By clicking on the video, you will change the context of this page.
Car or Motor Home Sold Between Individuals
ChangeThe fastest way to transfer a passenger vehicle between individuals and to register the transferred vehicle is to use SAAQclic. Before starting, make sure the vehicle qualifies as a passenger vehicle and carefully read the four sections below about transferring and registering a vehicle.
This video shows how to transfer a passenger vehicle between individuals using SAAQclic. By clicking on the video, you will change the context of this page.
For more information, see our Fact Sheet – Transferring a Vehicle Between Individuals on SAAQclic (PDF, 119.6 ko).
Vehicles categorized as passenger vehicles include:
If the buyer or the seller has an unpaid fine for an offence under the Highway Safety Code or under a municipal traffic or parking bylaw.
The Bureau des infractions et amendes and the municipal courts are responsible for collecting fines. You cannot pay a fine at an SAAQ service outlet.
To check whether the vehicle can be registered, you can use our online service.
Before buying a used vehicle, check the Registre des droits personnels et réels mobiliers (register of personal and movable real rights—in French only) to make sure it is free of debt. If you buy a vehicle that has not been paid for in full, it can be seized by the creditor.
You can also request the vehicle's ownership history from the SAAQ to find out:
To obtain the vehicle's ownership history, you can:
While flood-damaged vehicles are usually declared “irreparable” and dismantled for certain parts to be recycled, some flood-damaged vehicles may slip through the cracks and end up on the market.
Be sure to verify before buying a vehicle.
For more information, refer to the Flood-Damaged Road Vehicles page.
It cannot be put back into operation until it has undergone a mechanical inspection carried out by a road vehicle inspection agent authorized by the SAAQ and a mechanical inspection certificate has been issued confirming that the vehicle meets the applicable standards.
If the vehicle is owned by more than one person (co-ownership), a registrant must be designated. The vehicle will appear in the registrant’s file, enabling the registrant to transfer the registration of the vehicle via SAAQclic. Otherwise, all sellers whose names currently appear and all buyers whose names will appear on the registration certificate must go to a service outlet to register the vehicle.
A registrant can be designated by filling out the Designating a Registrant (Co-Owned Vehicles) form or by going to a service outlet.
The SAAQ recommends only having one name appear on the registration certificate. However, if the buyers want to have all their names on the certificate, they must designate a registrant. For more information, see our Fact Sheet – Registering a Co-Owned Vehicle. (PDF, 137.2 ko)This file does not meet the Web accessibility standard.
The vehicle can be transferred and registered online through SAAQclic when the following conditions are met:
The seller must:
The buyer must:
The seller and buyer must:
The vehicle must:
Selling your vehicle?
Start by identifying the vehicle and entering the identification number found on the buyer’s (registrant’s) driver’s licence. Then enter the sale price. You will also have the option to transfer your licence plate to the buyer.
Buying a vehicle?
Simply access your SAAQclic account, accept the vehicle transfer, and register the vehicle within 48 business hours following the seller’s transfer. Among other things, you will have to enter the vehicle’s odometer reading and add your banking information to your account to pay the QST and any applicable registration fees.
For more information, see our Fact Sheet – Transferring a Vehicule Between Individuals on SAAQclic (PDF, 119.6 ko).
The buyer and seller must show their driver's licence or another official photo ID document.
The buyer must also supply the vehicle's odometer reading.
Call Revenu Québec to find out which documents are necessary for the calculation of QST in the following cases:
You must also present the Consent of a Person Having Parental Authority (PDF, 123.4 ko) form completed by your father, mother or legal guardian.
Phone us to find out what documents you must bring with you when registering your vehicle.
The person who goes to the service outlet for you must bring the original Power of Attorney (PDF, 298.8 ko) form completed by you beforehand.
A vehicle from outside Québec is considered to be an imported vehicle, which means there are other documents you will have to provide so that we can verify whether the vehicle can be used in Québec. Refer to the Registering a vehicle from outside Québec section for more information.
If the licence plate was not transferred along with the vehicle, to legally operate the vehicle, the buyer must affix their temporary paper licence plate to the vehicle while waiting to receive their metal licence plate in the mail. The metal plate will be delivered by mail within 10 to 20 business days to the primary address in the buyer’s SAAQ file.
If the vehicle transfer is carried out at an SAAQ service outlet, the temporary paper licence plate will be issued by the service outlet agent. If the transfer is carried out online via SAAQclic, the buyer must print the temporary licence plate on standard (8 ½ x 11-inch) white paper as the final step in the online vehicle registration process.
In either case, the temporary paper licence plate must be affixed to the vehicle’s rear window in the top left corner.
This video (MP4, 29.8 Mo) shows how.
To find out the cost to have a vehicle registered, visit the Rates and Fines section.
At the time of registration, you are required to pay the QST, even in the case of a used vehicle. The SAAQ collects the QST on the agreed selling price or the estimated value of the vehicle, whichever is greater.
You do not have to pay the GST because the sale is between individuals.
For more information on the payment or collection of taxes, phone Revenu Québec.
You will have to add a bank account to your online account (using a cheque specimen) to carry out the transaction.
At our service outlets, we accept payment:
Payment by credi card is not accepted.
You must have a civil liability insurance policy contracted from a private insurer providing minimum coverage of $50,000.
If you are not insured and you are pulled over by the police or involved in a traffic accident that causes more than $500 in damage to the property of another party:
The seller remains the owner and person liable for the vehicle until the vehicle is registered in the buyer's name.
This means that should the buyer commit an offence or be involved in an accident with a vehicle that is still registered in the seller's name, it is the seller who would be held responsible.
Last update: June 29, 2023