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Bill of sale · Virginia

Virginia Bill of Sale

Virginia is refreshingly plain about it: a handwritten bill of sale works, the DMV tells you what to put in it, and the seller can report the sale online the same afternoon. The 4.15% tax and its $75 floor are the only sharp edges.

The Virginia answer

Write it yourselves — the DMV says so.

No notary, no mandatory form, no counter-only documents: Virginia’s process is the title assignment plus a bill of sale containing the price, year, make, model, VIN, date, and signatures — handwritten if you like, though a typed one reads better at the DMV Select counter. Form SUT-1 exists solely for the older-vehicle, price-missing edge case, and even there a complete bill of sale substitutes.
Everything the DMV lists, typed
Build a Virginia bill of sale — free, with photos
Price, year, make, model, VIN, date, signatures — the DMV’s own required list, plus the condition on camera.
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The $75 floor

Small price, same minimum.

Virginia’s 4.15% Motor Vehicle Sales and Use Tax carries a floor: $75 minimum, no matter how modest the deal. On a $5,000 car the math is ordinary ($207.50); on a $800 beater, the floor takes over. It’s collected at titling — at full DMV centers or the DMV Select partner offices scattered through localities — and the price on your bill of sale is the number the calculation starts from. Sellers, meanwhile, should use the online Report a Vehicle Soldtransaction the day of the sale: it’s the cleanest same-day liability cutoff of any state we cover.

Not legal advice. Verified against Virginia DMV sources in July 2026 — official links in our 50-state requirements table.
Old Dominion questions

Virginia specifics, answered.

Will Virginia accept a bill of sale we write ourselves?

Explicitly, yes — Virginia is one of the few states whose DMV names the handwritten bill of sale as acceptable, provided it carries the purchase price, year, make, model, VIN, sale date, and both signatures. Our builder produces exactly that set, typed instead of scrawled.

When is Form SUT-1 needed instead?

Only in one lane: the vehicle is more than 5 years old AND the price is missing or wrong on the title. SUT-1 is a price certification, not a true bill of sale — and even in that lane, a proper bill of sale is an equal alternative the DMV accepts.

How does Virginia's vehicle tax work?

The Motor Vehicle Sales and Use Tax is 4.15% of the gross sales price with a $75 minimum — so even a $500 project car generates at least $75 of tax at titling. It's collected when the buyer titles at a DMV customer service center or a DMV Select office (local partner locations that handle title and registration work).

What's the seller's exit checklist in Virginia?

Three moves: report the sale to the DMV — Virginia has a dedicated online 'Report a Vehicle Sold' transaction, one of the cleanest liability cutoffs anywhere; take your plates (surrendering with 6+ months of registration left can earn a partial refund); and notify your insurance company. All three take minutes.