The short answer
| Item | Indiana answer |
|---|---|
| Title fee | $15.00 (BMV Fee Chart, revised 1/1/26). No separate transfer fee. |
| Speed title (optional) | $25.00 in addition to the $15 title fee: $40.00 total. It is not the late fee. |
| Late title penalty | $30.00 flat, on a title application received more than 45 days after the purchase. |
| Deadline | Apply for the title within 45 days. New residents and transfer-on-death: 60 days. |
| Sales tax | 7% statewide, no county add-on, on the stated purchase price. |
| Plates | Plates belong to the owner. Moving your own plate: $9.50. |
| Typical total | $20,000 private-party car, own plate moved over, on time: $1,424.50. Registration and excise tax are separate. |
Worked example: $20,000 private-party car
The buyer moves their own plate, takes a standard title and files within 45 days.
- Sales tax: 7% × $20,000 = $1,400.00
- Title: $15.00
- Plate transfer: $9.50
Title-side total: $1,400.00 + $15.00 + $9.50 = $1,424.50.
- Filed late (after 45 days): $1,454.50 (+$30).
- Speed title: $1,449.50 (+$25).
- Gift with no consideration: $24.50 (title + plate transfer, tax $0).
Not in the total: registration. If you register at the same visit you also pay:
- Registration: $21.35
- Transportation Infrastructure Improvement Fee: $15.00
- Vehicle excise tax: set by the car's original retail price class and age, not by what you paid
- Electric vehicles add $242, hybrids $81
The excise tax can't be worked out from a used car's price, so this list stays un-totalled. The Indiana calculator works it out from the original price and age.
Title fee: $15, and the $25 speed title
Issuing, duplicating or replacing a title costs $15.00 (BMV Fee Chart, revised 1/1/26; the BMV title checklist agrees). A transfer is a new title issuance, so there's no separate transfer fee. The BMV publishes no per-transaction branch fee. The only general add-on is the optional card payment charge ($0.40 + 2.06%).
The optional speed title fee is $25.00, in addition to the $15 title fee, so a speed title costs $40.00 in all. The BMV title checklist says the speed fee is in addition to the $15 title application fee. The $25 is not a late fee, and it's not a standalone price.
Titles are done at BMV license branches. Indiana has no county-clerk titling, and the car must be titled before it can be registered.
Deadline and the $30 late penalty
Apply for the title within 45 days of getting the car (IC 9-17-2-14.7). The BMV title checklist and the BMV Vehicle Registrations page say the same; the registrations page sets the same 45 days for registering a newly bought car. New residents and transfer-on-death acquisitions get 60 days.
The late title penalty is $30.00 flat (Fee Chart line "Administrative penalty for late title"). The BMV assesses it on a title application received more than 45 days after the purchase date. No per-month escalation is published.
A sourcing note: we couldn't load the statute page on iga.in.gov during research. The deadline and penalty are confirmed by three official BMV documents, so we print them as the BMV publishes them.
The late registration penalty is a separate $15. For other states' late costs, see car registration late fees by state.
Sales tax: 7% on the stated price
- Rate: 7%, one statewide rate with no county add-on, on the stated purchase price (DOR rate table; the ST-108 calculation; BMV checklist).
- Who collects it: a dealer collects it and certifies it on Form ST-108. On a private sale, the buyer pays it directly at a BMV license branch at titling (IC 6-2.5-9-6, as printed on Form ST-108E).
- Trade-ins: credit only for a like-kind trade (vehicle for vehicle; a motorcycle traded for a car doesn't count). In practice that's a dealer mechanism: a two-party private sale has no trade-in allowance.
- No fair-market-value rule: DOR's Sales Tax Information Bulletin #28S has no rule that replaces a low private-sale price with market value, and neither does the BMV checklist. The tax is on the stated price.
Plates and registration
Plates belong to the owner, not the car. Transferring your own plate costs $9.50 (the same Fee Chart line covers amending, duplicating or replacing). There's no separate new-plate fee: a standard plate comes with the registration.
Registration for a passenger vehicle is $21.35 a year plus the $15.00 a year Transportation Infrastructure Improvement Fee. Electric vehicles add a $242 supplemental fee a year, hybrids $81 (BMV Fee Chart, rev. 1/1/26).
The yearly vehicle excise tax is set by the manufacturer's original retail price class and the car's age (a 17-class table), not by the used purchase price. County or municipal surtax or wheel tax, where adopted locally, is extra.
Gifts and family
Indiana's exemption is wider than family. Form ST-108E Exemption 7 covers any transfer between individuals with no consideration, and a vehicle received as an outright gift or inheritance, related or not.
The catch: taking over the donor's loan payments is consideration and ends the exemption, unless the recipient was listed on the original security agreement (a copy must be submitted).
The separate family rule is Exemption 11 (IC 6-2.5-5-15.5): adding or removing a spouse, child, parent, grandparent or sibling on a title, with the form's Direct Relative Identification Statement. New residents titling a car they already owned out of state use Exemption 8.
The $15 title fee applies to every gift or family transfer. For inheritance, a transfer-on-death beneficiary takes the title and a death certificate to a branch.
Forms
- State Form 205: Application for Certificate of Title for a Vehicle.
- ST-108 (State Form 48842): the dealer's certificate of tax paid.
- ST-108E (State Form 48841): exemption certificate for gifts, inheritance, family add/remove and new residents.
- Bill of sale: State Form 44237. Odometer disclosure: State Form 43230.
Other states
Title transfer guides for nearby and other states: Michigan, Illinois, Ohio, Tennessee and Alabama.
What this guide doesn't cover
Dealer sales in detail, the excise tax for a specific car (use the Indiana calculator), county wheel or surtax, specialty plates and trucks.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to transfer a car title in Indiana?
The title is $15. Add 7% sales tax on the stated price and $9.50 to move your own plate. A $20,000 private-party car filed within 45 days comes to $1,424.50. Registration and excise tax are separate.
Is the Indiana late title fee $25?
No. The late title penalty is $30. The $25 figure is the optional speed title fee, which is charged on top of the $15 title fee.
How much is a speed title in Indiana?
$25, in addition to the $15 title fee, so $40 in total.
Is Indiana sales tax on a car based on book value?
No. Indiana taxes the stated purchase price. DOR Bulletin #28S has no rule that substitutes market value.
Do you pay sales tax on a gifted car in Indiana?
No, if nothing is given in return. Any transfer between individuals with no consideration is exempt (Form ST-108E, Exemption 7), family or not. Taking over the donor's loan counts as consideration, unless you were on the original security agreement.
Are gifts only tax-free between family members in Indiana?
No. Any no-consideration transfer between individuals is exempt. The separate family rule (Exemption 11) is for adding or removing a spouse, child, parent, grandparent or sibling on a title.
What is the Indiana title application form number?
State Form 205, Application for Certificate of Title for a Vehicle.
See title transfer fees for all 50 states
Calculate your Indiana fees
Example for a $30,000 car. Enter your own price to update it.
- Registration (1 yr)Passenger vehicle$21.35
- Transportation Infrastructure Improvement Fee$15.00
- Vehicle excise tax (1 yr)Class 15, age 0$406.00
- Title fee$15.00
- Sales tax7% of price$2,100.00
Total excludes items marked "not available".
What you'll pay later
Renewal at today's rates: $389.35/yr
5-year total: not shown, because the excise tax drops as the car ages.
Estimate only, at today's rates for the same car.
Rates and sources for every fee are on the Indiana car registration fee calculator page.
- Indiana BMV Fee Chart (revised 1/1/26): title $15, speed title $25, late title administrative penalty $30, plate transfer $9.50, registration $21.35, Transportation Infrastructure Improvement Fee $15, EV $242, hybrid $81, late registration $15
- Indiana BMV – Vehicle registrations (register within 45 days of purchase, 60 days for new residents)
- Indiana BMV – Excise tax information (yearly excise by original retail price class and age)
- Indiana Department of Revenue – Vehicle dealers (7% sales tax; Form ST-108)
General information, not tax or legal advice. Fees and tax rules change; confirm with the agency listed before you pay.
Related guides
- MississippiMississippi Car Title Transfer Fees: $9 Title, 5% Tax and the Ad Valorem TaxMississippi title transfer: $9 title fee, 30 business days to register, a special 5% vehicle tax, family exemptions with siblings, and county ad valorem tax.Read guide →
- MontanaMontana Car Title Transfer Fees: $12 Title, 40 Days to File and No Sales TaxMontana title transfer: $12 title fee, 40 days to file, a flat $10 late penalty, no sales tax, registration $28 to $217 by age, and the county option tax.Read guide →
- NebraskaNebraska Car Title Transfer Fees: $10 Title, 30 Days to File and the Motor Vehicle TaxNebraska title transfer: $10 title fee, 30 days to file, no late title fee, 5.5% sales tax plus local, the MSRP-based Motor Vehicle Tax, and the gift rule.Read guide →