowing prospective test-takers to properly prepare before the exam... ultimately causing more systematic failures and producing revenue for the state. Congratulations to you, you young, arrogant piece of Bureaucratic shit who just earned yourself a percentage raise... I am disgusted with Oregon right now... try to at least stand out from the rest of your neighboring states. read more