How to Get a Dealer License in Florida: Requirements and Steps

To get a dealer license in Florida, you file a $300 application with the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (DHSMV), post a $25,000 surety bond, carry the required insurance, complete a pre-licensing course, and open a physical location that passes a state inspection. The process runs several weeks and the specific requirements vary slightly by license class. Florida also triggers the requirement sooner than most people expect: selling three or more motor vehicles in any 12-month period is enough to require a license, even if you don’t consider yourself a dealer.¹

When You Need a License

Anyone who buys, sells, or deals in three or more motor vehicles within a 12-month period must hold a Florida dealer license.¹ For mobile homes and recreational vehicles, a single transaction in 12 months is enough. Operating without a license is a second-degree misdemeanor and can also be pursued as an unfair and deceptive trade practice under Florida consumer protection law.²

Pick Your License Type

Choose your classification before you spend money on anything else, because it dictates what you’re allowed to sell and to whom. All four motor vehicle classifications carry the same $300 initial fee and $25,000 bond.³

Independent Dealer (VI) is the most common entry point. It lets you buy and sell used vehicles to the public and to other licensed dealers.
Franchise Dealer (VF) is required if you have an agreement with a manufacturer, importer, or distributor to sell new vehicles. Franchise dealers must specifically carry garage liability insurance.
Wholesale Dealer (VW) can only transact with other licensed dealers or through motor vehicle auctions. No retail sales.
Auction Dealer (VA) sells through a bid process where buyers are licensed dealers. If you plan to auction to the public, you need a VI license instead.⁴

Complete Pre-Licensing Training

Every applicant must finish a pre-licensing course through a DHSMV-approved school before the license can be issued. The curriculum covers titling and registration, unfair and deceptive trade practices, financing rules for buy-here-pay-here operations, and general business practices.⁵ Do this first. If the material tells you the business isn’t for you, or you don’t pass, you haven’t yet committed to a bond premium or a lot lease.

Secure the Bond and Insurance

You must obtain a $25,000 surety bond before the DHSMV issues your license. The bond protects consumers if you fail to meet certain legal obligations, such as properly transferring titles or honoring warranties.² You don’t pay the full $25,000. A surety company issues the bond and charges you an annual premium, typically a few hundred dollars for applicants with good credit.

You also need liability insurance with at least $25,000 in combined single-limit coverage for bodily injury and property damage, plus $10,000 in personal injury protection. Franchise dealers must carry a garage liability policy. Other dealer types can use either a garage liability policy or a general liability policy paired with a business automobile policy.²

Set Up a Compliant Location

Florida will not process your application without a physical business location that meets specific requirements. You need a permanent office building, not a residence or temporary structure, with a dedicated landline telephone and a locking file cabinet for customer records.⁶ Your display area must be large enough to hold your inventory without crossing into public right-of-ways, and a permanent sign showing your business name must be clearly visible from the nearest public road at all times.

Before you sign a lease or buy property, get written zoning approval from your local government confirming the site can legally operate as a motor vehicle dealership. The DHSMV requires this documentation, and a site that fails zoning means starting over. Contact your county or municipal planning department early; zoning approval takes longer than most first-time applicants expect.

Register the Business and Submit the Application

Register your business entity with the Florida Division of Corporations (Sunbiz) before applying, because the DHSMV needs proof your entity legally exists in the state. The primary application document is Form HSMV 86056, which asks for detailed information about every owner and officer, including names, addresses, and federal employer identification numbers.

Every person named on the application must submit electronic fingerprints through an approved livescan provider for a criminal background check. Results go directly to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and the DHSMV screens for offenses that could disqualify you. Third-party fingerprinting typically runs $20 to $50 per person.

Deliver the completed package to the DHSMV Regional Office in the county where your dealership is located. The $300 license fee is due at submission and is separate from your bond, insurance, fingerprinting, and training costs.³

Pass the Site Inspection

After the office reviews your paperwork, a compliance officer will schedule a physical inspection. The inspector verifies that your office structure, display lot, permanent signage, phone line, and locking cabinet meet the requirements, and confirms the location matches the zoning approvals you submitted. If anything falls short, you get a notice listing the specific deficiencies. You can correct them and request a follow-up visit, but each round extends your timeline. Once you pass, the license itself typically arrives within a few weeks.

What You Have to Do Before Your First Sale

The license alone doesn’t put you in business. Several things need to be in place before you sell a vehicle.

Dealer Plates and Temporary Tags

You can purchase dealer plates from the DHSMV at $17 each after your license issues.⁷ These plates are valid on inventory vehicles while they’re for sale or being used in connection with the business. They cannot be used on vehicles operated for hire, on tow trucks (unless the truck itself is inventory being demonstrated), or on vehicles transporting other motor vehicles for the dealership.⁸ When you sell a vehicle, you can issue a temporary tag valid for 30 days while the buyer completes registration.⁹

Sales Tax Registration

Register with the Florida Department of Revenue to collect and remit sales tax. Online registration or a paper Form DR-1 both work. You’ll receive a Certificate of Registration (Form DR-11) to display at your location, plus a Florida Annual Resale Certificate (Form DR-13) that lets you buy inventory without paying sales tax at the point of acquisition. Sales tax gets reported on Form DR-15. Filing frequency depends on how much you collect: monthly for more than $1,000 in annual collections, less often below that. Returns and payments are due on the 1st of the month after each reporting period and become late after the 20th.¹⁰ Most dealers cross the $1,000 threshold immediately given vehicle prices, so plan for monthly.

Federal Obligations

State licensing isn’t the whole picture. The FTC’s Used Car Rule requires a Buyers Guide posted prominently on every used vehicle before it’s displayed for sale, and a Spanish-language version if you conduct the sale in Spanish.¹¹ Any cash payment over $10,000, whether a lump sum or installments totaling over $10,000 within a year, must be reported to the IRS on Form 8300 within 15 days.¹² Federal law also prohibits transactions with anyone on the Treasury Department’s Specially Designated Nationals list; screen buyer names using the free tools on the Treasury website before completing a sale.¹³

Records

Florida law requires licensed dealers to keep records of every purchase, sale, and exchange for five years.¹⁴ Records must be maintained at your licensed location and available for inspection by the DHSMV during reasonable business hours.² That locking file cabinet from the site inspection is where they live.

Keeping the License Active

Florida dealer licenses renew annually. Independent (VI) and wholesale (VW) dealers must renew by April 30 each year; franchise (VF) dealers must renew by December 31. The renewal fee is $75 for a primary location and $50 for each supplemental location, plus a $100 delinquent fee if you miss the deadline.³ Independent dealers must complete eight hours of continuing education before each renewal: at least two hours of legal or legislative issues, one hour of DHSMV-related topics, and five hours of relevant industry subjects.⁵ Your surety bond also renews annually, and proof of renewal or any change must reach the DHSMV within 10 calendar days.²

1
Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Motor Vehicle, Recreational Vehicle and Mobile Home Dealer/Broker Licenses
2
Florida Senate. Florida Code 320.27 – Motor Vehicle Dealers
3
Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Required Fees
4
Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Types of Licenses Available
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Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Motor Vehicle Dealer Training School Requirements
6
Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Dealers, Installers, Manufacturers, Distributors, Importers
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Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Fees
8
Florida Senate. Florida Statutes 320.13 – Dealer and Manufacturer License Plates and Alternative Method of Registration
9
Florida Senate. Florida Statutes 320.131 – Temporary Tags
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Florida Dept. of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax
11
Federal Trade Commission. Dealer’s Guide to the Used Car Rule
12
Internal Revenue Service. IRS Form 8300 Reference Guide
13
Office of Foreign Assets Control. Specially Designated Nationals (SDNs) and the SDN List
14
Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. EFS-02 Electronic Filing System Records Retention