Resident Resources
Miscellaneous
Tax Related
Voting
Any person who has not been declared mentally incompetent, who is or will be 18 years of age on or before the next general election, and has not been convicted of a disenfranchising felony crime may register to vote in the county in which they reside. All voters must be registered no later than 30 days prior to an election.
You will be asked to provide your full (including maiden) name, physical and mailing address, date of birth, social security number and/or Mississippi driver’s license number. You will also be asked if you have ever registered anywhere before.
All Mississippi voters must provide current (issued within the past 10 years) and valid government issued photo identification when voting, or they will be required to vote by affidavit ballot. Most voters present their driver’s license. Should you require a voter identification card, you must contact our office at (601) 964-8663 *ext. 3. You may visit the Secretary of State’s website for more information regarding voter identification in Mississippi.
No, you must visit our office to update.
There are several polling places available throughout the county. Most are located at your local Community Center. You can call the Perry County Circuit Clerk’s office at 601.964.3398 for your nearest location.
Voters who are over 65 years of age, permanently or temporarily disabled, or temporarily residing outside the county are eligible to cast an absentee ballot via mail or in person. Other voters who will be outside the county on election day or meet other certain criteria may cast an absentee ballot in person in the clerk’s office. Absentees are available 45 days prior to an election, and the deadline for casting those ballots will be noon on the Saturday immediately preceding the Election Day.
Should a permanently disabled voter wish to have an absentee ballot mailed to them each and every election without filing a new request each time, they may submit a Permanent Disability Statement signed by their healthcare provider.
Special accommodations are made for US citizens living temporarily abroad and active duty military and their spouses. These voters may vote by several different means, including by email or online. Voters who meet these requirements are encouraged to submit a Federal Post Card Application (FPCA) as soon as possible. Each FPCA will be active for all elections in the calendar year in which it is received.
Absentee ballots are now a final vote. Once an absentee ballot has been issued to a voter, they will be unable to vote a regular ballot at the polling place. However, these voters will be allowed to cast an affidavit ballot instead. Should there be a problem with the absentee ballot which causes it to be rejected, the affidavit ballot will be examined by the resolution board to determine if it should be counted.
Jury Service
All registered voters who are over the age of 21, have not been convicted of a felony crime, and have not been permanently excused from jury service are eligible to be a juror. Juries are pulled four times a year (February, May, August, and November) for each court term.
ONLY A CIRCUIT JUDGE MAY EXCUSE A PERSON FROM JURY SERVICE. Persons over 65 years of age may be excused from jury service by calling our office. Persons needing to be excused for medical reasons should provide the court with a note from his/her physician stating they are unable to serve. Full-time students and people who work out of town (staying away from home overnight, i.e. construction or oilfield workers or truck drivers) may also sign affidavits and request to be excused; however, this excuse is not automatic.There may be other circumstances for jury exemption, but those must be presented to the court for the judge to rule on in open court. Please contact the clerk’s office for more information.
Only persons over the age of 65 or persons of any age with a PERMANENT disability (a physician’s note must be provided) can be permanently excused as jurors upon receipt of a signed affidavit.
Jurors are paid $40/day for jury service and the state mileage rate for mileage outside the county seat.
Jurors must call (601) 964-8663 *ext. 3, on Friday before the Monday report date for further instructions.
Federal jury summons cannot be handled by the local circuit clerk. You must contact the jury clerk listed on your summons. If you need assistance contacting the federal court, give us a call at (601) 964-8663 *ext. 3.
Title and Registration
Yes. You may also be eligible for a credit against future taxes. If the tag has not expired, take the tag and your original receipt to the Tax Assessor/Collector’s office for a credit voucher.
Car and truck tags are issued by the Tax Collector’s office. You have seven (7) working days from the date of purchase to register your vehicle. New residents moving from another state have 30 days to obtain a new plate. It is helpful to bring your automobile registration and/or title. New residents from another country in Mississippi can wait until their new renewal to change plates. Tags are usually valid for a period of one year from the date issued.
Unfortunately, no. However, Disabled American Veterans (70% and up) do qualify for a discount. Original award letter with percentage is required.
Yes! Call the Tax Assessor/Collector’s office at 601.902.4510 with the year, make, model, & VIN. Our amount is an estimate.
Typically, 2-8 weeks.
Your renewal card that is sent through the mail is a great option! If this card is not accessible, please bring in the VIN or tag number, along with year/make/model.
* Transferring in from another county in MS –
You MUST bring valid proof of county residence (such as light or water bill, Driver’s License, rental agreement)
* Transferring in from another state –
Do you finance your vehicle? If so, you MUST bring:
Current out of state registration, lienholder information (name, mailing address, start date of lien), AND valid proof of county residence
Do you have your title? If so, you MUST bring:
Title and valid proof of county residence
Land Tax
Land tax bills are sent out every year at the end of November.
By law, we cannot accept land tax payments until DECEMBER 1st of every year.
Taxes are due on or before February 1st of every year. A 0.5% penalty is applied each month until August.
Yes! All unpaid property taxes are auctioned off each year. This auction is ALWAYS held on the LAST MONDAY of August.
Yes! At the beginning of August, our office goes through our unpaid land parcels. These parcels are posted in the Richton Dispatch for the public to view.
Yes! If your property is your PRIMARY residence, there are a few different kinds of exemptions.
Some of these qualifications are:
– Regular Homestead Exemption
– Over 65 or Disability
– Disabled American Veteran
* Please call the Tax Assessor/Collector’s office at 601.902.4510 to check if you qualify.
The State of Mississippi only allows homestead applications to be accepted from January 1st through April 1st. This is the ONLY time frame given each year.
Marriage License/Certificates
Both parties must be 21 years of age or older, appear before the clerk together, provide proof of age (drivers license), and pay $37.00. If either party has been previously married, we will also need to know the date the last marriage ended. Both parties should also be prepared to provide both parents’ full (including maiden) names, we also ask their occupation status. You will be issued the license on the day you apply. After the ceremony, you will be encouraged to return the license to the clerk for recording within 5 days after the marriage.
You will receive your marriage license the same day you apply, and you may have the ceremony the same day. However, it is your responsibility to make arrangements with a licensed minister or other official with the authority to perform marriage ceremonies according to state statute. We do not have officials to perform marriage ceremonies.
If you are not yet 21 years of age, you must have parental consent to marry in Mississippi. This is commonly handled by the parents signing the marriage license application when the couple applies for the license. If you are over the age of 18 but not yet 21, your parent(s) may submit a sworn statement giving their permission for you to marry in lieu of appearing before the clerk. If the parents submit this sworn statement, the underage parties must present a birth certificate or other legal documents verifying the parentage. Certain restrictions apply to persons under the age of 18 applying for a marriage license. Please contact the clerk’s office for more details.
Once a marriage license is issued, there is no time limit on completing the marriage ceremony.
Marriage records from 1874-current are held locally in the circuit clerk’s office. Any license prior to that date would have been destroyed by fire. Records can be researched for a fee of $17 per marriage, which includes a certified copy if the record is here. We will need both the complete groom’ name and the bride’s complete name, including her maiden name, and the approximate date of marriage.
Miscellaneous
Land deeds are filed in the Chancery Clerk’s office. The phone number is 601.902.4503.
911 addresses are assigned through the Chancery Clerk’s office. It is important to know your nearest street’s name and our nearest neighbor.
You can visit the Chancery Clerk’s office and bring 2 passport photos, a birth certificate with a seal, and a picture ID. It takes about six weeks to receive your passport. You can find more information along with online application forms at https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports.html.
Yes. If the business is located inside the city limits, a license will be issued by the city. If the business is outside the city limits and inside the County, the Tax Assessor/Collector’s office will issue your license.