The record of what was sold, to whom, on what day and for how much. It does not transfer ownership on its own - California moves ownership on the certificate of title - but it is what fixes the sale date, and the sale date is what the release of liability hangs on.
Written against REG 135 (Rev 2/2007), issued under California Vehicle Code 5900 and 5901.
This form has not been revised since February 2007, so an old copy in your glovebox is very likely still current - but check the REG 135 (REV. 2/2007) in the footer against the DMV's copy before you rely on it.
Two documents, and they are not the same thing. Take the blank REG 135 from the dmv.ca.gov copy so you get the revision that is current today, then print our REG 135 guide and keep it beside you while you fill theirs in.
This is the actual REG 135, rendered from the PDF the California Department of Motor Vehicles publishes and completed end to end: letterhead, every field, and the blocks at the foot.
Amber — you write it
Grey — not yours to fill
Numbered — explained below
The actual REG 135, downloaded from dmv.ca.gov and filled in for a straightforward private sale. Both halves are completed, because the sheet prints the same bill of sale twice and tells you to cut between them. Amber is what you write; the greyed blocks are deliberately left empty - this was a sale rather than a gift, with one seller and one buyer.
Field by field
Every line, in the order you meet it
1
You fill this in
Vehicle/vessel description
VIN, year model, make and licence plate across the top strip. The motorcycle engine box stays empty on a car.
Watch out: Copy the VIN off the title, not off the dashboard plate or an old insurance card. One transposed character here and the bill of sale does not describe the car you sold.
2
You fill this in
I/We ... (print seller's name)
Your name, printed, exactly as it reads on the certificate of title.
Watch out: If the title names two owners, both go on this line - the sentence reads I/We for a reason.
3
You fill this in
to ... (print buyer's name) on ...
The buyer's printed name and the date of sale in the month, day and year boxes.
Watch out: The year is four separate single-character boxes. People write 2026 across the first box and it becomes unreadable.
4
You fill this in
Selling price
What was actually paid, in figures.
Watch out: This number has to match the one you put on the REG 138. Two different prices for the same sale is what turns a five-minute counter visit into a referral.
5
You fill this in
If this was a gift
Only if no money changed hands: name the relationship and enter the market value in the second dollar box.
Watch out: A gift between qualified relatives also needs a REG 256 claiming the use tax exemption. Ticking gift here on its own does not exempt anyone from anything.
6
You fill this in
Seller block
Print your name, sign, date, and give a driver licence, ID or dealer number. There are two rows because a car can have two registered owners.
Watch out: The line above this block is a declaration under penalty of perjury. That is why it is signed rather than initialled.
7
You fill this in
Seller mailing address and daytime phone
Where you can be reached. It is the only phone number on the form.
Watch out: Give a number you will actually answer for the next few months. This is who the DMV calls when something on the transfer does not add up.
8
The buyer fills this in
Buyer block
The buyer's printed names and mailing address.
Watch out: There is deliberately no signature line for the buyer on a REG 135. You are the one certifying, which is also why the seller block is the one that has to be right.
At a glance
What goes where
On the form
What to put in it
Vehicle/vessel description
VIN, year model, make, licence plate or CF number, and a motorcycle engine number if that is what you are selling.
I/We ... sell, transfer, and deliver
The seller's printed name, or names. Print it as it reads on the title, since this document is meant to line up with the certificate.
to ... on ... for the amount of
Buyer's printed name, the date in month/day/year boxes, and the selling price. The price is not decoration: California's use tax is calculated on it and the DMV compares it against the figure on your release of liability.
If this was a gift, indicate relationship
A named relationship - the form's own examples are parents, spouse, friend - and a gift value in the second dollar box. A gift between qualified relatives also needs a REG 256 use tax exemption statement.
Seller block
Print name, sign, date, and give a driver licence, ID or dealer number. There are two rows because a car can have two registered owners. The line above them is a perjury declaration, which is why it is signed rather than initialled.
Seller mailing address and daytime phone
The only phone number on the form, and the number the DMV rings if something on the transfer does not add up.
Buyer block
Printed names and a mailing address only. There is deliberately no signature line for the buyer on a REG 135 - the seller is the one certifying.
What gets this one rejected
•Filling in only the top half. The sheet prints the same bill of sale twice with CUT ON LINE AND SAVE FOR YOUR RECORDS between them; complete both, hand one over, keep one.
•Leaving the selling price blank on a gift instead of filling the gift value box and naming the relationship.
•Treating it as the transfer. A bill of sale on its own does not move a California title, and a buyer who arrives at the counter with only this one goes home again.
•A price here that disagrees with the price on the REG 138. Two different numbers for the same sale is the sort of thing that turns a five-minute counter visit into a referral.
Every line here was read off REG 135 (Rev 2/2007) itself —
the PDF is here — and off the California Department of Motor Vehicles pages.
This is plain-language help with a form, not legal advice, and where our wording and the agency's differ,
theirs governs.
