Sell your car in Montana — no tax, no notary, no nonsense
Montana strips a car sale down to about as little paperwork as a state can ask for: no sales tax, no emissions checks, no notary since October 2025, and no release-of-liability form to chase. Sign the title correctly, take your plates, and you're done. Here's the whole playbook — plus a cash offer if you'd rather skip the private-sale circus entirely.
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What Montana requires when you sell
| Notary | Not required. House Bill 165 ended Montana's title-notarization requirement on October 1, 2025, for individuals and businesses alike. Newer titles have no notary section at all, and older titles are accepted with the notary block left blank (Montana Secretary of State). |
|---|---|
| The title form | Ownership transfers on the Certificate of Title itself. Every owner listed must sign, the buyer's name and address go on the title, and an odometer disclosure is required for any vehicle newer than nine years. Use blue or black ink only — white-out or scratched-out entries void the title and force a replacement. |
| Bill of sale | Optional but smart. The MVD's version is Form MV24, and the buyer then has 40 days to title and register the vehicle at their county treasurer's office. |
| Lost your title? | File Form MV7 (Application for Replacement Certificate of Title) with a $10.30 fee — by mail to the Vehicle Services Bureau in Helena or in person at any county treasurer's motor vehicle office (Yellowstone County Treasurer). |
| Protect yourself after the sale | Montana has no release-of-liability filing — no form, no deadline. The MVD's advice instead: remove your plates before the buyer drives off (a seller who leaves plates on can be on the hook for tickets that follow) and keep a written record of the sale, ideally a photocopy of both sides of the reassigned title. |
| License plates | Plates belong to you, not the vehicle. Take them off before handing over the keys; the buyer purchases new plates when they register at their own county treasurer. |
| Sales tax | None. Montana has no statewide sales tax, so a private-party sale carries zero tax for either side. Buyers pay age-based registration instead — $217/year for vehicles up to 4 years old, $87 for 5–10, $28 for 11-plus (or $87.50 once for permanent registration) — plus a local-option tax of up to 0.7% of depreciated value in most counties (Legislative Fiscal Division). |
| Inspections | Zero. No emissions or smog checks anywhere in the state, and no periodic safety inspections either. A one-time VIN inspection applies only in special titling situations, such as a vehicle arriving from out of state. |
Current as of August 2026 and verified against the Montana MVD's official seller guidance — confirm the details there before you sign anything.
Asked by Montana sellers
Do I need to notarize a Montana car title to sell it?
Not anymore. Notarization was eliminated on October 1, 2025 under House Bill 165, for both individuals and businesses. If your title is older and still shows a notary block, leave it blank — county treasurers accept it that way.
Is there sales tax when I sell my car in Montana?
No. Montana has no statewide sales tax, so neither you nor the buyer owes tax on the sale itself. The buyer pays age-based registration fees at their county treasurer, plus a local-option tax of up to 0.7% of depreciated value in most counties — six counties charge none.
How do I release liability after I sell my car in Montana?
There's no form to file — Montana doesn't have a release-of-liability process at all. Protect yourself the way the MVD recommends: take your plates off before the buyer leaves, and keep a photocopy of both sides of the signed-over title as your record of the sale.
I lost my title. Can I still sell my car?
You'll need a replacement first — Montana won't transfer ownership without the paper title. File Form MV7 with the $10.30 fee at any county treasurer's motor vehicle office or by mail to Helena, then sell once it arrives. If you take our cash offer route, we'll walk you through the replacement while the offer stands.