Tax Collector FAQs

No. Bills can’t be paid by phone.

After a parcel has been in tax title for 180 days, the Town may choose to initiate foreclosure on the property through the Land Court in Boston.

If a taxpayer cannot immediately clear their delinquent taxes, but wishes to avoid foreclosure, they may choose to enter into a payment plan with the Treasurer, 978-464-2105,  to pay off the tax lien over a specified number of months.

Pay with cash at the office, in person, during normal business hours

• Include remittance copy from the top of your bill to ensure your payment is properly credited
• Do not send cash by mail
• Do not leave cash in the mail slot

• Please make one payment per bill
• If we cannot determine which bill you are paying, we will mail your check back and ask that you return it with the appropriate bill form
• To avoid having these types of checks returned to you, please make sure that it is clear what type of bill is being paid, and please include the bill number and year

• You must pay online.
• UniBank, our banking partner, will charge a nominal processing fee for credit card payments
• A fee schedule is located on the welcome page for your convenience

• Checks must be made payable to “Princeton”
• Checks cannot be post-dated, that is, dated in the future.
• Include remittance copy from the top of your bill to ensure your payment is properly credited
• We do not accept checks made payable to a third party, even with an endorsement
• In certain cases of delinquent bills, personal checks are not accepted

The statutory excise rate is $25 per thousand dollars of value. See MA Citizen Information on Motor Vehicle Excise Tax  for details.

See How Much Did I Pay in Taxes Last Year.

The payments must be received on or before the due date to avoid interest charges. If payment is not made, the account will begin to accrue interest at the rate of 14% per year, computed from the date the bill was due. A demand notice will be sent after May 1. A demand fee of $15.00 per bill will be charged against the account in addition to the interest. If the account remains delinquent after May 14 of the fiscal year, a tax lien will be placed on the property and recorded with the Registry of Deeds. A tax lien is the first step in the foreclosure process.

• The penalty is 1% of the face value of the check with a minimum charge of $25
• If your check is returned to us, we will not redeposit it until we have collected the $25 penalty charge
• If the penalty is not paid, we will charge back the payment to the appropriate account
• If the insufficient funds check was in payment of a tax bill, and if the payment due date has passed, interest and all other applicable fees will be charged to the account