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The quickest and easiest way to let us know that you’ve bought a vehicle is online. Otherwise you can complete the Notice by person acquiring motor vehicle form (MR13B) at an agent.
You’ll need to provide ID and pay $9 (including GST).
Request a receipt, which you may need to give to the seller when you pick up the vehicle.
If your vehicle weighs 6000kg or over, you will also need to have a transport service licence. Some other vehicles under 6000kg also require a transport service licence.
Find out who needs a transport service licence
If you’re buying a vehicle and its personalised plates, you'll need to negotiate this separately with the seller and complete a transfer agreement.
Find out more about personalised plates.
Is any money owed on the vehicle? (You can search the Personal Property Securities Register.) (external link)
Has the vehicle had an independent vehicle inspection?
Does the vehicle have a current warrant of fitness (WoF)?
Has the odometer been tampered with?
Are there any outstanding road user charges (RUC) payable?
Does the vehicle have a current RUC licence?
Does the vehicle have a current licence?
Is the vehicle recorded as stolen? (Check on the police website(external link).)
Your new Certificate of registration should arrive in the post within 10 days.
Find out what it means to be a registered person
A vehicle that is subject to RUC is required to have a valid RUC licence when a new owner takes possession. If it doesn’t, the seller is committing an offence, and the new owner may be liable for the outstanding fees. It’s recommended that unpaid RUC is taken into account when establishing the sale price. The Transport Agency doesn’t become involved in these negotiations.
Find out more about about road user charges
You can insist on a warrant of fitness (WoF) being less than one month old. This helps protect you if faults have developed in the vehicle since the last WoF check.
If you don’t insist on this, you should give the seller written confirmation that you accept that the WoF is older than one month old.
Vehicles without a current WoF must be advertised for sale ‘as is, where is’. If you are happy with that, you should give the seller a written undertaking that the vehicle won’t be used on the road except for taking it for repair or a new WoF.
If you buy a vehicle with an expired licence label (vehicle licensing is sometimes referred to as ‘rego’), you need to pay licence fees from the date you acquire the vehicle.
If the vehicle isn’t going to be used on the road, you should apply for an exemption from licensing. Do this after you have completed the buyer transaction.
The seller is liable for any outstanding licence fees up to the date of the sale and acquisition.
More information about vehicle licensing
If a vehicle has been unlicensed for more than 12 months, its registration will usually have been cancelled. (Tractors, trailers and a few other vehicle types have 24 months before the registration is cancelled.)
If you’ve bought a vehicle with cancelled registration and you want to use it on the road, you need to take several steps first, including inspection, certification, reregistration, licensing and the issuing of plates and labels.
Find out more about the reregistration process
You could get a fine of up to $1000 as an individual or $5000 for a company. You may also have to pay:
If you buy a vehicle from a motor vehicle trader, they may complete some or all of the notification process on your behalf. However, you should always confirm that the trader has completed this process.
