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

Keep a record — the state names what goes on it. 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?

Keep a record — the state names what goes on it

Montana asks you to keep documentation of the sale with the buyer's name and address. It accepts either a photocopy of the reassigned title, or a document carrying the year, make, VIN, name, address, driver license number, purchase price and date of sale. Form MV24 is provided. The driver license number is unusual — most states do not ask for it, and it is the detail that makes the record actually identify your buyer.

Source: Montana MVD, Tips for Selling a Vehicle; form MV24

Does the title need a notary or witnesses?

Neither

Montana titles do not need a notary. The state's 2026 guide says no notarization is required as of October 2025. All owners listed on the title must sign it, and the buyer must sign — and the person signing must be the buyer named on the title. A notary is needed only if the MV24 bill of sale is used with a bonded title application (MV10) or an electronic records transfer. Montana's own recommendation: go to the County Treasurer's office with the title and your buyer, sign off in front of the clerk, and let them complete the transaction and get plates before they drive away.

Source: Montana MVD, Tips for Selling a Vehicle; Buying & Selling Vehicles in Montana (2026); form MV24, checked Oct 12 2026

What happens to the plates?

Off — and do not believe the promise

Montana words this as a scam warning: the plates belong to you, not the vehicle, and do not let the buyer drive the vehicle home with a promise to return them. If you leave them on you may be liable for parking and traffic violations after the sale. You can ask your County Treasurer to transfer them to another vehicle you own. Classic or personalised plates you WANT to give the buyer need a Statement of Fact (MV100) to relinquish your rights — paying the registration fees alone does not transfer them.

Source: Montana MVD, Tips for Selling a Vehicle

Do you have to tell the state you sold it?

Nothing. Montana says so outright

Montana tells you not to bother. Montana's guidance says plainly: you do not need to notify the County Treasurer's motor vehicle office that you sold the vehicle. It even tells you that you can ignore the annual registration renewal notice if one still arrives. Keep your own record of the sale with the buyer's name and address. Cancel the insurance.

Source: Montana MVD, Tips for Selling a Vehicle

Where does the odometer reading go?

On the title, for 2011 and newer

The mileage must be disclosed on any vehicle of model year 2011 or newer, on the title. All owners sign the title and the buyer signs it too. Note the buyer's clock is long here — they have 40 days from the sale date to apply for title and registration, with a $10 late fee after that. Your plates should not still be on the vehicle for any of it.

Source: Montana MVD, Tips for Buying/Selling a Vehicle; 49 CFR 580.5(c)

The forms Montana publishes

  • Bill of Sale (MV24) — Your record of the sale. Montana wants the buyer's driver license number on it. Where: mvdmt.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/MV24-Bill-of-Sale-08.26-F.pdf. Revision: 8/26.
  • Release of Security Interest or Lien (MV37A) — Only if a lender was on your title. Give it to the buyer with the title. Where: mvdmt.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/MV37A-Release-of-Security-Interest-or-Lien-Application-08.26F.pdf. Revision: 8/26.
  • Statement of Fact (MV100) — Only to hand classic or personalised plates to the buyer. Fees alone do not transfer them. Where: mvdmt.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/MV100-Statement-of-Fact-06.26F.pdf. Revision: 9/26.

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 Montana’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 Montana compares

Counted from the same answers, for all fifty states.

See how Montana compares with the other 49 states
  • Montana 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 Montana the plates do not go to the buyer. They stay with the vehicle in only 4 states — Alaska, California, Hawaii and Minnesota.
  • Montana 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 Montana’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.