Selling a car in Nevada: what happens to your license plates

October 24, 2026·5 min read

Quick overview

The short answer

In Nevada, when you sell a car, you keep the license plates. The DMV's resale notification page says the plates do not stay with the vehicle, and that you should surrender them to the DMV yourself even if a dealer offers to do it for you. It cites NRS 482.399, which requires you to keep your plates and either use them on another vehicle or turn them in for cancellation within 30 days of the sale.

So the buyer gets the car and the title. You keep the plates, and you have a short list of things to do with them. For the full resale notification, see our guide to the Nevada vehicle resale notification.

What to do, in order

1. Take the plates off before the buyer leaves. Don't let them drive off with your plates on the car.
2. Sign the title and keep a bill of sale. See the Nevada bill of sale (VP-104).
3. Cancel your registration. The DMV registration cancellation page recommends doing it online through MyDMV. Any fee credit appears on your receipt.
4. File the Vehicle Resale Notification within five days. You can complete it during the cancellation or file it separately.
5. Deal with the plates: use them on another vehicle, surrender them, or release them to another person (see below).
6. Cancel your insurance last. The DMV says to cancel your registration before dropping insurance to avoid potential fines.

Option 1: Put the plates on another car

If you're buying another vehicle, you can use your plates on it. Your registration fee credit can go toward registering another vehicle in your name too. The DMV says you can renew another vehicle at any time in person, and if a smog check is required it must be less than 90 days old at the time of renewal.

One catch: the DMV says you can't transfer plates or get a movement permit online after completing the online cancellation. If you plan to reuse the plates, ask the DMV how to handle that before you cancel.

Option 2: Surrender the plates

If you won't use them, turn them in. The DMV gives two ways:

• By mail: send the plates, the decal and a signed letter requesting cancellation, with your return address and daytime phone number, to Nevada DMV, Central Services Division, 555 Wright Way, Carson City, NV 89711-0700. The DMV says you can send them by certified mail with return signature.
• In person: go to any DMV office, or a County Assessor in rural areas. No appointment is necessary. Bring the rear plate so the decal can be removed, and hand the plates over at the information desk. Don't put them in a drop box unless it's marked for plates.

Option 3: Release them to someone else

You can let another person use plates you own. You need a License Plate Release (SP-67). The new plate owner submits it when getting an original vehicle registration. If the new owner won't use the plates right away, the DMV says to cancel your registration online first.

There are time limits for the new owner: Home Means Nevada plates must be used within 60 days, and specialty plates within 30 days. After that, the new owner can't use them on a vehicle. Your registration fee credit does not transfer to them.

Your money: credit, not cash

When you cancel the registration, you get a credit for the unused portion of the registration fees. According to the DMV:

• The credit expires on the original expiration date of the canceled registration.
• You can apply it to the registration or renewal of another vehicle registered in your name.
• There is a $6 fee to use the credit on another vehicle.
• It can be used for registration fees and governmental services taxes. It can't be used for plate fees or sales tax.

A cash refund is available only in limited cases under NRS 482.399(9). You must be a Nevada resident, cancel with the Registration Refund Request Form (VP 210), surrender your plates, and have no sanctions, parking violations or bad debts tied to the registration. You also need an extenuating circumstance: you relinquished your driver's license and sold the vehicle, the vehicle is inoperable, or the owner is seriously ill or deceased. Refunds aren't issued at DMV offices, and a check arrives 6 to 8 weeks after the DMV gets the plates.

If you traded the car in at a dealer

Don't use the online cancellation. The DMV says not to use that transaction if you traded in your vehicle while buying a new one from a Nevada dealer. Ask the dealer how it will handle your plates, and remember the DMV's advice to surrender the plates yourself.

What cars like yours have sold for in Las Vegas

Once the plates are off and the paperwork is settled, it helps to know what your car is worth. These are real numbers from our own records, not "up to" prices. They show what older, damaged and non-running cars in the valley fetch right now.

30 real offers · Las Vegas valley · Oct 16–29

Middle offer

$295

Under $500

22 of 30

Highest

$1,975

“$500” ads$100$1,000$10,000

• 2014 Chevrolet SonicNorth Las Vegas · Oct 29$540
• 1998 Nissan SentraBoulder City · Oct 28$150
• 2010 Toyota Corolla MatrixOct 27$755
• 2001 Mitsubishi GalantOct 26$60
• 2003 Honda CivicHenderson · Oct 26$470
• 2015 BMW X1Oct 24$1,120
• 2006 Nissan AltimaOct 24$295
• 2003 Volkswagen PassatOct 23$260
• 2006 Toyota AvalonOct 23$575
• 2005 Subaru OutbackNorth Las Vegas · Oct 22$295
• 2013 Dodge JourneyOct 22$345
• 1998 Saturn SC2Oct 21$150
• 2015 BMW 335IOct 21$155
• 2007 Infiniti G35Oct 21$155
• 2014 Jeep Grand CherokeeOct 21$155
• 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee LimitedOct 21$155
• 2011 Chevrolet CruzeOct 20$370
• 2018 Jeep RenegadeHenderson · Oct 20$1,975
• 2011 Chevrolet Cruze LTOct 20$370
• 2018 Jeep Renegade TrailhawkHenderson · Oct 20$1,975
• 2003 BMW X5Oct 19$225
• 2011 Chevrolet CruzeOct 19$635
• 2003 BMW X5 3.0iOct 19$225
• 2011 Chevrolet Cruze LTOct 19$635
• 2009 Toyota Scion TCOct 18$440
• 2009 Scion tCOct 18$440
• 2013 Dodge AvengerOct 17$295
• 2013 Dodge Avenger SEOct 17$295
• 2002 Mercedes-Benz E-ClassOct 16$155
• 2002 Mercedes-Benz E500Oct 16$155

Cars we bought and what the seller was paid at pickup. Swipe through, or tap the dots.

• 
  Paid $3,500
  2015 Lincoln MKCFront-end damage
• 
  Paid $300
  1997 Pontiac Firebird Trans AmFront-end damage
• 
  Paid $2,100
  2010 Audi A5 2.0T PremiumFront-end damage
• 
  Paid $360
  Chevrolet pickup
• 
  Paid $1,200
  2005 Toyota CamryPeeling paint
• 
  Paid $700
  2005 Nissan Maxima SE
• 
  Paid $3,200
  2015 Lincoln MKCFront-end damage
• 
  Paid $800
  2014 Ford Focus SE
• 
  Paid $780
  2005 Toyota Camry
• 
  Paid $2,500
  Toyota Camry
• 
  Paid $600
  2002 Chrysler PT Cruiser TouringFront-end damage
• 
  Paid $1,500
  2011 Dodge Charger R/T
• 
  Paid $800
  2002 Ford Mustang V6

Our junk car price guide has more offers and the scrap-weight math.

When you sell to us

The plates stay with you. You get a firm offer online in about two minutes and choose a pickup time from the windows offered when you accept. The tow is free, you're paid at pickup, and we handle the title transfer at no cost. We buy cars running or not, if you fully own them.

Take your plates off before pickup, then cancel the registration and file the resale notification. See what happens to your car after you sell it for the full sequence. Start with our cash for junk cars Las Vegas quote.