The form the whole Texas transfer runs on. The buyer files it at a county tax assessor-collector's office with the signed title, and it does three jobs at once: applies for the title, transfers the registration, and computes the motor vehicle sales tax.
Written against Form 130-U (Rev 05/26), issued under Texas Transportation Code 501.0234 and Tax Code 152. Texas revises this form often - the copy in the glovebox is very likely out of date. Check the revision in the footer against the one on TxDMV.gov before you fill anything in.
Two documents, and they are not the same thing. Take the blank Form 130-U from the txdmv.gov copy so you get the revision that is current today.
| On the form | What to put in it |
|---|---|
| The four boxes at the top | Title & Registration, Title Only, Registration Purposes Only, or Nontitle Registration. An ordinary private sale is the first one. Title Only means surrendering the plates and registration under Transportation Code 501.0275. |
| 1 to 12, the vehicle | VIN, year, make, body style, model, major and minor colour, Texas plate number, odometer reading with no tenths, empty weight and carrying capacity. |
| 10, the mileage tick boxes | Three of them: Not Actual, Exceeds Mechanical Limits, Exempt. The printed line reads that the reading is the actual mileage unless one is ticked, so leaving all three empty is itself a statement. |
| 13 to 15, who is applying | Applicant type - individual, business, government, trust, non-profit - then a photo ID number and which of eleven listed ID types it came from. The form says every title application must include one of them. |
| 16 to 19, the buyer | First, middle, last name and suffix, a second applicant if there is one, the mailing address, and the county of residence. That county line decides the title fee. |
| 20, previous owner | You. Name or entity name, city and state - not a full address. |
| 30 to 34, liens | Whether there are multiple liens, whether an electronic title is requested, the lienholder ID and first lien date, and the first lienholder's name and address. |
| 38, the tax computation | Sales price, less any trade-in, taxable amount, then 6.25% of it. Beside it sit the flat alternatives: $90 new resident tax, $5 even trade tax, $10 gift tax with Comptroller Form 14-317 attached, $65 rebuilt salvage fee. |
| The title fee box | Printed on the form as $28 or $33 Application Fee for Texas Title, with the instruction to contact your county tax assessor-collector for the correct one. |
| The signature block | Three rows: signature of seller, donor or trader with printed name and date; signature of the applicant or owner; and additional applicants. |
Every line here was read off Form 130-U (Rev 05/26) itself — the PDF is here — and off the Texas 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.
Back to all Texas seller paperwork, or what selling a car in Texas involves.