How long do I have to transfer a vehicle title in California?

10 calendar days from the date you receive the properly endorsed certificate of ownership and take possession of the vehicle. Ownership is not legally transferred and the seller's name stays on the DMV record until the buyer applies. A late transfer penalty is added if the transfer fee is not submitted within 30 days of the sale.

How much does a title transfer cost in California?

The base title fee is $15. The $15 transfer fee under VC 9255. It is the fee to move the title into your name and nothing else - use tax at your local sales tax rate, the $8 smog transfer fee where one is due, the $28 replacement title fee where the title is missing, and any registration renewal fees are all charged on top of it. DMV collects use tax with the transfer application on any vehicle bought from someone other than a licensed California dealer, at the same rate as sales tax for the new registered owner's city and county - unless the transfer is a gift, an inheritance, a qualifying family transfer, or another published exemption claimed on a Statement of Facts (REG 256).

Does a vehicle title transfer need to be notarized in California?

Sometimes required. California does not notarize the Certificate of Title itself - buyers and sellers just sign it - but a lienholder releasing its interest on an Application for Replacement or Transfer of Title (REG 227) or on a Lien Satisfied/Legal Owner/Title Holder Release (REG 166) must have that signature notarized.

Does the seller have to notify the title authority in California?

Yes. California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). 5 calendar days from the date you sell or transfer your title or interest in the vehicle and deliver possession to the new owner. Without the notice, the seller can remain exposed to liability for parking violations, traffic violations, and civil or criminal actions involving the vehicle after the date of sale, and DMV keeps mailing registration renewal notices to the seller.

Transferring a vehicle title in California

Issued by California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). Choose your situation below — the buyer’s and seller’s obligations are listed separately, and every answer links to the official source.

Title fee: $15base title fee
Deadline: 10 daysfrom the date you receive the properly endorsed certificate of ownership from the seller
Documents: 5incl. REG 138
Where: State officein person

California gives the buyer 10 days from receiving the endorsed California Certificate of Title to forward it to DMV with the $15 transfer fee, and gives the seller 5 calendar days to file a Notice of Transfer and Release of Liability (REG 138). The seller must hand the buyer a smog certification issued within the last 90 days unless the vehicle is four model years old or newer, in which case the buyer pays an $8 smog transfer fee instead. DMV collects use tax at the buyer's local sales tax rate along with the transfer, and adds a $15 penalty if the transfer fee is not in within 30 days of the sale.

9 things this answer does not settle

Two current DMV publications disagree on when a change-of-ownership smog certification stops being required. The How To Change Vehicle Ownership guide (HTVR 32, REV. 6/2022) says a gasoline vehicle 8 or fewer model years old needs none; the DMV smog inspections page and the Bureau of Automotive Repair - the agency that actually runs the Smog Check programme - both put the cut-off at four model years. This record follows the four-model-year rule throughout.
DMV publications disagree on the age at which a vehicle stops needing an odometer disclosure. HTVR 32 states 20 years for vehicles of model year 2011 and newer; the Vehicle Industry Registration Procedures Manual (12.005) and HTVR 9 (REV. 3/2020) still state 10 years. The 20-year figure reflects the later federal rule, but NHTSA and eCFR both refused our requests in this session, so we could not confirm it against a federal source.
DMV publishes two different value limits for transferring a deceased owner's vehicle without probate. The current form, REG 5 (REV. 12/2024), prints $184,500 for deaths on or after April 1, 2022 and $166,250 for earlier deaths; HTVR 32 and section 11.065 of the registration procedures manual both still say $150,000. Probate Code section 13100 sets $166,250 "as adjusted periodically", which supports the figures on the form. Use the current REG 5 and confirm with DMV if the estate is near the line.
Appendix 1F of the Vehicle Industry Registration Procedures Manual prints the late transfer penalty as $28. VC 9553.7 says "The penalty for delinquency with respect to any transfer is fifteen dollars ($15)", and DMV's public Registration Fees page agrees. This record uses $15 throughout; the appendix appears to be in error.
The vehicle registration fee calculator's FAQ still quotes minimum liability insurance of $15,000/$30,000/$5,000, which conflicts with the $30,000/$60,000/$15,000 published on DMV's Insurance Requirements page. This record uses the higher, current limits.
Use tax is charged at the buyer's local sales tax rate, which varies by city, county, and special district; DMV publishes no single rate and its fee calculator returns an estimate only.
County and district registration fees vary by where you live and are not enumerated here; Appendix 1A of the Vehicle Industry Registration Procedures Manual lists them by county.
This answer assumes there is no lienholder on line 2 of the title. If there is, see the scenario for a vehicle with an active or recently paid-off lien.
DMV does not publish a processing time for a mailed transfer application; the 10-15 calendar days it quotes is the time to issue the new title after the application clears.

Do this first

Before you pay, check the front of the California Certificate of Title: the seller's name must be the registered owner on line 1, and if co-owners are joined by "and" or a slash, every one of them has to sign - names joined by "or" need only one signature.
Check line 2 of the title for a lienholder (DMV calls it the legal owner). If a bank or finance company is named there, it must release its interest on line 2 or on a notarized REG 166 before the vehicle can be transferred to you.

Your checklist

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The seller's checklist

Get the vehicle smog checked before you sell it and give the buyer a copy of the vehicle inspection report - the certificate goes to DMV electronically and is valid for 90 days.Applies when: The vehicle is not exempt; no inspection is needed if it is a gasoline, hybrid, or alternative-fuel vehicle four model years old or newer, and the buyer pays a smog transfer fee instead.Official page
Sign line 1 on the front of the California Certificate of Title to release your interest. If the title shows co-owners joined by "and" or a slash, or shows "JTRS", every owner must sign; a business signs with its name plus an authorized representative's countersignature.Official page
Remove any disabled person, special interest, or personalized license plates before you hand the vehicle over - those belong to you, not the vehicle. Standard sequentially issued plates stay on the car.Applies when: The vehicle carries disabled person, special interest, or personalized plates.Official page
File the Notice of Transfer and Release of Liability with DMV within 5 calendar days of the sale - online at dmv.ca.gov/nrl, or by mailing a completed REG 138. You need the buyer's name and address, the plate number and last five VIN digits, the odometer reading, and the date of sale.REG 138Official page
Print and keep the online confirmation, or a photocopy of the mailed REG 138 - DMV sends no acknowledgement for a mailed form, and the confirmation is your proof if the record is not updated. Do not attach a bill of sale; DMV disregards anything sent with the REG 138.REG 138Official page

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Both of you, together

Complete the odometer disclosure on the front of the title together: the seller writes the mileage reading and the buyer signs to acknowledge the same reading.Applies when: The vehicle is not exempt from federal odometer disclosure.Official page
If the title has no odometer line or the title is not available at the sale, both of you must sign the same Vehicle/Vessel Transfer and Reassignment (REG 262) instead. DMV does not publish it online - it is printed on security paper, so request one at 1-800-777-0133 or pick one up at a field office before you meet.Applies when: The title is noncomplying, is unavailable at the time of sale, or a REG 227 is being used instead of the title.REG 262Official page
Fill in a Bill of Sale (REG 135) recording the vehicle description, both names, the date, and the selling price, and each keep a copy.Applies when: DMV's standard title transfer checklist lists a REG 135 for a private sale; it is required when the seller is not the registered owner shown on the title or when the purchase price is not written on the title.REG 135Official page

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Documents and official forms

California Certificate of Title, released by the registered owner(s) on line 1 and with the new registered owner section on the back completed and signedIf the title is missing, the seller and buyer use an Application for Replacement or Transfer of Title (REG 227) instead.
Odometer mileage disclosure signed by the seller and acknowledged by the buyer on the front of the titleMoves to a REG 262 when the title cannot carry it.
Each new registered owner's driver's license or ID card number, entered on the titleA California number if you have one; otherwise your out-of-state number with the issuing state printed in the upper right corner. "None" is entered for a person who has never held one.
Payment of the $15 transfer fee and any use tax due
REG 138Notice of Transfer and Release of Liability, filed by the seller within 5 calendar daysFiled separately by the seller; the buyer does not need a copy and DMV will process the transfer without one.

Also required in some cases

The vehicle is a gasoline, hybrid, or alternative-fuel vehicle five model years old or older, or a 1998-or-newer diesel of 14,000 lb GVWR or less.

Smog certification (vehicle inspection report) issued within the last 90 days

The title has no complying odometer line, the title was unavailable at the sale, a REG 227 is being used, or the vehicle changed hands more than once on the same title.

REG 262Vehicle/Vessel Transfer and Reassignment Form

The seller is not the registered owner shown on the title, or the purchase price does not appear on the title.

REG 135Bill of Sale

You are claiming a use tax or smog exemption, explaining a purchase price discrepancy, or declaring a gift or trade value.

REG 256Statement of Facts

A lienholder is shown on line 2 of the title and is releasing its interest on a separate form rather than on the title.

REG 166Lien Satisfied/Legal Owner/Title Holder Release

The California Certificate of Title is lost, stolen, damaged, or was never received.

REG 227Application for Replacement or Transfer of Title

The vehicle is a commercial motor vehicle. The REG 4008 itself applies to vehicles operating at 10,001 lbs or more gross or combined gross vehicle weight, excluding unmodified pickups under 8,001 lbs unladen with a GVWR of 11,499 lbs or under.

REG 4008Declaration of Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW)/Combined Gross Vehicle Weight (CGW)

Deadlines

Deadline10 calendar days from the date you receive the properly endorsed certificate of ownership from the seller — Buyer: Forward the endorsed certificate of ownership with the transfer fee to DMV within 10 daysUntil you apply, ownership has not transferred on DMV's record and the seller's name remains on the vehicle.
Deadline30 calendar days from the date of sale, gift, donation, or trade — Buyer: Pay the transfer fee within 30 days of the sale to avoid the late transfer penaltyA late transfer penalty is added to the fees due.
Deadline20 calendar days from the date of transfer — Buyer: If the registration expires after you acquire the vehicle, pay the renewal fees within 20 days of the transfer date (VC 9553)Registration renewal penalties are assessed - a percentage of the vehicle license fee and weight fee plus a registration late fee and a CHP late fee.
Deadline5 calendar days from the date you sell or transfer your title or interest and deliver possession of the vehicle — Seller: File the Notice of Transfer and Release of Liability within 5 calendar daysYou can stay exposed to liability for parking and traffic violations and civil or criminal actions involving the vehicle after the date of sale, and DMV keeps sending you renewal notices.

Fees and taxes

Charge	Amount	Paid by
Base title fee	$15The $15 transfer fee under VC 9255. It is the fee to move the title into your name and nothing else - use tax at your local sales tax rate, the $8 smog transfer fee where one is due, the $28 replacement title fee where the title is missing, and any registration renewal fees are all charged on top of it.	Buyer
Title transfer fee (VC 9255)	$15DMV's own standard title transfer checklist quotes "typically $15-$28" because a $28 replacement title is often needed at the same time; the transfer fee alone is $15 on both the public fee schedule and Appendix 1F of the registration procedures manual.	Buyer
Use tax	7.25%Varies by the purchase price and the combined state, county, city, and special district sales tax rate for the address where the vehicle is registered. DMV's standard title transfer checklist gives the current spread of California rates as 7.25% to 10.25%; 7.25% is the floor.Collected by DMV with the transfer application. DMV's standard title transfer checklist describes the current spread of California rates as 7.25%-10.25%; DMV does not publish a single rate.Official calculator	Buyer
Smog transfer fee (VC 4000.1)	$8Charged instead of a smog inspection when the vehicle is a gasoline, hybrid, or alternative-fuel vehicle four model years old or newer.	Buyer
Smog Check certificate fee charged by the inspection station	$8.25This is the certificate fee the station must charge on top of its own inspection price, which the Bureau of Automotive Repair does not regulate and which varies by station.	Seller
Late transfer penalty (VC 9553.7)	$15Assessed when the transfer fee is not submitted within 30 days of the sale. VC 9553.7 and the public DMV fee schedule both say $15; Appendix 1F of the Vehicle Industry Registration Procedures Manual prints $28 for the same statute, which appears to be an error in that appendix.	Buyer
Registration renewal fees, if the registration is coming due	From $107Varies by the $73 registration fee plus the $34 CHP fee, the vehicle license fee based on the vehicle's value, weight fees, and county and district fees that vary by where you live.Only due when the registration is expiring or expired. The $107 floor is the $73 registration fee plus the $34 CHP fee; the vehicle license fee, weight fees, and county/district fees are added on top.Official calculator	Buyer

DMV collects use tax with the transfer application on any vehicle bought from someone other than a licensed California dealer, at the same rate as sales tax for the new registered owner's city and county - unless the transfer is a gift, an inheritance, a qualifying family transfer, or another published exemption claimed on a Statement of Facts (REG 256).

Inspection, emissions, notary and odometer

Inspection: Not requiredNo physical inspection is needed for an ordinary transfer of a California-titled vehicle, but a vehicle last registered in another state or country must have a Verification of Vehicle (REG 31) completed before it can be registered here.
Emissions: Sometimes required
Required: a gasoline, hybrid, or alternative-fuel vehicle five model years old or older, or a 1998-or-newer diesel of 14,000 lb GVWR or less. The seller obtains it and the certificate must have been issued within the last 90 days.
Not required, an $8 smog transfer fee instead: a gasoline, hybrid, or alternative-fuel vehicle four model years old or newer.
Exempt outright: gasoline model year 1975 and older, diesel model year 1997 and older, any diesel over 14,000 lb GVWR, electric vehicles, motorcycles, trailers, and two-cycle engines.
A biennial smog certification obtained within the last 90 days can be reused for the transfer if it is declared in Section B of a Statement of Facts (REG 256).
On a change of ownership the seller must give the buyer a smog certification obtained within the last 90 days, unless the vehicle is a gasoline, hybrid, or alternative-fuel vehicle four model years old or newer - in which case the buyer pays an $8 smog transfer fee instead - or the vehicle or the transfer is otherwise exempt.
Notarization: Sometimes required
Required on a lienholder's release of interest in Section 5 of an Application for Replacement or Transfer of Title (REG 227).
Required on a lienholder's release of interest on a Lien Satisfied/Legal Owner/Title Holder Release (REG 166), except where an insurance company submits it to obtain a Salvage Certificate (VC 5752).
Not required on any registered owner's signature - neither the buyer's nor the seller's signature on the California Certificate of Title is ever notarized, and a sole owner releasing on a REG 227 does not need one either.
California does not notarize the Certificate of Title itself - buyers and sellers just sign it - but a lienholder releasing its interest on an Application for Replacement or Transfer of Title (REG 227) or on a Lien Satisfied/Legal Owner/Title Holder Release (REG 166) must have that signature notarized.
Odometer disclosure: Sometimes required
Required on the front of the California Certificate of Title: the seller discloses the mileage and the buyer signs to acknowledge the same reading.
Moves to a Vehicle/Vessel Transfer and Reassignment (REG 262) signed by both parties when the title has no complying odometer line, the title is unavailable at the sale, or a REG 227 is used in its place.
HTVR 32 states disclosure is not required for a vehicle 20 years old or older of model year 2011 and newer, or for a commercial vehicle over 16,000 lb GVW/CGW.
The seller writes the mileage on the front of the California Certificate of Title and the buyer signs to acknowledge the same reading; if the title has no odometer line, the title is unavailable, or a REG 227 is being used instead, both parties must instead complete the same Vehicle/Vessel Transfer and Reassignment (REG 262).

What happens to the plates

Standard sequentially issued California license plates stay with the vehicle when it is sold; disabled person, special interest, and personalized plates belong to the plate owner, who must remove them before handing the vehicle over.

The plates stay with the vehicle
The seller keeps the plates

A seller who wants to pass special interest or personalized plates to the buyer completes a Special Interest License Plate Application (REG 17) releasing their interest and gives it to the buyer. If the seller keeps their plates and the vehicle is left without plates, the buyer uses an Application for Replacement Plates, Stickers, Documents (REG 156). After an owner dies, disabled person plates must be surrendered on registration expiry or within 60 days of death, whichever comes first, and environmental (personalized) plates must be surrendered unless the applicant is the heir named on the court documents or on the REG 5.

How to submit

In person at a state title office
By mail
In person at an authorized third-party office

California normally processes the title transfer and the registration record in one DMV transaction: the $15 transfer fee is separate from registration fees, and registration renewal fees are collected at the same time only if the registration is expiring or already expired.

Official state links

Source: California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). Checked July 26, 2026. Report a correction

Common questions about California

How long do I have to transfer a vehicle title in California?: 10 calendar days from the date you receive the properly endorsed certificate of ownership and take possession of the vehicle. Ownership is not legally transferred and the seller's name stays on the DMV record until the buyer applies. A late transfer penalty is added if the transfer fee is not submitted within 30 days of the sale.
How much does a title transfer cost in California?: The base title fee is $15. The $15 transfer fee under VC 9255. It is the fee to move the title into your name and nothing else - use tax at your local sales tax rate, the $8 smog transfer fee where one is due, the $28 replacement title fee where the title is missing, and any registration renewal fees are all charged on top of it. DMV collects use tax with the transfer application on any vehicle bought from someone other than a licensed California dealer, at the same rate as sales tax for the new registered owner's city and county - unless the transfer is a gift, an inheritance, a qualifying family transfer, or another published exemption claimed on a Statement of Facts (REG 256).
Does a vehicle title transfer need to be notarized in California?: Sometimes required. California does not notarize the Certificate of Title itself - buyers and sellers just sign it - but a lienholder releasing its interest on an Application for Replacement or Transfer of Title (REG 227) or on a Lien Satisfied/Legal Owner/Title Holder Release (REG 166) must have that signature notarized.
Does the seller have to notify the title authority in California?: Yes. California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). 5 calendar days from the date you sell or transfer your title or interest in the vehicle and deliver possession to the new owner. Without the notice, the seller can remain exposed to liability for parking violations, traffic violations, and civil or criminal actions involving the vehicle after the date of sale, and DMV keeps mailing registration renewal notices to the seller.
What happens to the license plates in California?: Standard sequentially issued California license plates stay with the vehicle when it is sold; disabled person, special interest, and personalized plates belong to the plate owner, who must remove them before handing the vehicle over.

About this page

Everything here is a summary of procedures published by official state title authorities, with a link to the source for each answer.

Unusual ownership, probate, lien, salvage, court-order or identity situations commonly require steps beyond those listed here.

We do not file anything with any agency, and we cannot submit, expedite, or check the status of a transfer. Ticking a box on this site records your own progress in your browser and nothing more.

55 official sources · last checked July 26, 2026 · How this was compiled · Report a correction