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

Yes — the buyer needs one to register. Below: the title signature, the plates, telling the state, and the odometer — each with the source it came from.

Do you need a separate bill of sale?

Yes — the buyer needs one to register

For a titled vehicle the assignment on the title transfers ownership. But to register a vehicle bought in a private sale, Maine's BMV lists a signed bill of sale among the documents the buyer needs. Maine's official Motor Vehicle Bill of Sale includes a certification that there is no active lienholder on the vehicle.

Source: Maine BMV, Register a Passenger Vehicle; Motor Vehicle Bill of Sale form

Does the title need a notary or witnesses?

Neither

29-A M.R.S. § 662(1): at the time of delivery of the vehicle the owner executes an assignment and warranty of title in the space provided on the certificate, and that warranty must include the odometer information. No notary. If a lien was ever issued to a lienholder you must give the buyer a properly released certificate of lien.

Source: 29-A M.R.S. § 662(1), checked Oct 12 2026

What happens to the plates?

Off — the plate stays with you

When you transfer the vehicle its registration expires, and the plates remain the State's property, issued to you — they do not go to the buyer. Take them off. If you will not re-use or renew within 6 months, return the plates and the registration certificate to the Secretary of State. To cancel the plates formally, use form MVR-60, which must be notarized.

Source: 29-A M.R.S. § 463; BMV form MVR-60

Do you have to tell the state you sold it?

No notice — but deliver the certificate

Maine publishes no seller notice of sale. What the statute does require is delivery: the owner shall deliver the certificate and assignment to the transferee OR to the Secretary of State. And the rule worth knowing about the person you are selling to — a transferee who is not a licensed dealer must obtain a title in their own name before transferring the vehicle on to anybody else. Maine bans the jumped title outright, though the statute does not use that phrase.

Source: 29-A M.R.S. § 662(1)

Where does the odometer reading go?

In the assignment, or on a prescribed form

At the time of transfer each transferor must furnish the buyer with the required odometer information, and Maine specifies where it goes: on the reverse of the title or MCO — or, if that space is full or not compliant, on a form prescribed by the Secretary of State. The statute folds it into the warranty of title itself rather than treating it as a separate step.

Source: 29-A M.R.S. §§ 662(1) and 752; 49 CFR 580.5(c)

The forms Maine publishes

  • Motor Vehicle Bill of Sale — Either this or the kit's. The buyer needs a signed one to register. Carries a certification that no active lienholder remains. Where: maine.gov/sos/bmv → Register a Passenger Vehicle. Revision: not stated on the form.
  • Plate Cancellation Request (MVR-60) — Optional. Formally cancels your plates after the sale. Must be notarized. Where: maine.gov/sos/bmv → Forms and Applications. Revision: Rev 1-2013.

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 Maine’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 Maine compares

Counted from the same answers, for all fifty states.

See how Maine compares with the other 49 states
  • Maine is with the majority: no notary or witnesses on the title signature. Only 7 states want one — Kentucky, Louisiana, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania and Wyoming.
  • In Maine the plates do not go to the buyer. They stay with the vehicle in only 4 states — Alaska, California, Hawaii and Minnesota.
  • Maine sets no day count for a seller’s notice to the state. 15 states do, from 5 days (California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada and Washington) to 30 (Florida, Missouri, Texas and Wisconsin).

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What this page is

Every answer above was checked against Maine’s own published material on Oct 12, 2026. It describes the rules; it is not advice about your sale. State forms get revised — the agency’s current page is what governs.