| Agency Name: | North Carolina Safety and Emission Vehicle Inspection |
| Jurisdiction: | State of North Carolina |
| Website: | NCDOT Division of Motor Vehicles |
North Carolina Safety and Emission Vehicle Inspection is responsible for ensuring that vehicles in North Carolina meet the safety and in some counties emissions standards. A fee is charged for the inspection of vehicles, and an extra fee if your vehicle has after-market window tinting.
North Carolina has a total of 100 counties. In all North Carolina counties, passenger vehicles under 30 years old require a yearly Safety Inspection. 48 of North Carolina’s 100 counties require inspected vehicles to undergo a yearly Safety and Emission inspection for vehicles that are model years 1996 or newer.
Passenger Vehicles over 35 years old are exempt from safety and emissions inspection.[1] In addition, any vehicle in one of the 48 Safety and Emission counties that has a Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) greater than 8,500 pounds only requires a Safety inspection.[2]
As of April 1, 2015 North Carolina General Statute 20-183.2 exempts certain vehicles within the most recent three model years, and having fewer than 70,000 miles on the odometer, from emissions inspection.[3] The NC Department of Environmental Quality provides a calculator to help determine if a particular vehicle may be exempt.
Safety inspection fees are $13.60. Emissions inspection fees, which include SafetyInspection, cost $30.00. After market window tinting costs an additional $10 for both inspections.[4]
To become a Safety Inspector in North Carolina, one must attend an eight-hour Safety Inspection course offered by a North Carolina Community College. At the conclusion of the class, the student is required to pass a fifty-question multiple choice written exam, scoring no less than eighty percent. Students who wish to perform both Safety and Emission Inspections must attend an additional eight-hour Emission Inspection class. Before beginning to work as an inspector, students must be certified by local Inspectors/Auditors. This process requires the students to successfully complete a live vehicle inspection administered by a Department of Motor Vehicle Representative.
A certified Inspector’s Safety license is valid for 4 years, while the Inspectors Emission license is valid for 2 years. Students are required to maintain these licenses by returning to a North Carolina Community College to re-certify.[5]