Window Tint Laws in North Carolina
Laws change. Verify current requirements with your local DMV/RMV before choosing or installing film. This is not legal advice.
VLT is visible light transmission: lower percentages mean darker windows. A film's labeled shade is not necessarily the finished glass-plus-film reading. The limits below cover ordinary passenger cars unless stated otherwise.
- Front side windows
- At least 35% total VLT; approved-meter reading greater than 32% presumed compliant.
- Rear side windows
- At least 35% total VLT; approved-meter reading greater than 32% presumed compliant.
- Back window
- At least 35% total VLT; approved-meter reading greater than 32% presumed compliant.
- Windshield strip
- Top five inches or AS1, whichever extends farther. Clear untinted UV film separately permitted without obstructing vision.
Vehicle class and conditions
Measurement basis: Combined glass-plus-film visible light transmission, not the film label alone.
SUV, van and multipurpose-vehicle rear sides: Behind-driver statutory multipurpose-vehicle windows exempt from subsection (b) restrictions.
SUV, van and multipurpose-vehicle back window: Behind-driver statutory multipurpose-vehicle windows exempt from subsection (b) restrictions.
- Exactly 32% is not the stated compliance presumption. Use the nominal minimum, not tolerance, as the target.
- Ordinary reflectance maximum 20%; film nonreflective, not red, yellow or amber. Medical permits, vehicle classes and federally regulated commercial vehicles have separate requirements.
Sources and verification
Official source: State statute/regulation. Reviewed 2026-10-29. Laws and agency guidance can change after this review.
Laws change. Verify current requirements with your local DMV/RMV before choosing or installing film. This is not legal advice.