Arizona law made a major change in the steps you take when you sell or transfer your vehicle.

Effective January 1, 2005, Plate and Fee to Owner changes will affect credits, refunds and license plates in the following manner:

• Reduces the minimum refund amount from over $350.00 to an amount over $12.00.
• To qualify for plate credit or refund, the available plate credit must be more than the statutorily required $12.00 processing fee.
• There no longer is a fee charged to transfer a standard plate to another vehicle.
• Requires all plate refund requests to be completed online through the through www.servicearizona.com EZ Plate Refund application, by mail using a Plate Credit Refund Request, form #96-0353, or at an Authorized Third Party Provider. MVD field offices cannot process these plate refunds over the counter.

The license plate belongs to you, the vehicle owner, instead of the vehicle. When a vehicle is sold or transferred, you will remove and retain the plate, instead of leaving the plate on the vehicle, then within 30 days you must take one of the following actions:

• Transfer the plate credit to another vehicle you own (EZ Credit)
  -or-
  
• Request a refund (EZ Refund)

Upon sale or transfer of a vehicle, the registration for that vehicle is no longer valid. You must visit any MVD office or Authorized Third Party Provider to transfer the plate and register the vehicle.

If it is necessary to drive the vehicle to complete this transaction, you must obtain a Restricted Use 3-Day Permit (for private sales), or a Temporary Registration Plate (for vehicles purchased from a licensed dealer).

Credit for Fees

If you transfer the plate to another vehicle you own, you may be eligible to receive credit for fees previously paid on the vehicle that was sold or transferred. You will be charged a $12.00 processing fee to apply the remaining credit.

• Credit will be based on the number of months left on the registration of the previous vehicle at the time the credit is applied.
  
  
  • For example, if the registration on a vehicle was renewed in June for one year and the vehicle is sold in December, then 6 months of the fees are remaining and may be applied as credit. If application for registration of another vehicle is not submitted until January, there will be only 5 months left on the previous registration that may be applied as credit.
    
    
  • Each month that passes, the number of creditable months is reduced by one, so that the potential credit will be reduced to zero at the same time as the registration on the previous vehicle would have expired
    
    
• Credit is allowed on fees and taxes paid for the following: Vehicle License Tax (VLT), Commercial Registration Fee (CRF), Weight Fee (WGT), Motor Carrier Fee (MCF) and Special Plate Fee (SPL).
  
  
• Credit can only be applied toward those fees specifically required to register the next vehicle. For example, if the vehicle sold was registered commercially and the new vehicle purchased is registered as a passenger vehicle, the Commercial Registration Fee and Weight Fee will not be credited and will no longer be available.
  
  
• Credit can be applied to one vehicle registration only. It cannot be divided between two or more vehicles.
  
  
• Any credit remaining after the initial registration, will automatically be refunded.
  
  
• Plate credits may be viewed online .
  
  

Refund

If the plate credit is over $12.00, you may be eligible for a refund.

A refund may be requested through one of the following:

• Online
• By mail, using the Plate Credit Refund Request, form #96-0353
• At an Authorized Third Party Provider
• At a motor vehicle dealership (while purchasing another vehicle)

You will be required to provide the following to request a refund:

• License plate number
• Driver license number
• Address where the refund is to be mailed

Plate refund checks are:

• Issued to the owner or owners based on the legal status established on MVD records.
• Mailed within 10-14 business days from the date the refund was processed.

Once you have requested a refund, the vehicle will no longer be registered. It is against the law to operate any motor vehicle on the public roads of this state without proper registration.

Temporary Registrations

The plate removed from the vehicle that you sold cannot be displayed on another vehicle until the title and registration have been processed through MVD or an Authorized Third Party Provider, and the new tabs and registration have been issued.

If it is necessary to drive the vehicle to complete this transaction, you must obtain a Restricted Use 3-Day Permit* for private sales, or a Temporary Registration Plate for vehicles purchased from a licensed dealer.

* The Restricted Use 3-Day Permit can be purchased and printed anytime, online, or can be issued at any MVD office or Authorized Third Party Provider.

Frequently Asked Questions

View Your Plate Credit (EZ Plate Credit)

Request Your Plate Refund (EZ Plate Refund)

Purchase a Restricted Use 3-Day Permit (EZ Permit)
($1.00 using a major credit card)

Office Locations And Hours