Vehicle registration in India usually begins at the dealer when you buy a new vehicle in the same state, and then moves to the RTO (Regional Transport Office) for each later change, such as a new owner, a new address or a bank loan. Please read this as an independent guide: we are not the government Parivahan portal. Any application, fee payment or status check for your vehicle has to be done on the official Vahan portal or the mParivahan app.
The form finder below lets you pick a job (transfer, address change, loan entry, loan closure, duplicate RC, NOC or renewal) and shows the form numbers, the Rule 81 fee rule and the legal deadline for that job. The tables further down hold the same rules, so the page still works if the tool does not load. The forms, fees and deadlines below reflect the position as of October 2026; for anything newer that we have verified, look at the status panel above.
How new vehicle registration works at the dealer
Under Section 41 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, when you buy a new vehicle in the same state as the dealer, the dealer files the registration application for you. The dealer is not allowed to hand over the vehicle until the registration mark is displayed on it.
In Vahan 4.0 (the NIC software that RTOs use for vehicle records), the process is known as registration at the dealer point. At the dealership, staff key in a "New Registration Entry"; the technical details of the model come straight from the Homologation portal. They attach scanned papers, settle the registration charge and tax online, and receive an e-receipt, after which the RTO checks and approves the record. Odisha, for example, describes this as contactless and paperless.
Documents the dealer uploads
Odisha's guidelines list these uploads:
- Form 20 (application for registration)
- Original Form 22 (manufacturer's roadworthiness and pollution certificate)
- Insurance policy
- Dealer sale invoice
- Buyer's ID and address proof
- Chassis print or photo
- PAN, only if the sale amount is above Rs 2 lakh
Other states may ask for slightly different papers, so ask your dealer what your RTO needs.
Temporary and permanent registration
A temporary registration covers the short gap before a permanent number is assigned, for instance when a chassis is awaiting body building. Section 43(2) says it is valid for a period not exceeding one month and is not renewable, though an extension is allowed for a chassis awaiting body building or for unforeseen circumstances, on payment of fees. Andhra Pradesh states it as 30 days from the date of issue. Tamil Nadu notes that the dealer usually applies on the owner's behalf with Form 20, Form 21 (sale certificate), Form 22, insurance, PAN or Form 60/61 and address proof.
The Union road ministry (MoRTH) has also opened temporary registration for fully built vehicles being converted into adapted vehicles for Divyangjan.
Permanent registration charges
The permanent RC (Registration Certificate) costs the Rule 81 fee plus extras. Puducherry, for example, charges a car (LMV) Rs 600 + Rs 200 smart card + Rs 170 service charge = Rs 970, and a motorcycle Rs 300 + 200 + 170 = Rs 670. State service charges differ. Under GSR 525(E) of August 2021, battery operated vehicles are exempt from the fee for issue or renewal of an RC and assignment of a new registration mark. Under GSR 720(E), a vehicle bought against a scrapping Certificate of Deposit gets a registration fee waiver, and states may give motor vehicle tax concessions of up to 25% (non-transport) and up to 15% (transport).
Vehicle registration forms and what each one is for
These are the central form numbers used across the RTO system (names as listed by Chhattisgarh Transport). On Vahan, many of these forms are filled online and printed for you once you pay, but the numbers stay the same.
| Form | Used for |
|---|---|
| Form 20 | Application for a vehicle registration certificate |
| Form 21 | Sale certificate from the dealer |
| Form 22 | Manufacturer's initial pollution compliance and roadworthiness certificate |
| Form 25 | Application for renewal of the RC |
| Form 26 | Application for a duplicate RC |
| Form 28 | Application for and grant of a No Objection Certificate (NOC) |
| Form 29 | Notice of transfer of ownership (seller's notice) |
| Form 30 | Application for intimation and transfer of ownership |
| Form 31 | Transfer to the person who succeeds to the vehicle, for example on the owner's death |
| Form 33 | Intimation of change of address for the RC |
| Form 34 | Entry of a hire purchase, lease or hypothecation (loan) agreement after registration |
| Form 35 | Notice of termination of that agreement (loan closure) |
Hypothecation means the vehicle is pledged to a bank or financier as security for a loan. Odisha's online steps show that adding it produces Form 34 and ending it produces Form 35, with no fee shown for termination; the payment receipt and form are then taken to the RTO for verification.
Rule 81 fees for registration services
Central fees come from Rule 81 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 (CMVR), as revised by GSR 1183(E) of 29 December 2016. The amounts below are as of October 2026. Serial 4 covers issue or renewal of an RC and a new registration mark.
| Vehicle | Serial 4 fee |
|---|---|
| Invalid carriage | Rs 50 |
| Motorcycle | Rs 300 |
| Three-wheeler, quadricycle or LMV, non-transport | Rs 600 |
| Three-wheeler, quadricycle or LMV, transport | Rs 1,000 |
| Medium goods or passenger vehicle | Rs 1,000 |
| Heavy goods or passenger vehicle | Rs 1,500 |
| Imported motor vehicle | Rs 5,000 |
| Imported motorcycle | Rs 2,500 |
| Any other vehicle | Rs 3,000 |
Other fee rules
- Duplicate RC, transfer of ownership, change of residence and recording an alteration: half the serial 4 fee each.
- Recording a loan (hypothecation, hire purchase or lease): motorcycle Rs 500, three-wheeler, quadricycle or LMV Rs 1,500, medium or heavy vehicle Rs 3,000. Cancelling it costs nothing.
- Smart card RC (Form 23A): Rs 200 extra.
- Late renewal of an RC: Rs 300 per month or part for motorcycles and Rs 500 per month or part for other non-transport vehicles. A late NOC application for transfer or change of residence carries the same rates.
- Renewal of vehicles older than 15 years (from 1 April 2022, under the Twenty Third Amendment Rules, 2021): car Rs 5,000, motorcycle Rs 1,000. A news report of the same change gave Rs 10,000 for an imported two or three-wheeler and Rs 40,000 for an imported four-wheeler.
GSR 568(E) of August 2025 reworded serial 4B so that it covers renewal for vehicles older than 15 but not more than 20 years, and stated that GST is charged over and above every Rule 81 fee. News reports of the same notification say renewal for vehicles older than 20 years doubled (LMV Rs 10,000, motorcycle Rs 2,000, three-wheeler or quadricycle Rs 5,000, imported two or three-wheeler Rs 20,000, imported four-wheeler Rs 80,000), and a later report said the 15 to 20 year band was unchanged. Those 20+ year amounts come from news reports, not the gazette text, so confirm the fee Vahan shows before you pay. States add their own service and smart card charges on top.
Legal deadlines under the Motor Vehicles Act
The deadlines below are taken from the Act's registration chapter as published online. That text may not reflect every 2019 amendment, so treat these as the general rule and check with your RTO if you are close to a deadline.
| Situation | Rule | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| You move house | Section 49 | Report the new address within thirty days |
| You sell the vehicle in the same state | Section 50 | Seller reports within fourteen days; buyer reports within thirty days |
| Vehicle kept in another state | Section 47 | New registration mark needed after twelve months there, with an NOC |
| You applied for an NOC | Section 48 | Deemed granted if not refused within thirty days |
| Vehicle is under a loan | Section 51(4) | No transfer without the financier's written consent |
| Private RC expires | Section 41(7) and 41(10) | Valid 15 years; each renewal adds five years |
Andhra Pradesh advises filing Form 25 for renewal 60 days before the RC expires. For transport vehicles, renewing the fitness certificate is treated as renewal of registration there. Fitness tests at Automated Testing Stations are handled in a separate Vahan module, AFMS.
Unpaid toll fees now block an NOC
A January 2026 report on All India Radio's news site says a central rule amendment made that year bars an NOC for a change of owner or an inter-state move while National Highway toll (user fee) dues on the vehicle remain unpaid. If you are selling a vehicle or shifting it across a state border, clear any pending highway toll dues before you apply. This rule is recent and may be revised, so treat the page's status panel as the place for its current position.
Doing a vehicle registration service on Vahan
Changes to an existing RC are filed on the Vahan citizen services site after choosing your state. You need the registration number, chassis details and the mobile number linked to the vehicle for an OTP. The Uttarakhand list of Vahan services includes ownership transfer, address change, RC renewal, duplicate RC, hypothecation addition and termination, NOC, RC particulars and updating the mobile number. In the Khagaria district guide, most services end with an RTO visit to verify documents (tax payment and RC particulars are the exceptions), and an appointment is booked where required, which is what people mean by slot booking for vehicle registration. To see your new vehicle registration status, or the vehicle registration status of any later request, keep the application number from your application. Many people type vahan parivahan gov in login registration into a search box: the genuine site lives at vahan.parivahan.gov.in, and third-party guides report that its citizen login uses your mobile number as the user ID (menu wording can change, so go by the screen). Our Vahan 4.0 guide walks through the screens, Vahan application status covers tracking, and RC status explains what happens after approval. The central menu is also listed on the Parivahan vehicle related services page.
BH series registration basics
The Bharat (BH) series mark was created by GSR 594(E) of 26 August 2021 so that a personal vehicle does not need fresh registration when its owner moves to another state. It is voluntary and, according to a secondary explainer, took effect on 15 September 2021. It is open to Defence personnel, Central and State government employees, Central and State PSU staff, and private sector employees whose employer has offices in four or more States or UTs. The number reads in the format YY BH #### XX.
Road tax on a BH vehicle is charged for two years or multiples of two. Reported rates are 8% to 12% of the invoice price (without GST) for petrol vehicles depending on the price slab, two percentage points more for diesel and two less for electric. After the fourteenth year it becomes yearly at half the earlier amount. Changes in December 2022 allowed regular-number vehicles to convert to BH on paying tax and allowed BH vehicles to be sold to eligible or ineligible buyers. MoRTH's Annual Report says central issue of BH numbers was available to 29 States as of 31 December 2024.
HSRP: the vehicle registration plate rules
High Security Registration Plates (HSRP) are number plates that carry a laser code recorded on Vahan. Vehicles made on or after 1 April 2019 come with HSRP and the third registration mark, supplied by the manufacturer through the dealer, so a new buyer does not book them separately. Fitment is governed by Rule 50 of CMVR 1989.
For older vehicles, plates are booked through portals authorised by the vehicle maker, fitted by the maker's dealer, and the laser code is then updated on Vahan. Fines and deadlines are set state by state. Odisha's order, for instance, cited Rs 5,000 or Rs 10,000 under Section 192 of the Act after its deadline. GSR 819(E) of November 2025 reinforces mandatory HSRP for applicable vehicles. Use only the booking link your state transport department names.
MP, Telangana and other state vehicle registration searches
Many people search for MP vehicle registration, TS vehicle registration, Telangana vehicle registration or TN vehicle registration expecting a separate system for each state. The central pieces are shared: the Motor Vehicles Act deadlines, the form numbers and the Rule 81 fees above apply everywhere, while road tax, smart card charges and service charges are set by each state. Puducherry's transport department says Vahan 4.0 was customised for 36 States and UTs, but no official source we found confirms whether every state, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh among them, offers Vahan citizen services. When the state dropdown on Vahan does not list yours, use your state transport department's site. To check vehicle registration details for a number you already have, see vehicle details; for Uttar Pradesh, see UP Parivahan; and the home page maps the whole Parivahan system.
Questions people ask
Who registers a new car or bike, me or the dealer?
If you buy and register in the same state, the dealer files the application in Vahan and cannot deliver the vehicle until the registration mark is displayed. The RTO then verifies and approves it. In Vahan dealer-point registration, the registration fee and taxes are paid online at the dealership.
How long is a temporary registration valid?
Section 43(2) says up to one month, and it cannot be renewed. An extension is allowed only where a chassis is waiting for body building or for unforeseen circumstances, on payment of a fee.
Which forms do I need to sell my vehicle?
The seller gives Form 29 (notice of transfer) and the buyer applies with Form 30. In the same state, the seller should report within fourteen days and the buyer within thirty days. If the vehicle has a loan, the financier must consent in writing first.
What is the fee for a duplicate RC?
It is half of the serial 4 amount in Rule 81 for that class of vehicle, for example Rs 300 for a non-transport car whose serial 4 fee is Rs 600. States add service and smart card charges. In Odisha, for example, a lost or stolen RC needs FIR details when you apply.
How much does it cost to renew a 15-year-old car's registration?
From 1 April 2022 the central renewal fee for cars older than 15 years is Rs 5,000 and for motorcycles Rs 1,000. For vehicles older than 20 years, news reports of an August 2025 notification give Rs 10,000 for cars and Rs 2,000 for motorcycles. Late renewal adds Rs 500 or Rs 300 per month or part.
Can I get a BH series number?
Only if you are eligible: Defence personnel, Central or State government or PSU employees, or employees of a private company with offices in four or more States or UTs. The scheme is voluntary.
Do I need to apply for HSRP on a new vehicle?
No. Vehicles made on or after 1 April 2019 come with HSRP fitted through the dealer. Owners of older vehicles book plates through a portal authorised by the vehicle maker, as notified by their state.
Sources we checked
- Chhattisgarh Transport: registration eForms cgtransport.gov.in
- GSR 1183(E): Rule 81 fee revision cgtransport.gov.in
- LawX: Section 41, MV Act 1988 lawx.in
- All India Radio: toll dues and NOC rule newsonair.gov.in
- PIB: MoRTH Year End Review 2025 pib.gov.in
- Andhra Pradesh Transport FAQ aptransport.org
- PIB release on BH series compfie.aparajitha.com
- Odisha Transport: dealer point guidelines odishatransport.gov.in
We read these sources for this guide. Rules can change after we check them, so confirm anything important on the official portal or at your local office.