California Title Application: Form REG 343, Fees, and Deadlines

A California title application is the paperwork you file with the DMV to put a vehicle’s Certificate of Title—the “pink slip”—in your name, and it’s required whenever you buy a car from a private party, bring an out-of-state vehicle into California, or receive one as a gift or inheritance. The core package is Form REG 343, proof of ownership, your ID, proof of insurance, a smog certificate if your vehicle isn’t exempt, and payment of the title fee plus registration, CHP, and value-based fees. File it on time. Penalties start as early as day 11 after a change of ownership and can reach 160% of your Vehicle License Fee if you let it sit past two years.¹

Documents You Need

Gather everything before you go. One missing signature sends you home.

Proof of ownership. For a private-party purchase, that’s the seller’s California Certificate of Title with the back properly signed over to you. For a brand-new vehicle, it’s the Manufacturer’s Certificate of Origin. For a vehicle coming in from another state, bring the current out-of-state title.²
A completed Application for Title or Registration (REG 343).
A California driver’s license or state ID.
Proof of liability insurance from a carrier authorized to do business in California.
A valid smog certificate, unless your vehicle qualifies for one of the exemptions below.²

If the vehicle you’re buying still has a loan on it, the seller’s lienholder must sign the title or provide a separate Lien Satisfied/Title Holder Release (REG 166). Without that release, the DMV will not process the transfer. If the original lienholder went out of business or was acquired, the DMV keeps a listing of banks and financial institutions you can use to find the current entity.²

Filling Out Form REG 343

REG 343 is available at any DMV field office or as a PDF on the DMV website. Blanks in any section delay the application, so work through it carefully.

Section 1 asks for the full Vehicle Identification Number, make, year, and model. Section 2 collects the full legal name, address, and driver’s license number for every registered owner. Section 3 identifies the legal owner or lienholder: enter the lender’s name and Electronic Lienholder Identification Number exactly as it appears on the DMV’s ELT listing, or write “none” if there is no lender. Do not leave Section 3 blank. Section 4 captures the odometer reading at purchase and asks you to indicate whether that reading reflects actual mileage. Section 9 is where both buyer and seller sign and where the purchase date and price get recorded so the DMV can assess use tax.³

When a Smog Certificate Is Required

Most gasoline, hybrid, and diesel vehicles need a smog certification before the DMV transfers title. Several categories don’t:

Fully electric vehicles.
Motorcycles.
Gasoline, hybrid, and alternative-fuel vehicles four model years old or newer at change of ownership. These owe an $8 smog transfer fee instead.
Gasoline, hybrid, and alternative-fuel vehicles from model year 1975 or older.
Diesel vehicles from model year 1997 or older.
Diesel vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating over 14,000 pounds.

Anything outside those categories has to pass a licensed smog check station, and you’ll turn in the resulting certificate with your application.⁴

Fees You’ll Pay

Your total depends on the vehicle’s value and where you register it, but the fixed charges apply to almost every application.

Fixed Fees

Title transfer fee: $15.
Registration fee: $73 (includes a $3 Alternative Fuel/Technology fee).
California Highway Patrol fee: $34.
Smog abatement fee: $20 for vehicles exempt from smog checks by model year.
Smog transfer fee: $8 for vehicles four model years old or newer at change of ownership.

These come directly from the DMV’s current fee schedule.⁵

Value-Based Fees

The Vehicle License Fee is a percentage of the DMV’s assessed market value of your vehicle, and that assessed value depreciates each year. The Transportation Improvement Fee is tied to the vehicle’s value at initial registration:

$0 to $4,999: $33.
$5,000 to $24,999: $66.
$25,000 to $34,999: $132.
$35,000 to $59,999: $198.
$60,000 or more: $231.

Commercial vehicles with an unladen weight of 6,001 pounds or more pay additional weight-based fees and a $122 CVRA motor vehicle fee.⁶

Use Tax

If you bought the vehicle from a private party or an out-of-state dealer, use tax is due to the DMV when you apply. The rate equals the combined state and local sales tax rate for the address where you register the vehicle, so the exact percentage depends on your county and city. The California Department of Tax and Fee Administration publishes a lookup for your specific rate.⁷

Deadlines and Late Penalties

Any change in ownership or lienholder has to be reported to the DMV within 10 days, and the title updated accordingly.² New California residents have 20 days from establishing residency or bringing the vehicle into the state to register an out-of-state vehicle.⁸

For vehicles never previously registered in California, the late schedule runs:

One year or less late: 40% of the Vehicle License Fee and 40% of any weight fee.
More than one year but under two years: 80% of the VLF and weight fee.
More than two years: 160% of the VLF and weight fee.

For vehicles already registered in California that are late on a transfer or renewal, the penalties step up by the day. Just 1 to 10 days late adds a 10% surcharge on the VLF plus a $10 registration late fee and a $10 CHP late fee. By 31 days, you’re looking at 60% of the VLF, a $30 registration late fee, and a $30 CHP late fee.¹

Extra Steps for Out-of-State Vehicles

Every out-of-state vehicle needs a physical VIN verification before California will issue a title. An authorized DMV employee, a California Highway Patrol officer, a licensed vehicle verifier, or an authorized auto club employee inspects the vehicle in person and records the result on a Verification of Vehicle form (REG 31). You cannot complete this form yourself. The inspector checks the VIN, reviews the emissions label for California compliance, and verifies the odometer reading.⁹

If the vehicle wasn’t originally built to California’s emissions standards, you may need a Statement of Facts (REG 256) certifying compliance or explaining the vehicle’s emissions status. Commercial vehicles with an unladen weight of 6,001 pounds or more (excluding pickups) must also file a Declaration of Gross Vehicle Weight (REG 4008) stating the maximum operating weight with a load.¹⁰

Where and How to Submit

You can file in person at any DMV field office or by mail to DMV headquarters in Sacramento.

In person, the DMV accepts cash, ATM or debit cards, credit cards, digital wallet payments such as Apple Pay or Google Pay (with a 2.1% service fee), cashier’s checks, and money orders. Book an appointment online first; walk-in waits run long.¹¹

By mail, the DMV accepts only cashier’s checks or money orders payable to DMV. Do not mail cash or personal checks; they will not be accepted.¹¹

Once your application is processed, you’ll receive a temporary registration document. The official Certificate of Title is mailed separately to the registered owner, or to the lienholder if there’s a loan on the vehicle.

Special Situations

Gifts and Family Transfers

A gifted vehicle still needs the signed title, a completed REG 343, smog certification where required, and the $15 transfer fee. What changes is the tax. California exempts transfers between spouses, domestic partners, or a parent, grandparent, child, grandchild, or sibling (the sibling exemption applies only between two minors related by blood or adoption). Claim the exemption by including a Statement of Facts (REG 256) that identifies the relationship. The exemption doesn’t apply if the giver is in the business of selling that type of property.¹²

If the giver and recipient don’t fit the family exemption, writing $0 on the REG 343 won’t save you. The DMV will assess use tax on the vehicle’s fair market value.

Inherited Vehicles

When a vehicle owner dies and the estate doesn’t otherwise require probate, California Vehicle Code Section 5910 allows a simplified transfer. The heir or beneficiary brings the certificate of ownership and registration card (if available), a certified copy of the death certificate, and a sworn statement confirming the date and place of death, that no other estate property requires probate, that the declarant is entitled to the vehicle as heir or beneficiary, and that unsecured creditors have been paid or their claims discharged.¹³ The DMV’s Affidavit for Transfer Without Probate (REG 5) is the form for this.¹⁴ If the original title is lost, add an Application for Duplicate or Transfer of Title (REG 227).

If the title listed owners joined by “or,” the surviving owner already has authority to transfer. Bring the title and death certificate and update the record directly. If the estate did go through probate, the court order assigning the vehicle takes the place of the REG 5 process.

Salvage and Revived Salvage Titles

A vehicle declared a total loss carries a salvage brand on its title record. To put it back on the road, California requires a separate inspection before issuing a “revived salvage” title. Previously salvaged California vehicles go through a DMV or CHP inspection depending on the circumstances; out-of-state salvaged vehicles must go through CHP. If airbags appear missing or deployed, the vehicle has to be inspected at a CHP Salvage Inspection Station specifically. The inspection costs $50, and you’ll also submit a REG 343, the salvage certificate, bills of sale showing the chain of ownership, brake and light adjustment certificates, a smog certificate if applicable, and either a REG 31 or the CHP’s own CHP 97C inspection form.¹⁵

Signing Through a Power of Attorney

If the buyer or seller can’t appear, a Power of Attorney (REG 260) can authorize someone else to sign title documents. The REG 262 (Vehicle/Vessel Transfer and Reassignment Form) also includes a built-in POA section. A POA cannot be used to disclose odometer mileage, sign a Statement of Facts attesting to the principal’s personal knowledge (with a narrow exception for duplicate title applications), or reassign the authority to a third person. Executors and administrators cannot use a POA to appoint an attorney-in-fact, and trustees can only delegate specific duties rather than their full administrative role.¹⁶

1
California Department of Motor Vehicles. Penalties
2
California Department of Motor Vehicles. Title Transfers and Changes
3
California Department of Motor Vehicles. Application for Title or Registration (REG 343)
4
Bureau of Automotive Repair. Smog Check: When You Need One and Whats Required
5
California Department of Motor Vehicles. Registration Fees
6
California Department of Motor Vehicles. Appendix 1F – Fees
7
California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. Tax Guide for Purchasers of Vehicles
8
California Department of Motor Vehicles. New California Resident Portal
9
California Department of Motor Vehicles. Verification of Vehicle Not to Be Completed by Applicant – REG 31
10
California Department of Motor Vehicles. Commercial Vehicle Registration
11
California Department of Motor Vehicles. Payments and Refunds
12
California Department of Motor Vehicles. Vehicle Industry Registration Procedures Manual – Transactions Not Subject to Use Tax
13
California Legislative Information. California Vehicle Code Section 5910
14
California Department of Motor Vehicles. Reporting a Death of a Family Member or Friend
15
California Department of Motor Vehicles. Vehicle Industry Registration Procedures Manual – Revived Salvage California Record
16
California Department of Motor Vehicles. Vehicle Industry Registration Procedures Manual – Signature by Power of Attorney (POA)