Illinois Drive Away Permit: Who Qualifies and What It Costs

An Illinois drive-away permit is a $10 temporary document that lets a qualifying buyer drive a vehicle purchased in Illinois to an out-of-state destination without first registering it. It takes the place of license plates during that trip and is valid for up to 30 days from the date of sale.¹² It is not a general temporary plate. Its whole reason for existing is moving a just-purchased vehicle out of Illinois, and the rules track that narrow purpose.

What the Permit Lets You Do

The permit stands in for registration plates on a vehicle being transported out of Illinois after a sale. You can drive the vehicle on public roads from the point of sale to your out-of-state destination, and that is all. The vehicle cannot be used for any other purpose while operating under the permit, cannot be lent, and cannot be moved onto a different car once issued.¹ Each permit carries a distinguishing number tied to a specific vehicle and must be affixed to the car in the manner the Secretary of State prescribes so law enforcement can see it in transit.

A few vehicle types are outside the program entirely. Watercraft, aircraft, manufactured homes, and all-terrain vehicles cannot be issued drive-away permits.³

Who Qualifies

Nonresident Buyers

The most common qualifying scenario is a nonresident who buys a vehicle in Illinois and does not have valid home-state registration to transfer to it. The buyer must be from a state that offers reciprocal registration treatment to Illinois residents.¹ The administrative rules also cover nonresidents who buy from other nonresidents within Illinois, not just purchases from Illinois residents or dealers.⁴

Illinois Residents Moving Out of State

You do not have to be a nonresident. An Illinois resident can also qualify in two situations: your Illinois registration has expired or will expire within 10 days and you are establishing residency in another state, or you hold an Illinois title but were never issued plates because you are relocating out of state. Either way, you must provide your new out-of-state address on the application.⁴

Who Cannot Get One

Wholesalers and licensed dealers cannot obtain nonresident drive-away permits for their own use.⁴ Dealers use their own plate system for moving inventory. And if you are an Illinois resident who simply needs to move an unregistered car locally, this permit is not the right tool. It only exists for taking a purchased vehicle out of Illinois.

How to Apply and What It Costs

The permit fee is $10, whether a dealer draws from its supply or you apply as a private-party buyer.² The path to getting one depends on where you bought the car.

Buying From a Dealer

When you buy from an Illinois dealer, the dealer typically issues the permit at the point of sale. Dealers apply to the Secretary of State in advance for a supply of permits, submitting proof of their status as a bona fide dealer.¹ The dealer affixes the permit to the vehicle, and you drive away.

Buying From a Private Seller

If you buy from a private party, you apply yourself through a Secretary of State facility or an authorized remittance agent. You complete a Vehicle Permit Application and provide proof that you own the vehicle. Acceptable ownership documents include a title in your name, a title assigned to you, a Manufacturer’s Certificate of Origin, or a registration card that expired less than one year ago.⁴ You also need to prove nonresidency and that your home state offers reciprocal registration treatment to Illinois residents.¹

How Long It’s Good For

The statute sets the permit’s life at 30 days from the date of sale.¹ The Secretary of State’s administrative rules, however, describe the permit’s purpose as allowing the vehicle to be driven to its destination outside Illinois within a 10-day period.⁴ The practical takeaway is not to treat this as a month-long temporary plate. Plan to complete the trip promptly after the sale. Using the vehicle locally for weeks under a drive-away permit invites enforcement attention and undermines any claim that the vehicle is in transit.

The permit is designed for interstate travel, but whether states along your route will honor it is a separate question. Most states along a direct path will recognize a valid temporary transit document. If your drive covers several states, check their rules in advance. Getting stopped on an expired or unrecognized permit in another state means that state’s registration laws apply.

How the Permit Affects Illinois Sales Tax

The drive-away permit does more than substitute for plates. It also ties into whether you owe Illinois sales tax on the purchase, and this is where buyers commonly overpay.

Reciprocal States

If your home state has a reciprocal tax agreement with Illinois, you can claim a nonresident purchaser exemption and pay zero Illinois sales tax when you use a drive-away permit to take possession of the vehicle. The dealer claims the exemption on Form ST-556, and you sign a nonresidency certification on Form ST-588. You then pay your home state’s tax when you register there.³

Non-Reciprocal States

Not every state returns the favor. If your state does not grant Illinois residents an equivalent exemption, you owe Illinois tax at your home state’s rate, capped at 6.25%. For example, a Florida resident pays 6.00%, an Arizona resident 5.60%, and a California or Indiana resident 6.25%.³ Additional tax may still be owed at home depending on that state’s credit policies.

Skipping the ST-588 or failing to check your state’s reciprocal status before the sale can mean paying Illinois tax you did not owe, with no easy way to claw it back after the fact.

Insurance Is Still Required

A drive-away permit does not exempt you from Illinois insurance rules. Any vehicle on an Illinois road needs liability coverage of at least $25,000 per person for bodily injury, $50,000 per accident for bodily injury, and $20,000 for property damage. You need an active policy on the vehicle before you drive it off the lot or out of a seller’s driveway. Call your insurer in advance to add the vehicle. Driving on a permit without insurance exposes you to the same penalties as any uninsured driver in the state, including fines and potential plate suspension.⁵

Penalties for Misuse

Driving a vehicle that requires registration without having it registered, or operating under an expired drive-away permit, violates Section 3-401 of the Illinois Vehicle Code.⁶ The statute permits temporary operation while a registration application is pending, but if you are caught on an expired permit with nothing filed in your home state, expect a citation.

Penalties climb sharply for fraud involving the permit itself. Under Section 4-105, altering or counterfeiting a title or registration document is a Class 2 felony, carrying a potential prison sentence of three to seven years.⁷ Even lesser offenses under Section 4-104, such as possessing a fraudulent registration document, range from a Class A misdemeanor on a first offense to a Class 4 felony on a second conviction. Using a permit on a vehicle it was not issued for, or handing it off to someone else, is exactly the conduct these provisions target. At $10, a legitimate permit is not a corner worth cutting.

1
Illinois General Assembly. 625 ILCS 5/3-603 – Application for Drive-Away Permits
2
Illinois General Assembly. 625 ILCS 5/3-811 – Fees for Drive-Away Permits
3
Illinois.gov. ST-58, Non-Reciprocal Vehicle Tax Rate Chart January 2026
4
Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Administrative Code Title 92, Section 1010.425 – Non-Resident Drive-Away Permits
5
Illinois Department of Insurance. Teen Drivers – Liability Coverage Requirements
6
Illinois General Assembly. 625 ILCS 5/3-401 – Operation of Unregistered Vehicles
7
Illinois General Assembly. 625 ILCS 5/4-104 – Offenses Relating to Possession of Titles and Registration