Do you need a bill of sale for a junk car?

So the safe move is simple: write one anyway, keep a copy, and check your state's row below to see whether it is required, what form it can take, and whether your signature needs a notary's stamp.

Required, optional or replaced by the title

The states we checked fall into three rough groups.

States that tell the seller to hand one over. Nebraska's DMV makes this the seller's job, with two choices of paper: a bill of sale or a filled-in Form 6 from the state Department of Revenue (Nebraska DMV). In Connecticut, the bill of sale travels with the signed title. New Jersey, Rhode Island and Illinois describe the same step on their seller pages.

States where the title can do the job. Louisiana wants an original notarized bill of sale or invoice that states the actual price and fully describes the car. But it also says a separate bill of sale is not needed when the selling price is written on the title assignment (Louisiana OMV). Washington works the same way: both sides sign one only when the title itself lacks the price and sale date.

States where a bill of sale fills a gap. New Mexico uses its Bill of Sale (MVD-10009) to finish a transfer when the title assignment is incomplete or has no room left. Oklahoma's version is Form 718, its Electronic Title Bill of Sale, which a notary must stamp; it stands in for the title when the record is electronic.

None of this makes the bill of sale the main document. In Louisiana, a separate bill is not even needed when the selling price is on the title assignment.

What goes on a junk car bill of sale

California sets the plainest test: any bill of sale that identifies the vehicle is acceptable, and the DMV's own form is optional. It also says the bill must accurately establish the chain of ownership (California DMV).

Connecticut lists the fields it expects, whether you use its Form H-31 or write your own:

• both parties' names and addresses
• the VIN, plus the car's year, make, model and color
• the price
• the date of sale
• the seller's signature

New York's MV-912 covers seller, buyer, vehicle, VIN, price and date, with a copy for each side. Rhode Island adds the seller's address and the car's color.

Write the price you were actually paid, even if it is small. Louisiana and Minnesota both tie the paperwork to the actual selling price.

The mileage statement is a separate federal rule

A bill of sale is a state matter. The odometer statement comes from federal law, and it often ends up on the same sheet of paper.

Under the federal odometer rule, the disclosure must show:

• the odometer reading at transfer, with no tenths of a mile
• the date of transfer
• the printed names and current addresses of seller and buyer
• the seller's signature and printed name
• a statement that the reading is the actual mileage, or that it is past the odometer's mechanical limit

A dead car with a dash that won't light can make the first item hard. Our odometer problems page covers what to do then.

Older cars may skip this step entirely. The rule's exemption section frees cars built for 2011 or any later model year once two decades have passed, counted from January 1 of that model year to the sale. States can set their own line too. Hawaii's transfer page says model year 2010 and older are exempt from the odometer entry on a Hawaii title (Honolulu CSD).

Notary or no notary

California skips the notary and the witness for this paper. Several states see it differently, though usually for the title rather than the bill.

Pennsylvania's code has the owner execute the assignment and warranty of title "sworn to before a notary public or other officer empowered to administer oaths" (75 Pa.C.S.). Kentucky, Ohio, North Carolina, Wyoming and Louisiana also list a notary step for the title. In Tennessee, the Sevier County clerk takes a vehicle bill of sale once a notary has witnessed the seller's signature. Montana moved the opposite direction: since October 1, 2025, its law no longer asks for a notary on the seller's title signature.

On a notary state's title, hold the pen until the notary is watching.

A bill of sale is not a stand-in for a lost title

This is where junk car sellers most often get tripped up. A buyer who pays scrap prices will still want proof you own the car, and a bill of sale you write yourself doesn't prove that.

Missouri's law shows how tight this can get. A scrap metal operator may not buy a vehicle without getting the original title, a salvage title or a junking certificate from the seller, unless the seller is a licensee. The Department of Revenue can issue a junking certificate to someone who holds only a bill of sale, but only for a vehicle 26 or more model years old (RSMo 301.227).

If the title is missing, start with selling a junk car with no title before you write anything up.

State-by-state: bill of sale and title notes

Each cell sums up what that state's official page or statute says about the paperwork you sign. Rules on whether a bill of sale is required were not checked in every state, so read the linked source before you rely on a row.

Worth repairing, or ready to sell?

Paperwork rarely decides this one. What decides it is the size of the repair bill next to the car's value once fixed. If it does, our page on when repairs cost more than the car walks through the numbers.

If you decide to sell, line up the papers before you call anyone:

1. Find the title and check that the name on it is yours.
2. Clear any lien. Maryland, for one, says a lien must be released before the sale.
3. Write down the odometer reading, skipping it only for a car past the federal cutoff.
4. Print a bill of sale, or your state's form, with the fields listed above.
5. Keep a copy of everything you sign.

We buy whole non-running and junk cars, and you can sell the whole car as it sits. Pickup is free anywhere in the US. Have the title and your notes ready when you ask for an offer.

Questions about the paperwork? Call (877) 421-6008.

With the car gone, plates and your state's sale notice still need handling. After you sell covers both.