Before you start

Alaska residency, and 10 days from arrival for the vehicle
Your original, unexpired foreign or out-of-state licence
Proof of an Anchorage address
Alaska liability insurance — 50/100/25 minimums
Winter tyres, and realistically a block heater

Step-by-step

1
Apply to register the vehicle within 10 days
Alaska DMV: apply for registration within 10 days of entering the state or taking a job within the state. Bring the current out-of-state registration, the title if there is no lienholder, and Form V1. Registration runs two years, and the DMV collects the municipal Motor Vehicle Registration Tax at the same time for boroughs and municipalities that have adopted it — budget for more than the bare state fee.
In personWho: YouWithin 10 days
2
Transfer the licence inside 90 days
You will take a written test on Alaska driving standards and a vision test. The road test is waived if you have held a licence from a US state or territory, Canada or South Korea in the last five years — note that this is a short list, and holders of licences from elsewhere should expect a driving test. Thirty days rather than 90 if you are a commercial driver.
In personWho: YouWithin 90 days
3
Buy studded or proper winter tyres, and know the Anchorage date
Statewide, north of 60° north latitude it is unlawful to run studs on a paved road from 1 May to 15 September — so studs are legal from 16 September. Anchorage is stricter: Alaska DOT&PF notes that studs are not permitted inside city limits until 1 October and that Anchorage police can ticket for it. Book the changeover appointment in early September; the tyre shops fill up the week termination dust appears.
In personWho: YouSeptember, for 1 October
4
Fit and use a block heater
An engine block heater plugged in overnight is normal equipment in Anchorage, and the sockets on the posts in office and apartment car parks are there for it. Cars start without one down to a point, but repeated cold starts are what shortens an engine's life here. Ask whether a rental flat's parking has a working plug-in — it is a real amenity question, not a curiosity.
In personWho: You
5
Use 511 before any drive out of town
The Glenn and Seward Highways are the only two roads out of Anchorage and both close — for avalanche control, for ice, for crashes. Alaska's 511 service carries road conditions, closures and camera feeds, and checking it is an ordinary local habit before a Girdwood or Mat-Su trip in winter, not an abundance of caution.
Mobile appWho: You
6
Learn the moose rules before your first dark commute
Roughly a thousand moose live inside the municipal boundary and they are hardest to see exactly when the commute is darkest. A moose collision is a very different event from a deer collision — the body comes through the windscreen. Slow down on the Glenn and around the Hillside at dusk, expect a second animal behind the first, and if one is standing in the road, wait.
In personWho: You

Documents you’ll need

Original, unexpired foreign or out-of-state driver licence
Passport, visa and I-94 where applicable
Current out-of-state registration and the vehicle title
Alaska DMV Form V1 — Application for Title & Registration
Proof of Alaska liability insurance

Things most newcomers don’t know

Anchorage's studded-tyre start date is two weeks later than the state's.

Alaska DOT&PF's own travel information sets the northern rule as no studs on paved roads from 1 May to 15 September, then notes Anchorage separately: studs are not permitted within city limits until 1 October, and Anchorage police can ticket a motorist who runs them early. Somebody who reads the state rule, fits studs on 16 September and drives to work in Anchorage has done something enforceable. The end of the season is 30 April.

Source: Alaska DOT&PF — travel information

Your registration bill contains a municipal property tax you did not know you were paying.

The DMV states it collects a Motor Vehicle Registration Tax 'for those municipalities and boroughs that have elected to have this form of personal property tax'. It is levied on the vehicle, varies by location and vehicle age, and arrives inside what looks like a routine DMV fee — which is why Alaskans quote a registration cost that sounds nothing like the state fee schedule. Check the calculator before you budget, and note that it is biennial, so the number is for two years.

Source: Alaska DMV — general vehicle registration

The road-test waiver list is unusually short, and most foreign licences are not on it.

Alaska waives the driving test for anyone who has held a licence from a US state or territory, Canada or South Korea in the last five years. That is it. Newcomers from the UK, Germany, India or Japan — all of whom would swap a licence with less friction in several other states — should plan for the written test and a road test, and should book early rather than assume reciprocity.

Source: Alaska DMV — visiting or new to Alaska

There are two roads out and both of them close.

Anchorage is connected to the rest of the road system by the Glenn Highway north and the Seward Highway south, and the Seward in particular closes for avalanche control along Turnagain Arm. There is no alternative route. That single fact reshapes winter logistics — you check 511 before committing to a Girdwood ski day or a Mat-Su drive, and you do not schedule a tight airport run from out of town in February.

Source: Alaska 511 — road conditions

Common mistakes to avoid

Missing the 10-day vehicle registration deadline while concentrating on the licence.
Fitting studs on 16 September under the state rule and driving inside Anchorage city limits before 1 October.
Assuming your foreign licence exempts you from a road test — the waiver list is US states and territories, Canada and South Korea only.
Budgeting registration at the state fee and being surprised by the municipal vehicle tax on top.
Driving the Glenn or Seward Highway in winter without checking 511 first.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.