Do I Have to Register the Car Where I Buy It?

[MacLola]

You do not have to register the car where you buy it. According to the regulations for new car registration, as long as the vehicle has the four basic documents—official invoice, certificate of conformity, purchase tax (surcharge), and compulsory insurance (traffic insurance)—you can proceed with registration. Therefore, it is not necessary to register the car in the same place where you purchase it. The specific process for registering a car bought in another location: 1. Prepare a temporary license plate for inspection by traffic police on the way back, paying close attention to its validity period; 2. Contact your local insurance company to purchase the corresponding compulsory insurance, vehicle damage insurance, etc., by sending the vehicle frame number before registration; 3. Complete the registration process at your local vehicle management office.

[LaLaila]

Hi, I just went through this last year. Actually, you don’t have to register the car where you bought it. I picked up my car in a neighboring province and drove it back to my hometown to get local plates directly. However, there are a few key points to note: First, the emission standards must meet the requirements of your registration location—for example, some cities only accept China VI-B compliant vehicles. Second, make sure to bring all necessary documents, including the purchase invoice, vehicle certification, and compulsory insurance policy, as none of these can be missed. A special reminder: some 4S stores may attract customers with 'all-inclusive registration' packages, but cross-region registration might incur extra fees. A fellow car enthusiast I know was charged an extra 5,000 RMB as an agency fee, when doing it themselves would have cost just over 200 RMB. Remember to call the local DMV in advance to confirm the process so you don’t make a wasted trip.

[DiLilliana]

Not at all necessary. Last week, I helped my cousin with a similar situation: he bought a car in Shanghai but needed to register it in Hangzhou. The key point is that the vehicle parameters must comply with Hangzhou's environmental standards. We checked the environmental catalog in the Zhejiang Government Service App in advance to confirm that the car model was listed before proceeding with the purchase. When picking up the car, we made sure the 4S store issued the invoice with my cousin's name and ID card address as the recipient. The vehicle purchase tax can be paid directly through Alipay for Hangzhou taxes, eliminating the need to visit the tax office. When applying for the temporary license plate, remember to select the 'Inter-provincial Temporary Plate,' which is a yellow plate valid for 15 days. Now with nationwide vehicle inspection and registration services, purchasing a car from another location is really convenient.

[StevenLynn]

The law allows for out-of-town license plate registration. When my friend bought a car at an auto mall, the dealer suggested it would be more cost-effective to register the license plate back in his hometown. There are significant differences in registration fees between cities—for example, Guangzhou charges 130 yuan, while Shenzhen requires 480 yuan. It's important to note that the new car's emission standard must meet the requirements of the city where you register. Last year, a neighbor bought a China V standard car but couldn't register it back home. It's advisable to call the local DMV before picking up the car to confirm the model's filing status. Be sure to bring the quadruplicate invoice, vehicle conformity certificate, and other necessary documents.