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Buying a Car Out of State: 5 Steps, Then Your State’s Rules

Take these steps in order, then see what Florida, Texas, Georgia and eight more states charge and inspect.

Posted 10 min read

Say you live outside Pittsburgh and the car you want is in Phoenix, about 2,090 miles away. It has never seen a salted road, and the price is right. You can buy it without leaving home if you take things in order. Money sent before anyone checks the title is hard to get back, and most states collect their sales tax when you title the car at home, wherever you bought it.

Step 1Check the Car Before Money Moves

Start with the VIN, the car’s 17-character vehicle identification number. It’s on the dashboard, the driver’s door jamb and the title. Ask the seller for it and run three checks:

  • Title history. The federal National Motor Vehicle Title Information System (NMVTIS) collects title records from state motor vehicle agencies. Approved providers, listed at vehiclehistory.gov, sell reports that show brands like junk, salvage and flood, plus the odometer readings on past titles.
  • Theft and salvage records. The National Insurance Crime Bureau’s free VINCheck shows whether a member insurer has reported the car stolen and not recovered, or as a salvage vehicle.
  • Open recalls. NHTSA, the federal auto safety agency, has a recall lookup that takes the VIN. Recall repairs are usually free at a dealer for that brand.

Then pay a shop near the seller for a pre-purchase inspection. A mechanic can put the car on a lift, read the computer codes and find the leaks and old body repairs that photos hide. Ask them to confirm that the VIN on the car matches the paperwork. If the seller won’t let a shop look at the car, walk away.

A car from a dry state still needs the history check. After big floods, damaged cars can turn up for sale far from the water.

Step 2Get the Title Right

Ask for photos of the front and back of the title before you pay, and look for these:

  • The owner’s name. On a private sale, it should match the seller’s ID.
  • An open title. If the last owner signed it over with the buyer’s name left blank, the person selling it to you never titled the car in their own name. Your state may refuse to title it to you.
  • A loan. If a lender is listed, or still holds the title, the loan has to be paid off and the lien released before the title can go to you. Agree with the seller on how the payoff works before any money moves.
  • Brands. Words like salvage, rebuilt or flood on the front lower what the car is worth, and a brand usually follows the car onto your new title.
  • A paper title. Some states keep titles electronically. If the seller’s state does, ask how you’ll get a paper title, because your state will likely need one.

Get a bill of sale with the price, the date, the VIN and both signatures. A dealer’s bill of sale should also show any sales tax it collected. Your state uses it to work out what you owe.

Step 3Pay So You Can Prove It

Pay in a way that leaves a record, and make sure the money reaches whoever really owns the car.

  • Buying from a dealer? Pay the dealership itself. Look up its main number on your own, call, and confirm the wiring instructions with a person before you send money. Payment instructions that arrive by email can be faked.
  • Buying from a private seller? A cashier’s check or a bank wire leaves a record. An escrow service can hold the money until you have the car and the title, but scammers build fake escrow sites with real-sounding names. Type the escrow company’s address yourself instead of following a link the seller sends.
  • Skip gift cards and payment apps. A seller who asks for either is a warning sign, and money sent that way is usually gone.

One scam aims at out-of-state buyers in particular. The seller says the car is already with a shipping company that will release it once you pay. That shipping company is a fake website, and there is no car. Before you pay anyone who says they’re shipping a car, look them up by USDOT and MC number on the FMCSA website. Ours are USDOT 3813762 and MC 1377368. For more on this scam, see car shipping for online car buyers.

Step 4Get It Home

You can fly out and drive it back, or have it shipped to your door.

Driving It Home

  • Insure it first. Call your insurer with the VIN before you fly out.
  • Get a temporary tag or trip permit. Dealers can often issue a temporary tag, and some states sell trip permits to out-of-state buyers. Rules differ, so ask the dealer, or the motor vehicle agency where you’re buying, before you book the flight.
  • Count the days. Phoenix to Pittsburgh is about 2,090 miles, several long days behind the wheel after a one-way flight. Here’s how the cost of the drive adds up.

Shipping It

Give us the pickup address and the seller’s or dealer’s name, number and hours. The seller hands the driver the keys and signs the pickup inspection report. At delivery, you, or someone you name, check the car against that report before signing.

The car rides on the carrier, so it doesn’t need a temporary tag for the trip. The title travels separately, from the seller to you. Your price is agreed in writing before pickup. The price we quote is the price you pay. Good for 30 days, as long as your vehicle, route and dates stay the same.

Step 5Title It Where You Live

Your home state collects its sales or use tax when you title the car there. What you owe depends on who sold it to you.

  • A dealer. Some dealers collect your home state’s tax and send in your paperwork. Others charge their own state’s tax, or none. Tell the dealer where you’ll register the car before you sign, and make sure the bill of sale shows any tax you paid.
  • A private seller. Private sellers don’t collect sales tax, so you pay your state’s tax when you title the car.
  • Tax you already paid. Most states credit sales tax you paid in the other state, so you pay only the difference. New York and Pennsylvania limit that credit, and Georgia gives none. Your state’s card below says how it works.

Most states set a deadline for titling or registering, often 30 days, with penalties after that. Take these to the title office:

  • The title, signed over to you, or the lender’s release
  • The bill of sale
  • Proof of insurance
  • Your driver’s license
  • Any VIN check or inspection form your state requires

Tax, Title and Inspections by State

Each card shows where you title the car, how the tax works and what gets inspected, and names the agency we checked with in October 2026. Rules change, so confirm with your office before you go.

Pick your state

Arizona

Where
An ADOT Motor Vehicle Division office or an Authorized Third Party provider.
Tax
Bought from an out-of-state dealer? Arizona collects its 5.6% use tax, plus any city use tax, when you register, less any tax you paid the other state. The bill of sale needs the dealer’s ZIP code and the tax paid.
Inspections
An emissions test if you live in the Phoenix or Tucson area. A VIN inspection only if you can’t show the out-of-state title or registration.

Checked October 2026: ADOT and the Arizona Department of Revenue.

Arizona car shipping

California

Where
A California DMV office.
Tax
Use tax is due when you register. A car bought out of state and brought into California within 12 months is presumed bought for use here. Sales tax you paid the other state can be credited.
Inspections
A VIN verification by the DMV, law enforcement or a licensed verifier. Most gas cars from 1976 on need a smog check.
Watch for
Fewer than 7,500 miles? The car has to be built to California emissions standards to register here. Check the emissions label under the hood before you buy.

Checked October 2026: California DMV and Department of Tax and Fee Administration.

California car shipping

Florida

Where
Your county tax collector’s office.
Tax
6% state sales tax plus your county’s surtax on the first $5,000 of the price. Sales tax you paid another state counts, with proof.
Inspections
A VIN and odometer check on form HSMV 82042, by a law enforcement officer, a Florida notary, a licensed dealer or the tax collector’s office. No safety or emissions inspection.
Watch for
You need Florida insurance before you can register.

Checked October 2026: FLHSMV and the Florida Department of Revenue.

Florida car shipping

Georgia

Where
Your county tag office.
Tax
Title Ad Valorem Tax: a one-time 7% of the car’s fair market value, paid when you title it. Sales tax paid in another state doesn’t reduce it.
Inspections
An emissions test in 13 metro Atlanta counties for most gas cars 3 to 24 model years old. No safety inspection.
Deadline
Apply for the title within 30 days of buying the car. Penalties start after that.

Checked October 2026: Georgia Department of Revenue.

Georgia car shipping

New Jersey

Where
An NJ MVC agency, or by mail.
Tax
6.625% sales tax. Tax you paid another state counts, and you pay the difference if it was lower.
Inspections
An inspection within 14 days of registering.

Checked October 2026: New Jersey MVC.

New Jersey car shipping

New York

Where
A DMV office, or by mail from out of state.
Tax
Sales tax at the rate where you live, paid when you register. Tax you paid another state counts only if that state has a sales tax agreement with New York (form DTF-⁠804).
Inspections
Safety and emissions inspections every 12 months. After you register, you usually have 10 days to get the first one done.
Deadline
Register within 30 days.

Checked October 2026: New York DMV.

New York car shipping

Ohio

Where
A county clerk of courts title office.
Tax
Sales tax at your county’s rate. Show proof of tax paid in the other state and you pay only the difference.
Inspections
An out-of-state VIN inspection at a deputy registrar, a participating title office or a dealer. E-⁠Check emissions tests in seven Northeast Ohio counties: Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Lorain, Medina, Portage and Summit.
Deadline
Title it within 30 days of buying, or pay a late fee.

Checked October 2026: Ohio BMV and county clerks of courts.

Ohio car shipping

Pennsylvania

Where
A PennDOT authorized agent, such as a tag and title service or a dealer.
Tax
6% sales tax, 7% in Allegheny County and 8% in Philadelphia. Tax you paid another state counts only if that state does the same for Pennsylvania.
Inspections
A VIN verification for a car titled in another state. A safety inspection within 10 days of registering, plus emissions tests in some counties.
Watch for
Some out-of-state titles need the seller’s signature notarized.

Checked October 2026: PennDOT and the Pennsylvania Code.

Pennsylvania car shipping

Tennessee

Where
Your county clerk’s office.
Tax
If the dealer didn’t collect Tennessee tax, you pay it when you title the car. Paid another state’s tax at a lower rate? You pay the difference. Bring an itemized bill of sale on the dealer’s letterhead.
Inspections
None. Tennessee ended emissions testing in 2022 and doesn’t do safety inspections.
Watch for
Buying from a state with electronic titles? Ask the seller for a paper title first.

Checked October 2026: Tennessee Department of Revenue and county clerks.

Tennessee car shipping

Texas

Where
Your county tax assessor-collector’s office.
Tax
6.25% motor vehicle sales tax. Sales or use tax you legally paid another state counts toward it.
Inspections
No safety inspection for personal cars since January 1, 2025. An emissions test before you register in 18 counties around Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, Austin, San Antonio and El Paso. Bexar County (San Antonio) was added on November 1, 2026.
Deadline
Title it within 30 days of the sale to avoid penalties.

Checked October 2026: Texas DMV, DPS and Comptroller.

Texas car shipping

Virginia

Where
A DMV customer service center.
Tax
4.15% sales and use tax, $75 minimum, when you title it. Proof you paid another state’s tax, like the buyer’s order, gets you credit for it.
Inspections
A Virginia safety inspection, then one every 12 months. Emissions tests in Northern Virginia.

Checked October 2026: Virginia DMV and State Police.

Virginia car shipping

Your state isn’t here? Its motor vehicle agency’s website has the same details, usually on a page about titling a vehicle from another state.

Questions

Do I pay sales tax twice if I buy a car in another state?

Usually not. Most states credit the sales tax you paid in the other state, so you pay only the difference, if any. Some limit that credit. New York allows it only for states with a tax agreement, Pennsylvania only for states that do the same for Pennsylvania, and Georgia allows none against its title tax.

Can I drive the car home before I register it in my state?

Yes, if it’s insured and has a temporary tag or a trip permit for the drive. The dealer, or the motor vehicle agency in the state where you’re buying, can tell you which one you need before you fly out.

Do I need the title before the car can ship?

No. The driver needs the keys and someone at pickup to sign the inspection report. The title goes from the seller to you separately. It’s still smart to have the title, or the lender’s payoff confirmation, before the car leaves.

How much does it cost to ship a car I bought in another state?

It depends on the distance, the vehicle, open or enclosed transport, and the time of year. Send the pickup and delivery ZIP codes and the vehicle through our quote form, or call (424) 453-1800, and we’ll give you an exact quote.

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