North Dakota 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 North Dakota the title is issued by North Dakota Department of Transportation — Motor Vehicle Division (NDDOT). North Dakota uses paper titles. The seller signs Part 1 of the title with the buyer's name, the price and the mileage. If there is a loan, the lender can hold the lien electronically; once it is paid off, NDDOT sends the paper title.

Where it happens. At an NDDOT motor vehicle office: the central office in Bismarck or a branch (many are at the county treasurer), by appointment at 1-855-633-6835 or online. Branches charge their own service fee. You can also mail the paperwork or leave it in the office drop box. 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.

Case 1: you bought a car in North Dakota (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 liability, 25/50 uninsured motorist, underinsured motorist equal to the uninsured limit, and $30,000 per person basic no-fault (PIP).
• 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 NDDOT application materials list the out-of-state title and form SFN 2872, but do not establish a blanket physical-VIN-inspection exemption; confirm your vehicle’s requirements with NDDOT. When registering they may ask for a photo of the VIN plate. A rebuilt car does need an inspection at a shop registered with the Secretary of State that is not the shop that repaired it (SFN 2486).
• The original out-of-state title (or the bank's letter if it holds it for the loan).
• Tax: North Dakota collects a state motor vehicle excise tax: 5% of the purchase price, also when you buy from a private seller. It is paid to the Motor Vehicle Division when you apply for the title. On a trade-in only the difference is taxed. If you already paid tax in a state with reciprocity, it is credited (not for Alaska, Delaware, Georgia, Montana, New Hampshire or Oregon). A gift between spouses, parent and child, siblings, or grandparent and grandchild is exempt. Confirm any additional applicable charges with NDDOT; this review has not established a blanket exclusion of local taxes.

Forms

• SFN 2872 — Application for Certificate of Title and Registration of a Vehicle
• SFN 18609 — Damage/Salvage Disclosure Statement (seller fills it out)
• SFN 2888 — Seller's bill of sale
• SFN 2877 — Part 1: Assignment and Warranty of Title (when the title has no room)

Fees — confirm current amounts (NDDOT)

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

North Dakota collects a state motor vehicle excise tax: 5% of the purchase price, also when you buy from a private seller. It is paid to the Motor Vehicle Division when you apply for the title. On a trade-in only the difference is taxed. If you already paid tax in a state with reciprocity, it is credited (not for Alaska, Delaware, Georgia, Montana, New Hampshire or Oregon). A gift between spouses, parent and child, siblings, or grandparent and grandchild is exempt. Confirm any additional applicable charges with NDDOT; this review has not established a blanket exclusion of local taxes.

If you sell: protect yourself

Confirm which sale notice, plate return or registration cancellation applies to your situation; keep written proof of the handover. When selling, the seller removes the plates and the car's registration expires. The seller can use those plates on the next car, with credit for the unused months ($5 fee), and must do so within 30 days of buying it. The buyer can drive 5 days without a plate while carrying a dated bill of sale or dated title; after that the buyer needs the 75-day temporary permit (online or at a kiosk) or the new registration. That permit does not buy you more time on the title: NDDOT's own 75-day permit page says that by taking it "you agree to pay the applicable excise tax, and to title and register the vehicle within 30 days" (N.D.C.C. § 39-05-17). Your 30 days run from the day you receive the signed title, not from the sale (§ 39-05-17(4)). The seller should hand you the title within 15 days of the sale, the figure in NDDOT's Registration Manual; § 39-05-17(2) and form SFN 2877 say 30 days, so ask for it at 15. The buyer pays a full year of registration. 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.