Buying or Selling a Car Interstate

• The seller's state covers the seller's side of the sale - for example, any certificate that state requires the seller to provide, and the seller telling their transport authority the car has been sold (usually a Notice of Disposal).
• The state where you'll register it covers what it takes to get the car registered in your name there - including any inspection, the registration transfer, and stamp duty and fees.
• The two can be quite different, so check both. Our guides for New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, Tasmania, Australian Capital Territory, Northern Territory cover each state's rules, and the interactive tool compares any two states side by side.

• Bringing an interstate vehicle onto your state's register is usually a different process from a local transfer, and many states and territories require an inspection before an interstate vehicle can be registered. Check your state's requirements before you commit to buy, so you know the likely cost and time involved.
• Your state's transport authority will tell you what documents it needs and how long you have. Keep the seller's receipt, the registration papers and any certificates together.
• Stamp duty and registration fees are set by each state or territory. Use the official duty calculator for the state you'll register in - our stamp duty estimator gives a rough guide where one's available.

• If you can't inspect it yourself, arrange an independent pre-purchase inspection near the seller before you pay anything.
• Run the PPSR search on ppsr.gov.au yourself - don't rely on a report the seller sends you.
• Be very wary of a seller who can't meet, says the car is already with a "shipping" or "transport" company, or asks you to pay through an escrow or delivery service they recommend. These are common scam patterns - see Scamwatch for current warnings.

• Before driving it any distance, make sure the car is registered and insured for the trip - registration, compulsory third-party (CTP) insurance and your own insurance can all change hands at different times in an interstate sale.
• If you're unsure whether it can legally be driven home, ask the relevant transport authority, or arrange a vehicle transport company instead.

• Your obligations are set by your own state - provide any certificate your state requires, and lodge your Notice of Disposal (or your state's equivalent) on time.
• Wait until the buyer's payment has cleared in your account before handing over the car, keys or papers.
• Point the buyer to their own state's transport authority for registration - that part is their responsibility.

• Interactive checklist & stamp duty estimator
• Buying from a business, trust, estate or lease
• When the seller still owes finance
• Buying equipment, plant or a work vehicle privately
• Selling equipment privately
• Selling your car privately

State & territory guides

• Buying privately in New South Wales
• Buying privately in Victoria
• Buying privately in Queensland
• Buying privately in South Australia
• Buying privately in Western Australia
• Buying privately in Tasmania
• Buying privately in the Australian Capital Territory
• Buying privately in the Northern Territory