Vehicle License, Title and Registration Requirements

If a dealer secures a vehicle and holds it for resale and procures the Certificate of Title or Certificate of Origin (C of O) from the owner or lienholder within 10 days, he or she need not send the Certificate to the Secretary of State provided there is space for reassignment.  Upon transferring the vehicle to a retail customer, the dealer shall promptly and within 20 days execute the assignment of title, showing the name and address of the buyer and the lienholder, if any. The dealer is required to mail or deliver to the Secretary of State the application for title and/or registration; the surrender title or C of O; and the title and/or registration fee.  The dealer must also submit the Transaction Reporting Return (ST-556 Tax Form) and tax payment to the Department of Revenue (not SOS) within 20 days after the sale.

Correct fee for title is $165.00, transfer of plate fee is $25.00. Registration fees vary depending on the type of plates required for the particular vehicle.  A list of Title and registration fees can be found on the SOS website at : Fees (ilsos.gov)

If an original title is lost the vehicle owner can apply for a duplicate title. The application form must be completed and submitted to the Secretary of State along with the fee of $50.00, the application must indicate the current odometer reading.

If a title needs to be corrected due to an error, the owner can complete a corrected title application and send it, along with the incorrect title, and $50.00 fee, to the Secretary of State. The application must indicate the current odometer reading. When correcting a title the owner should also correct his registration card except when clearing a lien, adding a lien, adding a second lien, or changing an odometer reading. A registration application and fee of $3.00 is required for this transaction.

A Salvage Certificate of Title must be applied for when a vehicle is to be salvaged or when an insurance firm declares a vehicle 8 model years or newer to be a total loss. These titles are assignable only to licensed rebuilders, scrap processors or used parts dealers. A salvage title application must be completed and sent to the Secretary of State along with surrender title and $20.00 fee.

A junking Certificate of Title must be applied for when a vehicle is to be sold for junk or scrap. The owner must complete an application for junking certificate and return the current title to the Secretary of State. No fee is required.

The following is a schedule of fees for titles, transfer of plates, various license plates:

FEE SCHEDULES
All are payable to the Secretary of State:

TITLE DOCUMENTS

• Certificate of Title – $165.00
• Duplicate Certificate of Title – $50.00
• Corrected Certificate of Title – $50.00
• Salvage Certificate of Title – $20.00
• Junking Certificate of Title – No Charge

REGISTRATION PLATES

• Duplicate-Lost, Mutilated (Pair) – $9.00
• Duplicate Sticker-Lost, Mutilated – $20.00

REGISTRATION DOCUMENTS

• Transfer Registration Card – $25.00
• Duplicate Registration Card – $3.00
• Corrected Registration Card – $3.00
• Reclass of Registration – $29.00

IADA partners with CVR to bring you the most efficient ERT process in Illinois.  When you partner with IADA-CVR, you receive the best service and support, and you play a big part in supporting our IADA efforts to protect you franchised dealerships. 

In the event that you have transactions that SOS does not allow to be done electronically, IADA also operates an excellent FAS-TITLE and LICENSE Service. We feel by using this program you will receive the quickest and most dependable service at reasonable rates.

Our office is conveniently located one block from the Secretary of State’s Vehicle Services Department so we can hand-deliver your license and title applications the same day they are received in our office. The processed license plates and I.D. cards will be returned to you by 1st class mail or United Parcel Service the following day.

For the fees listed below our staff will thoroughly check applications to verify supporting documents are completed and attached. By sending all applications to us, you alleviate delays that may be encountered when sent directly to the Vehicle Services Department.

• Title Only – $3.00
• Corrected I.D. – $3.00
• Duplicate Title – $4.00
• Title & Transfer – $4.00
• Corrected Title – $4.00
• Plates Only – $5.00
• Repossession Title – $4.00
• Plates & Title – $5.00
• Sticker Only – $3.00 Reclass
• Plates – $5.00
• Duplicate I.D. – $3.00
• Supplemental Lic. App. – $5.00

To use the service, all you need to do is send your transaction to IADA, Fas-Title Service, 3oo W. Edwards St., Suite 400, Springfield, Illinois 62704. Please remit separate checks for each transaction:

• One check for the actual license and title fee payable to the Illinois Secretary of State.
• One check for taxes payable to the Illinois Department of Revenue, (if applicable).
• One check for service fees payable to IADA.

If you have any questions or need help regarding a transaction please call IADA Fas-Title Service, 800/252-8944 or 217/753-0220.

The secure power of attorney (POA) form can only be completed in the following two situations: 1) if a conforming title for a non-exempt vehicle in the seller’s name is being held by a lienholder or 2) if the seller’s title for a non-exempt vehicle is lost. A secure POA form does not need to be completed if a non-conforming title is being held by a lienholder. Secure POA forms are not to be completed for floorplanned vehicles.

Only the buyer of a vehicle can be granted power of attorney on a secure POA form. If a vehicle is being traded or sold to a dealership, the dealership would be granted power of attorney. The party who was granted power of attorney on the secure POA form must submit the original secure POA to the Illinois Secretary of State. The secure POA form must be submitted along with an application for vehicle title in the name of the buyer.

Additionally, due to a change in a federal rule, a dealer issuing a secure power of attorney with a title transaction is no longer required to obtain a title in the name of the dealership prior to selling a vehicle to another dealer or an out-of-state buyer. The following steps must be adhered to by the dealer when the vehicle is sold to another dealer or an out-of-state buyer:

1. Top page of the Illinois secure power of attorney form must be attached to properly assigned Illinois title and forwarded to the dealer or out-of-state buyer.
2. One of the other pages of the secure power of attorney form, containing an original signature of the seller, must be forwarded, with a copy of the front and back of the title properly assigned to that dealer or out-of-state buyer, to the following address: Illinois Secretary of State, Howlett Building, Room 611, ATTENTION: Vehicle Ownership Division, Springfield, IL. 62756.

The federal Truth-in-Mileage Act established odometer disclosure language and requires all states to make the odometer disclosure statement a part of the title document. See the discussion of the odometer mileage statement below. If the title being assigned does not contain the required federal odometer disclosure language, a separate odometer disclosure statement must be completed and a copy must be submitted with the title transaction. The Truth-in-Mileage Act applies to all vehicles except those that meet criteria set forth in the next section regarding odometer mileage statements.

Under federal law, the seller must certify the numerical odometer reading (no tenths) and certify whether it is the actual mileage, not the actual mileage, or in excess of its mechanical limits. The seller must sign and print his or her name, certifying the odometer reading. Finally, the buyer must sign and print his or her name, acknowledging the numerical odometer reading that was certified by the seller. If the buyer or seller is a firm dealer, the printed name of the firm and the printed name and signature of the person acting on behalf of the firm must be included.

The odometer mileage statement is an important document used to record the mileage shown on a vehicle’s odometer. At the time of transfer of ownership of a motor vehicle the transferor (seller) shall disclose the mileage to the transferee (buyer) in writing on the title or on the document being used to reassign the title. This written disclosure must be signed by the transferor, including the printed name, and contain the following information:

1. Odometer reading at the time of transfer (not to include tenth of miles).
2. Date of Transfer.
3. The transferor’s name and current address.
4. The transferee’s name and current address.
5. The identity of the vehicle, including its make, model, year, and body type, its vehicle identification number.

The odometer statement is required for all vehicle sales except:

1. New vehicle being transferred from a manufacturer to a dealer or by a dealer to another new vehicle dealer franchised by the same manufacturer.
2. The vehicle being sold has a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of more than 16,000 lbs.
3. The vehicle is not self-propelled.
4. Vehicle is more than 10 years old.
5. A vehicle sold directly by the manufacturer to any agency of the United States in conformity with the contractual specifications.

Dealers who execute an odometer disclosure statement shall retain for five years a photostat, carbon copy of each odometer mileage statement which they issue and record. They shall retain all odometer disclosure statements at the primary place of business. Lessors shall retain, for five years, each odometer disclosure statement they receive. Blank odometer statement forms are available at the IADA office. These forms meet all federal & state requirements.