After a private car sale in Illinois

The title assignment

Ownership moves through the Assignment of Title section on the Illinois certificate of title, which the owner completes and signs to the buyer. The Secretary of State answers this directly. An Illinois title does not have to be notarised.

Sources: Illinois Secretary of State, vehicle services questions and answers, Form VSD 703, Seller's Report of Sale, fillable PDF, revision VSD 703.3. Checked 21 September 2026.

The odometer reading

Required for model year 2011 and newer, on the title itself, with a separate statement form only when the title has no space for it. Exempt: any motorcycle, motor-driven cycle or moped; an antique or expanded-use antique vehicle; a gross vehicle weight rating over 16,000 pounds; a vehicle that is not self-propelled, or was built without an odometer.

Sources: 625 ILCS 5/3-112.1, odometer disclosure on transfer, 49 CFR 580.17, federal odometer disclosure exemptions, Illinois Secretary of State, vehicle services questions and answers. Checked 21 September 2026.

The plates

The opposite of Texas. The seller keeps the plates, so the buyer needs new ones or moves plates from a vehicle they already own.

Sources: 625 ILCS 5/3-821, registration and transfer fees, Illinois Secretary of State, vehicle services fee and plate booklet VSD 293. Checked 21 September 2026.

VSD 703, Seller's Report of Sale

The form a seller uses to tell the Secretary of State the vehicle has been sold. It does not transfer ownership; the title assignment does that. The form asks for it to be completed immediately and states no number of days, and no deadline was found in the Vehicle Code.

Fill in VSD 703 here with the car and both addresses, and download it as a finished PDF. The signature and its date stay blank for the seller.

Sources: Form VSD 703, Seller's Report of Sale, fillable PDF, revision VSD 703.3. Checked 21 September 2026.

The title, 20 days, on VSD 190

Illinois gives a buyer 20 days from the day the car and the assigned title change hands to apply for a title in their own name. The statute sets no late fee. A Chapter 3 violation with no other stated penalty is a petty offense on a first or second conviction under 625 ILCS 5/3-834.

VSD 190, Application for Vehicle Transaction(s): Printed from the Secretary of State's electronic registration and title application, collected at a Secretary of State facility, or ordered by phone on 800-252-8980. The Secretary of State does not publish a blank copy to download. KowskiCars cannot fill it in ahead of time.

Sources: 625 ILCS 5/3-112, transfer of a certificate of title, 625 ILCS 5/3-834, penalty for a Chapter 3 violation, Illinois Secretary of State, apply for a title and registration, Illinois Secretary of State, electronic registration and title (PERT). Checked 21 September 2026.

The tax, 30 days, on RUT-50

A separate filing and a separate payment to the Department of Revenue. A different clock from the 20 day title clock, run by a different agency. The 20 day one binds first. The Department of Revenue describes a late filing penalty and a separate late payment penalty. It does not publish one fixed figure.

RUT-50, Private Party Vehicle Use Tax Transaction Return: A preprinted form, handed over when the vehicle is titled, ordered from the Department of Revenue forms line on 800-356-6302, or filed electronically through MyTax Illinois. Only the instructions are published as a downloadable PDF. KowskiCars cannot fill it in ahead of time.

The amount is a flat figure from a published table, with Chicago and Cook County add-ons that follow the buyer's address. Work out the tax, title and plates for a car.

Sources: Illinois Department of Revenue, private party vehicle use tax, Illinois Department of Revenue, Form RUT-50 instructions. Checked 21 September 2026.

Title and plate fees

Title $165. New plates and registration $151, or $25 to move plates the buyer already holds. Expedited title $30 on top of the title fee. The Secretary of State states a combined standard total of $316, which is the $165 title plus the $151 plates. The $25 is the transfer of registration, charged on every plate transfer whatever the timing, and it is not a late fee.

Sources: Illinois Secretary of State, apply for a title and registration, Illinois Secretary of State, vehicle services fee and plate booklet VSD 293, 625 ILCS 5/3-821, registration and transfer fees. Checked 21 September 2026.