How to Register an Out-of-State Car in California

How Do You Register an Out-of-State Car in California?

You register it in person at a California DMV office within 20 days of the date registration becomes due. For most new residents, that is the day they establish residency. You will need an Application for Title or Registration (REG 343), your out-of-state title and last registration card, and a Verification of Vehicle (REG 31). Add a California smog certificate if the car needs one, proof of California insurance, and payment for fees and any use tax.

The smog test and the VIN verification both need the car itself. That is the step cross-country movers tend to miss. Arrange California insurance first, book the smog test for the days after the car lands, then take the car and the paperwork to the DMV. The DMV checklist for nonresident vehicles has the full list.

When Does the 20-Day Deadline Start?

It runs from the date registration fees become due, not from the day your car arrives. For a car still registered in your old state, that is whichever comes first: the day you establish California residency or the day the old registration expires. You then have 20 days to apply before penalties under California Vehicle Code section 4152.5.

Six months in the state within a 12-month period makes you a resident. So does working, voting or leasing your home here, among other triggers in the DMV residency guidance. Start a job on Monday while the car is still on a trailer in Texas, and your 20 days started on Monday. Your driver license runs on a separate 10-day clock.

Active duty service members are treated differently. A nonresident service member can generally keep the car registered in their home state, and our military PCS car shipping guide covers the move itself.

What Documents Does the California DMV Need?

Every registered owner on the out-of-state title or registration signs the REG 343. If the car is leased, the leasing company signs too. Bring the last title your old state issued and the last registration card or renewal notice.

Bring your out-of-state plates as well. California collects them unless they have expired or your old state requires them back. Your insurance must meet California minimums of $30,000 for injury or death to one person, $60,000 for more than one person and $15,000 for property damage. Those figures come from the DMV insurance requirements, and a policy written elsewhere may fall short.

Does an Out-of-State Car Need a Smog Check in California?

Usually. Gasoline vehicles from the 1976 model year onward need a certificate from a California smog station. So do diesels from 1998 onward and natural gas or propane vehicles under 14,001 pounds gross vehicle weight. Motorcycles are exempt, fully electric vehicles are not on the list, and a test from another state is not accepted.

Newer California cars can skip the biennial check, but that exemption does not apply to a first California registration. A two-year-old car from out of state still needs the test. Florida has no emissions or safety inspection, so a Florida car may never have had one. A lit check engine light fails it. So can a recent battery disconnect, which resets the car's diagnostics until it has been driven normally for a few days.

Where Do You Get the VIN Verification Done?

An authorized DMV employee, a law enforcement officer or a California-licensed vehicle verifier can complete the REG 31. Most new residents have it done at the DMV office during the registration visit. The verifier has to see the vehicle, so do not book that appointment for a date before the car is due. If the car does not run, ask about a licensed private verifier.

What If a Lender or Leasing Company Holds the Title?

You can still register the car. Without the out-of-state title, California issues a registration card marked Nontransferable and no California title. The car is legally registered, and you can apply for the California title once the loan is paid off and the title released. A leasing company's signature on the REG 343 can take time, so ask as soon as your move date is set.

What Fees and Taxes Should You Expect?

Fees depend on the vehicle's value, age and type and where you live. The DMV registration fee calculator estimates them for nonresident vehicles, and the exact amount is set when you apply. Submit the application and fees on time even if the smog certificate is still missing, which the DMV advises to avoid late penalties.

Use tax is the item that surprises people. California presumes a vehicle bought outside the state and brought in within 12 months of purchase was bought for use here. Records can rebut that, so keep the bill of sale and proof of where you lived and drove the car. The CDTFA 12-month test explains how it works. Buying the car in another state rather than moving with it? Our guide to buying a car out of state as a California resident covers the emissions rule and the credit for tax paid elsewhere.

What Changes When the Car Comes From Florida or New York?

The California steps are the same everywhere. What differs is how your old state wants its plates and insurance handled, and getting the order wrong causes trouble back home.

Florida tells departing residents to keep their Florida insurance until the car is registered in the new state or the plate is surrendered. A lapse can suspend the Florida license and plate, according to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. The Florida plate goes back to a Florida tax collector's office, in person or by mail, and our guide to Florida license plate surrender covers the order and the paperwork. Our page on shipping a car from Florida to California covers the transport side.

New York wants its plates and registration returned to a New York DMV office before the policy is dropped, and treats dropping it first as a lapse. Our New York to California car shipping page walks through that lane.

How Do You Time the Car's Arrival Around the 20 Days?

Work backward from the day your residency starts, and leave room for a smog test and a DMV visit inside the 20 days. After you book with Rivalane, we typically assign a carrier within one to three working days. You then receive estimated pickup and delivery dates. They are estimates, not guarantees, so build in a margin. Our guide to how long it takes to ship a car across the country explains what moves the timeline.

Keep the title, registration card and insurance papers with you rather than in the car. At delivery, inspect the car with the driver and note any damage on the bill of lading before you sign. Rivalane coordinates door to door transport into California with licensed, insured carriers. Price your route with the car shipping calculator, or read more about car shipping in California.

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