Mississippi Window Tint Law Guide
Mississippi window tint laws are rather straight forward, as they follow the general trend of the law across the nation. For those who are not familiar with the emerging body of law regulating the darkness of window tint, there are two measurements that apply to vehicles and law. The first of these is the darkness, which is typically referred to in the law as visible light transmission or VLT – or how "see through" the window tint is.
The other measurement used to determine whether or not window tint is illegal is called "reflectivity," and regulates how much glare the tint film puts off. Some states also regulate reflectivity as a percentage , but there are many others that instead cap reflectivity at a certain number of reflected units (RU).
In Mississippi, window tint laws require that films installed on sedans, SUVs and vans have a minimum VLT of 28% for the front and rear windows, along with the windshield. The front and back windows of trucks and SUVs must be at least 20% VLT. Reflectivity is limited on all windows to 20%. The law does not mention any other restrictions on tinting, such as rules on metallic tinting or mirrored tint, so these are permissible under the law. Any vehicle manufactured prior to 1976 is exempt from all tint regulations.
Passenger Vehicles Window Tint Laws
In Mississippi the law allows for front windows to have window tinted film of 70% visible light transmittance or other products having a 70% light transmittance. What this means is that the existing glass, not including the tint applied has to have a minimum of 70% light transmittance. So if you apply window tint that has a 4% VLT that is not considered legal. So those tints that create a mirror effect are highly illegal on the front windows of vehicles.
This is a stark contrast from the law governing passenger cars and trucks in that the rear windows of any car may be tinted with up to 20% light transmittance. This means that you can put a tint on the rears of your vehicle with 20% tint making for a very dark rear set of windows. Looking at the car from the outside you can not see the person in the rear seat at all in some cases.
For SUVs and vans, the law allowed the rear windows to be tinted with 20% light transmittance, however, the law specifically exempts SUVs and Vans allowing the rear windows to have 9% light transmittance making for a very dark tint especially considering the tinted windows that often come on the vehicle when it is purchased. This is an exception in the law that is probably not going to be altered anytime soon due to the lobbying power of large truck owners in the state of Mississippi.
While on the topic of tint, for those folks who like to use a heat lamp, you should be aware that Section 63-7-17 of the Mississippi Code contains language that prohibits the illegal and dangerous act of changing out the original front windshield glass and replacing it with a tinted plastic shield that is adhered by heat lamps. To be safe do not allow this to occur.
Commercial Vehicles Window Tint Laws
Commercial vehicles in Mississippi are subject to the same tint laws as passenger vehicles, with the exception that commercial vehicles that are over 10,000 GVW (gross vehicle weight) have additional tint restrictions on the front window and windshield. Although the tint law is generally the same, there are a couple differences for commercial vehicles.
According to the law, anyone purchasing new passenger vehicles for retail sale must have window tint that meets the requirements of the law. Because there is a law that already provides such requirements, it seems that this paragraph is only intended to apply to sales of large commercial vehicles (trucks, buses, etc.).
The original proposed version of the law would have imposed a commercial tint exemption on every driver and passenger window for all commercial vehicles over 10,000 GVW, but that was not included in the final version. However, the bill was amended to allow the Director of the Department of Revenue, upon request, to provide an exemption for "working conditions."
Other than this window tint exemption, the main tint law for commercial vehicles seems to the same as for passenger vehicles, except that the tint on the front windshield must allow at least 67% light. Also, the tint on the front side windows must allow at least 70% light (or allow at least 30% light if the manufacturer’s AS-1 line is within 6 inches of the window).
Window Tint Penalties
All owners and drivers of vehicles in Mississippi are required to have adequate and legal window tint on their cars, trucks, SUVs, and vans. Typical penalties for illegal tint are $25 per offense for first offenders, $100 for second offenders, and $250 for third offenders and subsequent offenses. The fine is assessed for each vehicle regardless of the number of occupants in the vehicle. If the offender is not carrying monetary funds in the court due at the time of assessment , it shall be a non-misdemeanor offense and the offender shall sign a promise to appear form signed by the individual to whom the citation was issued. The written promise shall be considered a waiver of the individual’s right to trial or hearing under this section. The individual shall submit adequate proof of removal of the illegal tint to the court as directed by the court. Every violation that occurs more than seven days after the issuance of the citation shall constitute a separate offense. It will now be a uniformed traffic offense to sell or offer for sale a motor vehicle that has been altered by illegal tint. The vendor shall be subject to a fine of $3 for each vehicle sold or offered for sale that has been altered in violation of the statute.
Tint Medical Exemptions
Some states offer exemptions for those who cannot tolerate bright sunlight or who may have other medical reasons for needing to avoid excessive exposure to the sun. Mississippi law does provide for exemption stickers, however, in order to legally have darker tint than state law allows, a medical certificate must be authorized. An exemption sticker goes on the lower corner of the windshield on the driver side, is only valid while that driver uses the car and must be presented with the following:
- Doctor’s certificate justifying the increased limit, specifying the particular vision-related problem the individual has and the doctor’s certification that special use of dark window tinting will be to the benefit or avoid greater impairment to the individual’s vision;
- Certificate must be signed by a licensed professional optometrist or ophthalmologist, is only for the qualified individual for whom it was issued and only on the vehicle for which it is registered;
- Certificate is good for five years and the $10 cost is a one-time fee; and,
- Application for the exemption is made through the Department of Public Safety and costs five dollars.
Selecting the Proper Window Tint
When selecting the right tint for your vehicle’s windows, the primary consideration should be to stay within Mississippi’s legal limits. Here, we share some practical tips on how to choose window tint that meets these requirements for the most common types of vehicles in use today, including cars, vans, SUVs and trucks.
Mississippi law prohibits any tint on the windshield of a passenger vehicle. The reason for this prohibition, of course, is safety.
There are no prohibitions on tinting for front and side windows, so you’re free to choose the amount of tint you like in these areas, as long as it doesn’t block more than 20 percent of the light entering the vehicle . In the rear windows and the rear windshield, any type of tinting is permitted.
When working with a professional tinting service, you should verify that any tinting products being used meet Mississippi’s legal requirements for tint – while the vast majority of professional tinting services are well aware of these regulations, it’s always best to check, just to be safe.
The percentage of tint refers to the amount of visible light that is allowed into the vehicle after the tint is applied. The lower the percentage of tint, the darker the window. At the same time, a window that blocks only 20 percent of the incoming light still allows 20 percent of available light into the vehicle, which can be essential for nighttime driving.