Kentucky Car Title Transfer Fees: $9 Title, Only 15 Days to File and 6% Usage Tax

Updated October 31, 2026 · Figures checked against the official sources listed below

The short answer

How much does it cost to transfer a car title in Kentucky?

The title is the document that proves who owns the car. In Kentucky it costs $9 at the county clerk. The other fees are:

The Kentucky calculator below starts from the same $1,830.00.

Buying the same car used, with a Kentucky title, adds the $8 transfer fee: $1,838.00. The clerk's $2 notary fee may apply on top.

How many days do you have to transfer a title in Kentucky?

Only 15 days. You must title and register the car within 15 days of buying it. Keep the bill of sale or the signed title in the car during those 15 days. The same 15 days apply when you bring a car into Kentucky from another state.

What if you're late? We found no official Kentucky source that publishes a late-title penalty for buyers. So we don't print one. Don't trust a website that gives a figure without an official source. Ask your county clerk.

If the buyer hasn't transferred within 15 days and the car is still in the seller's name, the seller can file an affidavit (Form TC 96-3) with the date of sale and the buyer's details.

Kentucky's 6% usage tax

Kentucky doesn't charge sales tax on cars. It charges a usage tax of 6%, paid to the county clerk when the car is titled. The clerk can't register the car or issue plates until it's paid.

• New cars: 6% of the price on the signed, notarized affidavit of total consideration (Form 71A100). A trade-in comes off the taxable price. Without an affidavit, the tax is 6% of 90% of the sticker price (MSRP).
• Used cars: 6% of the price on the affidavit, but with a floor (see below). Without an affidavit, the tax is 6% of the car's NADA retail value (a standard used-car price guide).
• Trade-ins on used cars: count only if the car you trade in was registered in Kentucky.

The 50% floor on used cars

The price you report can't be less than half the gap between the NADA trade-in value of the car you're buying and the NADA trade-in value of any car you trade in. If you report less, the tax is figured on that floor instead.

Example: the car's NADA trade-in value is $12,000 and yours is $4,000. The gap is $8,000, so the floor is $4,000. Even if you report a $3,000 price, the tax is 6% of $4,000 = $240.

Misstating the price on purpose is a felony with a fine of at least $2,000.

Family transfers and gifts

• No usage tax on transfers between a husband and wife, parent and child, stepparent and stepchild, or grandparent and grandchild. Claim it on the Motor Vehicle Usage Tax Multi-Purpose Form (71A101).
• Brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins and friends are not on the list. A "gift" to them is taxed at 6% of the car's NADA average trade-in value.
• Inheritance by will or court order is exempt.

The title and registration fees still apply. Only the tax is waived.

Plates and registration

Plates stay with the seller (since January 2024). The seller removes them and can move a plate with valid registration to another vehicle they own. You register fresh and get your own plate.

Registration for a standard plate is $21 a year at the county clerk. The state fee in it is $11.50; the rest is plate and clerk charges. It renews in your birth month.

Electric and hybrid cars

• Electric and plug-in hybrid: an ownership fee of $126 a year. That's the 2025 published amount. The Department of Revenue adjusts it every January 1, and we haven't found the 2026 amount on an official page.
• Regular hybrids: $0. The hybrid fee was dropped from 2025.
• Public fast chargers (over 20 kW) add a charging tax of 3.2 cents per kWh (the 2025 rate). You pay it at the charger, not the clerk.

Liens

A lien costs $22 to record with a Title Lien Statement (Form TC 96-187). It must be filed within 20 days. Filing late adds $2, which falls on the lender's side.

New residents

• Deadline: the same 15 days after bringing the car into Kentucky.
• Sheriff's inspection first: $15 at the sheriff's office. Some clerk pages still say $5; that's the old fee.
• Usage tax: 6% of the car's NADA average trade-in value. If you paid a similar tax in a state that gives Kentucky the same credit, that amount is credited.
• Bring proof of Kentucky insurance.

What documents do you need?

• The Kentucky title, free of liens, with the buyer and seller sections filled in. All signatures must be notarized.
• Proof of Kentucky insurance for the car.
• Social Security number for each person on the title.
• A Title Lien Statement (TC 96-187) if the car is financed.

Property tax

Kentucky also has a yearly vehicle property tax. Whoever owned the car on January 1 owes that year's tax, and it isn't prorated. If the seller hasn't paid it, it becomes due at the sale. It's billed separately and isn't in our totals.

What this guide doesn't cover

A late-title penalty (none published), the 2026 EV fee amount, specialty plates, trucks and motorcycles.

Frequently asked questions

See title transfer fees for all 50 states

General information, not tax or legal advice. Fees and tax rules change; confirm with the agency listed before you pay.