Tennessee’s Affidavit of Non-Dealer Transfer (Form RV-F1301201) is the sworn statement you file with your county clerk whenever a vehicle or boat changes hands privately as a gift or sells for less than 75% of its fair market value. Filing it correctly keeps the Department of Revenue from charging sales tax on the full book value of the vehicle instead of what you actually paid, and for qualifying family gifts it eliminates the tax entirely.
When the Affidavit Is Required
Two situations trigger the form. The first is a gift of a vehicle or boat between private parties, with no money or other consideration changing hands. The second is a private sale where the price is below 75% of the vehicle’s value in the NADA Official Used Car Guide, which is the pricing source Tennessee county clerks use — not the Kelley Blue Book that many buyers assume.1Tennessee Department of Revenue. County Clerk Sales and Use Tax Manual for Automobiles and Boats
If your purchase price is at or above 75% of NADA value, you do not need the affidavit at all. The clerk processes the title transfer and collects tax on your stated price in the ordinary way.2Tennessee Department of Revenue. County Clerk Sales and Use Tax Guide for Automobiles and Boats Dealer sales are also outside this form; the affidavit is specifically for non-dealer transfers.
Which Family Gifts Qualify for the Tax Exemption
A gift is only tax-free in Tennessee when both the relationship qualifies and nothing of value is received in return. If the giver takes money, a trade, forgiveness of a debt, or work in exchange, the Department of Revenue treats the transfer as a sale.1Tennessee Department of Revenue. County Clerk Sales and Use Tax Manual for Automobiles and Boats
The qualifying relationships are:
- Spouses
- Siblings
- Parents and children
- Grandparents and grandchildren
- Great-grandparents and great-grandchildren
- Spouses of lineal relatives, such as a son-in-law or daughter-in-law
The exemption works in both directions along the line — parent to child or child to parent, for example.3Tennessee Department of Revenue. GI-13 – Car Sales to Relatives are Not Subject to Sales Tax State the specific relationship on the affidavit in plain terms (“mother to daughter,” “brother to sister”) so the clerk can process the exemption without follow-up.
Aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends are not on the list. A gift to someone outside the qualifying relationships still requires the affidavit, but the recipient owes use tax on the vehicle’s market value unless they can show the giver already paid Tennessee sales tax when originally acquiring it.1Tennessee Department of Revenue. County Clerk Sales and Use Tax Manual for Automobiles and Boats
How the 75% Rule Actually Works
The 75% figure is a review threshold, not a tax rate. When your purchase price falls below 75% of NADA value, you still owe Tennessee’s 7% state sales tax on what you actually paid — not on the book value. The affidavit exists so the clerk and the Department of Revenue can confirm the low price is legitimate.2Tennessee Department of Revenue. County Clerk Sales and Use Tax Guide for Automobiles and Boats
Refuse to complete the affidavit, or fail to supply a licensed dealer’s independent appraisal when asked, and the clerk charges use tax on 100% of fair market value.1Tennessee Department of Revenue. County Clerk Sales and Use Tax Manual for Automobiles and Boats On a car with a $15,000 NADA value that you actually bought for $5,000, that is the gap between $350 in tax and $1,050. The form takes about five minutes.
What to Put on the Form
Form RV-F1301201, officially the “Affidavit of Non-Dealer Transfers of Motor Vehicles and Boats,” is available from the Tennessee Department of Revenue website or any county clerk’s office.4Tennessee Department of Revenue. Title and Registration Forms
It asks for four things:
- Vehicle or boat description: year, make, model, and VIN or hull identification number. Copy the VIN straight from the title; a single wrong digit stalls processing.
- Full legal names and current addresses of both buyer and seller.
- The actual purchase price (enter zero for a gift). If the price is low because of mechanical problems, a salvage title, or high mileage, write that into the space the form provides.
- For gift transfers, the specific family relationship that qualifies the transaction for exemption.
Both parties sign under a perjury declaration swearing that the information is true and the price reflects the actual consideration.5Tennessee Department of Revenue. Affidavit of Non-Dealer Transfers of Motor Vehicles and Boats The current form does not require notarization; the perjury statement carries the legal weight.
Filing with the County Clerk
The buyer takes the completed affidavit to the county clerk in the county where they live, together with the original title properly signed over by the seller on the back. The clerk reviews the affidavit, processes the title transfer, and collects any tax and fees at the counter. You usually leave with a temporary registration or receipt the same day, and the new physical title arrives by mail within a few weeks.
Mention upfront if the title is salvage or rebuilt, or if a lien is noted. Those situations can call for extra documentation, and the clerk can tell you what else to bring.
Fees That Still Apply Even on a Gift
Eliminating the sales tax does not eliminate titling and registration costs. Tennessee charges a statewide title fee and a registration fee for a standard plate, and most counties add a wheel tax that varies widely by location. For a standard passenger vehicle, the combined title, registration, and wheel tax usually runs somewhere between $70 and $130. An additional recording fee applies if there is a lien on the vehicle.
What Happens If You Skip It or Lie on It
The usual cost of not filing the affidavit is overpaying tax. Without the completed form, the clerk charges use tax on full market value, which turns a tax-free family gift into a bill for hundreds of dollars.2Tennessee Department of Revenue. County Clerk Sales and Use Tax Guide for Automobiles and Boats
Deliberately understating the price is a far more serious problem. The Department of Revenue can audit the transfer after the fact, and the penalties compound:
- A delinquency penalty of 5% of the unpaid tax per month, capped at 25%.6Tennessee Department of Revenue. Sales and Use Tax Manual
- An additional 10% negligence penalty if the Department finds the shortfall came from carelessness.
- A fraud penalty of 100% of the underpayment, replacing other penalties except dishonored-payment fees, when the Department concludes the understatement was intentional.6Tennessee Department of Revenue. Sales and Use Tax Manual
- Interest on the unpaid balance.7Tennessee Department of Revenue. Tax Rates and Interest Rate
The perjury declaration on the form adds criminal exposure. Perjury in Tennessee is a Class A misdemeanor, carrying up to 11 months and 29 days in jail.8FindLaw. Tennessee Code 39-16-702 – Perjury
Federal Gift Tax Boundary
Tennessee has no state gift tax, but a high-value vehicle gift can still trigger a federal filing. For 2026, the IRS annual exclusion is $19,000 per recipient; above that, the giver must file Form 709 to report the gift.9Internal Revenue Service. Gifts and Inheritances Filing the form does not necessarily mean owing tax — the excess counts against your lifetime exemption. Married couples can elect gift-splitting to combine exclusions and give a vehicle worth up to $38,000 without filing.10Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 709 Most private vehicle gifts stay under the threshold, but check the fair market value before you transfer anything newer or higher-end.