Alabama car bill of sale Do you need one? And what else does Alabama require?

Do you need a separate bill of sale?

Not required by law on a titled vehicle. Required if it is too old to be titled

The transfer is made by the assignment on the title. No statute makes a bill of sale mandatory for a titled vehicle, but the state's title rules list a bill of sale for a casual sale among the papers the buyer's designated agent collects. A vehicle more than 35 model years old gets no Alabama title. Then the bill of sale is the ownership document, and the buyer must keep a copy in the vehicle for the first 20 days. A valid bill of sale names both parties with their addresses, the date, the full vehicle description and VIN, the price, and both signatures. Keep your own copy. With no notice to file, it is part of your only record.

Source: Ala. Code §§ 32-8-44(a), 32-8-31; Ala. Admin. Code r. 810-5-75-.36, 810-5-1-.246

Not required. Still worth having.

The title transfers ownership — and the buyer leaves with it. A separate bill of sale gives both of you something to keep.

It records who bought and who sold, the agreed price, when the vehicle changed hands, and any other terms you write into it, such as what was included or that it was sold as-is.

It does not replace the signed title or any notice Alabama requires. You may not need one for the state. You may still want one for your own records.

Free printable document · no account

Does the title need a notary or witnesses?

Neither

The Alabama Department of Revenue answers this outright: the state does not require the assignment of a title to be notarized. No witness requirement is published either.

Source: ALDOR FAQ, “Is the assignment of an MSO or title required to be notarized?”, checked Oct 12 2026

What happens to the plates?

They come off, and stay with the seller

The plate belongs to the registrant, not the vehicle. ALDOR states that plates are to be removed by the registrant on the sale or disposal of the vehicle, and that the plate may then be transferred to a newly acquired vehicle for a small state transfer fee plus any local issuance fee. One exception: for some plate types, if the vehicle goes to your spouse or child, you may leave the plate on it and pay the plate transfer fee.

Source: ALDOR FAQ, “When I sell or otherwise dispose of my vehicle, does the license plate remain on the vehicle?”; Ala. Code § 40-12-260

Do you have to tell the state you sold it?

No. Alabama has no notice of sale

There is nothing to file. Alabama Code § 32-8-44(a) sets out the seller's entire duty: at the time the vehicle is delivered, execute an assignment and warranty of title to the buyer and cause the certificate and assignment to be delivered to the buyer or to the department. The buyer then applies for a new title through a designated agent. No section of the Certificate of Title Act or of the registration chapter creates a separate notification. There is no notice to protect you, so your record is the signed assignment and your own copy of it. Keep one.

Source: Ala. Code § 32-8-44(a); Title 32 chapters 6 and 8 reviewed in full

Where does the odometer reading go?

In the title assignment

The mileage is certified in the assignment on the title, and the reading on the buyer's title application must agree with it. Alabama also publishes a standalone Odometer Disclosure Statement, form MVT 5-5, for cases that need one. Exempt from disclosure: any vehicle of model year 2010 or older; a model year 2011 or newer vehicle once it is 20 model years old; a vehicle rated over 16,000 lbs gross weight; and anything not self-propelled, such as a trailer. The note printed on form MVT 5-5 gives only the 20-year rule, but ALDOR's own agent manual and the federal rule exempt every model year 2010 or older vehicle.

Source: ALDOR; form MVT 5-5 Rev 4/25; ALDOR Designated Agent Training Manual 2023; 49 CFR 580.5(c) and 580.17

The forms Alabama publishes

• Odometer Disclosure Statement (MVT 5-5) — A standalone mileage statement. A titled seller still writes the reading on the title. If a lender holds the title, the reading goes on the secure power of attorney, MVT 8-4, instead. Where: revenue.alabama.gov → Odometer Disclosure Statement. Revision: Rev 4/25.
• Application for Certificate of Title (MVT 5-1E) — The buyer files this through a designated agent, not with the department and not with you. Where: Made by the designated agent in the state's online title system; no public download. Revision: none published.

Selling here, registering somewhere else

These are the rules where you are selling, not where the buyer is taking it. The title is signed under Alabama’s rules, and the plate and the notice are yours to handle here.

Registering it and paying tax falls under the buyer’s own state’s rules.

How Alabama compares

Counted from the same answers, for all fifty states.

Ready to handle the paperwork?

Get your free documents, set up for a Alabama sale — the bill of sale, and the answers on this page as one printable sheet. Print what you need. Free, no account.

Get my free documents →