Private-Party Vehicle Title Transfer Requirements in West Virginia
At a glance
| Governing law, agency, and scope | W. Va. Code ch. 17A, arts. 3-4 (§§ 17A-4-1 to -9; 17A-3-4) and the motor-vehicle sales tax at § 11-15-3c; administered by the West Virginia Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV). Covers an ordinary same-state private sale of a currently WV-titled used passenger vehicle. |
|---|---|
| Title assignment, owner signatures, and lien release | Seller endorses an assignment and warranty of title on the certificate with a sworn statement of all liens (§ 17A-4-2) and, with the buyer, signs the back of the WV title; co-owners joined by 'and' both sign, 'or'/'and/or' just one (DMV). Seller must deliver the title within 60 days of sale (§ 17A-4-2). A lienholder releases on the title or by legal release or electronic acknowledgment (§ 17A-4-7). |
| Notarization, witness, or agent verification | No notary on the ordinary title assignment; the buyer's title application (DMV-1-TR) is signed under penalty of false swearing, not notarized (§ 17A-3-4(a)). A bill of sale must be notarized only when required — when the price is below 50% of NADA Clean Loan Book value — on Form DMV-7-TR with copies of both driver's licenses (DMV). |
| Bill of sale requirement and contents | Not required for an ordinary transfer. A notarized DMV-7-TR bill of sale (with both parties' license copies) is required only if the purchase price is below 50% of NADA Clean Loan Book value; otherwise it is optional evidence. It supplements — never replaces — the reassigned title and the DMV-1-TR filing (DMV; DMV-7-TR). |
| Odometer, damage, and title-brand disclosures | Federal odometer disclosure is made on the title's odometer certification and the DMV-1-TR for most passenger vehicles, trucks under 16,000 lbs GVWR, and motorcycles (DMV; DMV-1-TR). No separate ordinary damage form; salvage, reconstructed, flood/fire, and cosmetic-total-loss brands follow § 17A-4-10 and are outside the ordinary transfer. |
| Seller notice, plate handling, and liability | Registration expires on transfer; the seller keeps the plates, must notify the commissioner and surrender the registration card, and may move the plates to another owned vehicle within 60 days for $10 (§ 17A-4-1). No separate report-of-sale form; the seller avoids liability for later negligent operation once there is a bona fide sale, delivery of possession, and delivery of the properly endorsed title (§ 17A-4-9). |
| Buyer deadline, forms, tax, and fees | No fixed statutory day-count for a resident buyer, but the buyer must obtain title and registration before operating; a private buyer may drive up to 10 days on the seller's registration only while carrying the seller's written consent (§§ 17A-4-3, 17A-3-1). File the reassigned title and DMV-1-TR with proof of WV liability insurance; fees are a $15 title fee, 6% titling sales tax on net price over $500 (or $30 flat if $500 or under), and $10 per lien (§ 11-15-3c(b); DMV). |
| Inspection, emissions, insurance, and operation | West Virginia has no vehicle emissions/smog program, and no emissions certificate is among the title or registration documents (DMV). Proof of West Virginia liability insurance is certified on the DMV-1-TR (§ 17A-3-4). A current safety-inspection certificate is required to operate — a misdemeanor to drive without one — but it is an operating rule, not a title-transfer step (§ 17C-16-9). |
| Penalties, rejection, and failed transfer | Failing to properly endorse and deliver the title is a misdemeanor (§ 17A-4-8); false swearing on the application is a misdemeanor, then a felony on repeat (§ 17A-3-4(e); see § 17A-9-1). Ownership does not change until the buyer applies for and is issued a new title (DMV-7-TR; § 17A-4-6). The DMV can reject the application for a missing reassignment, insurance statement, lien release, required notarized bill of sale, tax, or fee. |
Requirements one by one
The title assignment and the DMV filing work together
West Virginia moves ownership through the certificate of title, not the keys or a receipt. Under § 17A-4-2 the seller must "endorse an assignment and warranty of title upon the certificate of title" with a statement of all liens "verified under oath by the owner," and deliver that title to the buyer within 60 days of the sale. The DMV adds the practical step: both the seller and the buyer sign the back of the West Virginia title, and when co-owners are joined by "and" both must sign, while "or" or "and/or" lets one sign.
The buyer then files. Section 17A-4-3 requires the transferee to present the endorsed title and apply for a new title and registration, and § 17A-4-6 has the DMV issue the new title once it is "satisfied as to the genuineness and regularity" of the transfer. A recorded lien is cleared on the title itself, by a separate legal release, or by the lienholder's electronic acknowledgment (§ 17A-4-7).
Notarization depends on the document and the price
The ordinary West Virginia title assignment is not notarized. The buyer's Application for Certificate of Title (DMV-1-TR) is signed "under penalty of false swearing," not before a notary, matching § 17A-3-4(a)'s requirement that the application be "signed and sworn to by the applicant."
A notary enters only through the bill of sale. The DMV requires a notarized bill of sale — its Form DMV-7-TR, with copies of both driver's licenses — only when the purchase price is below 50% of the vehicle's NADA Clean Loan Book value (the DMV uses that figure to check the tax base). Above that line, a bill of sale is optional. Either way, DMV-7-TR states in capital letters that ownership "will not change until the buyer applies for and is issued a certificate of title," so the bill of sale supplements the reassigned title rather than replacing it.
Odometer disclosure
Federal odometer disclosure is made on the title's odometer certification and on the DMV-1-TR, which repeats that "Federal regulations require that you state the odometer mileage upon transfer of ownership." The DMV applies it to most passenger vehicles, trucks under 16,000 pounds GVWR, and motorcycles. Salvage, reconstructed, flood, fire, and cosmetic-total-loss brands run through the separate salvage process in § 17A-4-10(h)-(i) and are outside an ordinary transfer.
The seller keeps the plates and sheds liability by delivering the title
West Virginia plates belong to the owner, not the car. Under § 17A-4-1 the registration expires on transfer; the seller keeps the plates, must "immediately notify the commissioner" and surrender the registration card, and may move the plates to another vehicle he or she owns within 60 days for a $10 fee. There is no separate release-of-liability form. Under § 17A-4-9 the seller is protected from liability for later negligent operation once there has been a bona fide sale, delivery of possession, and delivery of the properly endorsed title — all three.
The buyer's deadline, tax, and fees
West Virginia does not put a fixed day count on a resident buyer, but § 17A-4-3 requires title and registration before operating and allows driving under the seller's registration for "not more than ten days." Section 17A-3-1 — at subsection § 17A-3-1(a) — adds the condition: during those ten days the buyer must "have and display on the demand of any proper officer the consent in writing of such previous owner." The buyer files the reassigned title and the DMV-1-TR with proof of a West Virginia liability policy. The money due is a $15 title fee, the 6% titling sales tax on the net purchase price over $500 (or a $30 flat amount at $500 or under), and a $10 lien fee if there is a lien. The 6% rate is set by § 11-15-3c(b), which raised it from 5% "beginning July 1, 2017"; § 17A-3-4(d) abolished the old DMV privilege tax and routed titling to that sales tax, and § 17A-3-4(e) makes knowingly swearing falsely on the application a misdemeanor, and a felony on a repeat conviction within five years.
Inspection and insurance are operating rules
West Virginia has no emissions or smog-check program, and no emissions certificate appears among the title or registration documents. Insurance, however, is built into the paperwork: the DMV-1-TR certifies that a West Virginia liability policy "is in effect" on the vehicle. Separately, § 17C-16-9 makes it a misdemeanor — fine up to $100 — to operate without a current safety inspection certificate. That inspection is a condition of driving, not a step in transferring the title.
What trips people up
- Assuming you always need a notary. You do not notarize the ordinary title transfer. The notarized DMV-7-TR bill of sale is required only when the price is below 50% of NADA book value; the buyer's application is a sworn self-certification, not a notarized one.
- Thinking the plates go with the car. They stay with the seller. Leaving the plates on a sold vehicle, or failing to notify the commissioner, leaves the registration in the seller's name.
- Treating the sale as final at handshake. Ownership does not change until the buyer applies for and is issued a new title (DMV-7-TR; § 17A-4-6). A signed title sitting in a glovebox is not a completed transfer.
- Forgetting the seller's 60-day delivery duty. Section 17A-4-2 requires the seller to deliver the endorsed title within 60 days of the sale, and failing to properly endorse and deliver it is a misdemeanor (§ 17A-4-8).
Common questions
Does a West Virginia bill of sale transfer the car by itself? No. Form DMV-7-TR says ownership does not change until the buyer applies for and is issued a certificate of title. The reassigned title is the operative instrument; the bill of sale is supporting evidence and is only mandatory when the price is below half the NADA book value.
Do the seller's and buyer's signatures on the title need to be notarized? No. West Virginia does not notarize the ordinary current-title assignment, and the buyer's DMV-1-TR is signed under penalty of false swearing rather than before a notary.
Do I keep my license plates after I sell? Yes. Plates belong to the owner. Notify the DMV, surrender the registration card, and — if you want — move the plates to another vehicle you own within 60 days for a $10 fee (§ 17A-4-1).
Do I need a safety inspection or emissions test to complete the transfer? Neither is part of titling. West Virginia has no emissions program, and the safety inspection is a requirement for operating the vehicle (§ 17C-16-9), not a document the DMV needs to issue the new title.
Statutes and sources
- W. Va. Code § 17A-4-2 — seller's endorsement, sworn lien statement, and 60-day delivery of the title. https://code.wvlegislature.gov/17A-4-2/ (accessed 2026-07-23)
- W. Va. Code § 17A-4-3 — buyer must obtain title and registration before operating; 10-day grace under the seller's registration. https://code.wvlegislature.gov/17A-4-3/ (accessed 2026-07-23)
- W. Va. Code §§ 17A-4-6 and 17A-4-7 — DMV issues the new title on a regular transfer; lienholder release methods. https://code.wvlegislature.gov/17A-4-6/ and https://code.wvlegislature.gov/17A-4-7/ (accessed 2026-07-23)
- W. Va. Code §§ 17A-4-1, 17A-4-8, and 17A-4-9 — plate retention and seller notice, misdemeanor for failing to deliver the title, and the seller's liability release on a completed bona fide sale. https://code.wvlegislature.gov/17A-4-1/, https://code.wvlegislature.gov/17A-4-8/, and https://code.wvlegislature.gov/17A-4-9/ (accessed 2026-07-23)
- W. Va. Code § 17A-3-4 — title application signed and sworn, title fee, tax moved to § 11-15-3c, and the false-swearing penalty. https://code.wvlegislature.gov/17A-3-4/ (accessed 2026-07-23)
- W. Va. Code § 11-15-3c — 6% motor-vehicle sales tax collected by the DMV since July 1, 2017. https://code.wvlegislature.gov/11-15-3C/ (accessed 2026-07-23)
- W. Va. Code § 17C-16-9 — misdemeanor to operate without a current safety inspection certificate. https://code.wvlegislature.gov/17C-16-9/ (accessed 2026-07-23)
- West Virginia DMV — Titles (Used Vehicle Purchases) — reassigned title, multi-owner signatures, notarized bill of sale under 50% NADA value, fees, and odometer rule. https://transportation.wv.gov/DMV/Vehicle-Services/Titles/Pages/default.aspx (accessed 2026-07-23)
- West Virginia DMV Form DMV-1-TR — title application, insurance certification, and federal odometer statement. https://transportation.wv.gov/DMV/DMVFormSearch/DMV-1-TR_Certificate-for-Title-of-Motor-Vehicle-wf.pdf (accessed 2026-07-23)
- West Virginia DMV Form DMV-7-TR — notarized bill of sale; ownership does not change until the buyer is issued a title. https://transportation.wv.gov/dmv/dmvformsearch/dmv-7-tr-en.pdf (accessed 2026-07-23)
Source links
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