Change of vehicle ownership

What to do when a vehicle changes hands

• When you buy, are given, or get a vehicle in another way, you must tell us straight away. You should do the buyer’s transaction.
  Bought a vehicle(external link)

• When you sell, give away, or get rid of a vehicle, you must tell us straight away. You should do the seller’s transaction.
  Sold a vehicle(external link)

Both people (the buyer and the seller) are legally required to tell us they’ve done their part so the change of registered person is complete on the Motor Vehicle Register.

We call it ‘buying’ and ‘selling’ because that’s what most people are doing.

What it means to be the registered person

We record the registered person’s name against the vehicle on the Motor Vehicle Register.

That means they’re the person responsible for things like:

• making sure the vehicle is safe to go on the road
• paying fees like vehicle licensing (rego) or road user charges (RUC)
• keeping their contact details up to date
• telling us when a vehicle changes hands.

Registered person responsibilities – full list

More information

Buying a vehicle

Selling a vehicle