Reporting the sale of a vehicle

Should you sell your vehicle, you must immediately inform the licensing authorities of such. Following the sale, you continue to be registered as the keeper with the licensing authorities. This continues to apply until the licensing authorities have de-registered or transferred your vehicle.

Please note: De-register your vehicle; above all before you sell it abroad. You will only cease to incur liability for damage caused by the buyer once the vehicle has been de-registered. Your keeper obligations (for example third party vehicle liability insurance and excise duty) will only then cease.

Related forms and processes

Prerequisite

You sold your car.

Responsible department

the registration authorities (Zulassungsbehörde) in whose district the vehicle was registered

The registration authorities are

for an urban district (Stadtkreis): the city council (Stadtverwaltung)
for a rural district (Landkreis): the rural district office (Landratsamt)

Procedure

You must immediately notify the competent licensing authorities of the sale of the vehicle in writing or personally. Please provide the following information:

Vehicle registration number
Your full name
Address of the buyer

Many licensing authorities provide a notification form for downloading via the Internet.

Note: Please obtain confirmation from the buyer of handover of all necessary documents. If applicable, this also includes the registration number.

Deadlines

immediately

Required documents

Confirmation of receipt of the buyer of the vehicle documents:

Certification of registration part I (previously: registration certificate)
Certification of registration part II (previously: registration certificate)
Official registration number

Costs

No fees are charged.

Legal basis

§ 13 Fahrzeug-Zulassungsverordnung (FZV) (Mitteilungspflichten bei Änderungen)

Release note

The German original version of this text was drafted in close cooperation with the relevant departments. The Verkehrsministerium released it on 16.08.2021. Only the German text is legally binding. The Federal State does not assume any liability for the translated texts.

In cases of doubt or if you have any questions or problems, please contact the relevant authorities directly.