Arkansas title and registration, step by step

Which forms, which fees and which deadlines. For a car bought in the state and for one you bring from another.

In Arkansas the title is issued by Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration — Office of Motor Vehicle (DFA). The title transfers on paper: the seller prints the buyer's name in the assignment section on the back, and both sign and print their names.

Where it happens. At any DFA State Revenue Office, or online through MyDMV. Before you go, list the car with your county assessor and be current on personal property tax: DFA requires it to register. Confirm the deadline and the event that starts it for your transaction: a purchase, receipt of the signed title or a move into the state can have different rules. Late-fee information in the state sources: $3.00 per 10 days (up to the annual registration fee) + 10% of the sales tax due.

Case 1: you bought a car in Arkansas (private seller)

What the seller hands you

• The title with the transfer section completed: your name and address, sale price, date, odometer reading and the seller's signature (both owners if two names are joined by "and").
• If there was a loan: a lien release from the bank, or the lien already removed from the title.
• A bill of sale with VIN, price and signatures. You need it for the sales tax.

What you bring to the office

• The state forms (below), completed.
• The signed title and the bill of sale.
• Applicable insurance or financial-responsibility documents: 25/50/25: $25,000 for bodily injury or death of one person in one accident, $50,000 for bodily injury or death of two or more people in the same accident and $25,000 for damage to the property of others. Not a no-fault state. PIP (personal injury protection) is offered in three parts — medical payments, lost wages and death benefits; you may buy one, two or all three, and if you do not want a part of it you must reject it in writing. Same with uninsured motorist coverage: it is included in your policy unless you sign a statement rejecting it. Watch out for a real conflict between two official pages: DFA's Safety Responsibility page today prints limits of "$25,000, $50,000 and $75,000". The Arkansas Insurance Department, the office that regulates auto insurance, publishes 25/50/25 in its automobile insurance brochure, and that is the minimum we use here.
• Valid photo ID.
• Payment: title, registration, plate and sales tax if not paid yet.

Case 2: you bring a car from another state

• Everything above, plus: The reviewed registration checklist does not list a separate physical VIN inspection. That is not confirmation of an exemption; ask the motor-vehicle agency whether your title, vehicle history or transfer requires an inspection or other documents.
• The original out-of-state title (or the bank's letter if it holds it for the loan).
• Tax: 6.5% state on new cars and on used cars of $10,000 or more. Used $4,000 to $9,999: 3.5% state. Used under $4,000: DFA collects no state sales tax. The reduced rate goes by the date of sale, not the date you register. Where applicable, city and county tax is added; confirm with the Revenue Office whether local tax applies to a used vehicle under $4,000. For a vehicle licensed for highway use the single-transaction cap still applies: on January 1, 2008 that cap was dropped for almost everything, but it was kept for highway vehicles, aircraft, watercraft and manufactured housing. DFA prints the cap amount ($2,500 per transaction) for watercraft, but does not print it for cars: confirm it at the Revenue Office. In a private sale you pay the tax at the Revenue Office when you register. With a trade-in only the difference is taxed. If instead of trading it in you sell your previous car yourself, the credit applies when the sale happens within 60 days before or after the purchase; but if you sell AFTER you have already registered the new car, the sale has to happen within 45 days of the purchase and you claim the credit as a refund, not at the counter. Handing a stolen or destroyed car to your insurer in exchange for a payment does not count as a sale, and neither does giving it away.

Forms

• 10-381 — Vehicle Registration Application (title or replacement title)
• 10-313 — Vehicle Bill of Sale / Odometer Disclosure Statement
• Notice of Transfer of Ownership — Notice of Transfer of Ownership (seller, optional)
• 10-315 — Official Release of Lien or Permission to Issue Replacement Title
• Salvage Buyer's Notification — Buyer's Notification: salvage vehicle

Fees — confirm current amounts (DFA)

Amounts come from the linked state sources and can change. This guide distinguishes source checkpoints from narrow claim reviews; confirm the total for your transaction before you go. A dash means an amount has not been confirmed here.

Sales tax

6.5% state on new cars and on used cars of $10,000 or more. Used $4,000 to $9,999: 3.5% state. Used under $4,000: DFA collects no state sales tax. The reduced rate goes by the date of sale, not the date you register. Where applicable, city and county tax is added; confirm with the Revenue Office whether local tax applies to a used vehicle under $4,000. For a vehicle licensed for highway use the single-transaction cap still applies: on January 1, 2008 that cap was dropped for almost everything, but it was kept for highway vehicles, aircraft, watercraft and manufactured housing. DFA prints the cap amount ($2,500 per transaction) for watercraft, but does not print it for cars: confirm it at the Revenue Office. In a private sale you pay the tax at the Revenue Office when you register. With a trade-in only the difference is taxed. If instead of trading it in you sell your previous car yourself, the credit applies when the sale happens within 60 days before or after the purchase; but if you sell AFTER you have already registered the new car, the sale has to happen within 45 days of the purchase and you claim the credit as a refund, not at the counter. Handing a stolen or destroyed car to your insurer in exchange for a payment does not count as a sale, and neither does giving it away.

If you sell: protect yourself

Listed seller-notice or transfer document: Notice of Transfer of Ownership of a Motor Vehicle (optional; in person or by mail to DFA Office of Motor Vehicle). Check its conditions and the state process below. Confirm with DFA how to handle the plate before handing over the vehicle; do not assume the buyer may use the seller’s plate. The buyer gets a temporary tag at a Revenue Office within the first 10 days after purchase (bring the bill of sale and your license) and has 60 days to register. The seller should send the transfer notice to DFA. Keep copies of the title, filed notices and handover date to answer later registration, toll or ownership questions.

Mistakes that cost

• Missing the deadline. Check the deadline and consequence for your transaction; filing periods and penalties do not all start from the same event.
• Title with cross-outs or correction fluid. Ask the issuing agency which correction or replacement document it accepts before using it.
• Buying with an "open" title (signed by a previous owner, not the person selling to you). Confirm the ownership chain and the documents the agency requires before paying.
• Showing up without in-state insurance. Confirm the insurance or financial-responsibility documents required for your situation.