Wheel ScoutWhat an Arizona plate lookup shows
A license plate points to one car. We turn the Arizona plate into the car's 17-character VIN, show you the year, make and model, then read its history: salvage, flood and rebuilt brands, title history by state, odometer readings and theft records. You also see the factory specs and the safety recalls for that model year before you pay. What it never shows is the owner: the federal Driver's Privacy Protection Act keeps names and addresses in DMV records private, and we don't sell them.
What an Arizona plate looks like
Arizona requires one plate, on the rear. Under A.R.S. 28-2354 a car, motorcycle or trailer displays its plate on the back, mounted so it does not swing and with its bottom edge at least 12 inches off the ground. ADOT notes Arizona is one of about 20 states that do not require a front plate. If a car was issued two plates the owner may put one on the back or one on each end, so a front plate is allowed but not needed. Type the plate without spaces; we find the car.
The standard plate, as ADOT describes it, shows saguaro cacti silhouetted against a golden sunset with Grand Canyon State across the bottom. It is kept clean and readable by law: no covers, films or electronic devices that hide the characters, the tabs or the state name from any angle.
The plate leaves with the seller. The seller removes it before you take the car, and must transfer it to another vehicle, surrender it, or file an affidavit that it was destroyed within 30 days. You cannot drive the car until it is registered in your name unless you buy a permit from MVD or an authorized third-party office. The two that fit a sale between two people:
- Restricted Use 3-Day Permit: for taking an unregistered car to an emissions test, a vehicle inspection, or the repairs needed to pass one. ADOT lists the fee as $1.
- 30-day general use permit: $15 under the state fee statute, and issued only once in a 12-month period for the same vehicle.
Arizona title brands: what the lookup can show
Arizona brands a title when a car has been totaled, stolen and not recovered, or rebuilt. Our $5 report reads the NMVTIS record, which carries the brands that ADOT and every other state have put on the car.
| Salvage | Under A.R.S. 28-2091, a vehicle that has been stolen, wrecked, destroyed, or flood or water damaged, and that the owner, lender or insurer considers uneconomical to repair. After a total-loss settlement the insurer must apply for the salvage title within 30 days of the owner signing the title over. A seller of a salvage-titled car has to tell the buyer in writing before the sale is completed. |
|---|---|
| Restored Salvage | A salvage car that has been repaired, inspected and retitled. Under A.R.S. 28-2095 the owner may not sell it until the Restored Salvage title is issued. ADOT inspects the car for its identity at a Level II or Level III inspection, which can include checking the bills of sale and invoices for every replaced component part (doors, hood, fenders, frame, engine, transmission and more). The seller of a restored salvage car must also disclose that status in writing before the sale. |
| Nonrepairable | A vehicle with no resale value except as parts or scrap metal. The word NONREPAIRABLE is printed on the front of the title, the registration is cancelled, and the title cannot be reassigned more than two times. It will not go back on the road. |
| Stolen vehicle | Arizona issues a stolen vehicle certificate of title to the owner of a car stolen and not recovered. A recovered theft car can get a clean title again only if it was not wrecked or stripped and the insurer files an affidavit, and the insurer must disclose any airbag that deployed or was removed. |
| Flood | Flood and water damage are named in Arizona's salvage definition, so a flooded car totaled by its insurer gets a salvage title like any other total loss. |
On a recovered theft car that was retitled after a total-loss payout, a seller who knows an airbag deployed or was removed and hides it to conceal it commits a class 1 misdemeanor in Arizona. The report shows the total-loss record; ask the seller directly about airbags anyway.
What an Arizona title transfer costs
The buyer pays MVD or an authorized third-party office when titling and registering the car. Amounts are from the Arizona statutes and ADOT.
| Title fee | $4 for a certificate of title, and the same $4 for a salvage, restored salvage or nonrepairable title. |
|---|---|
| Registration | $8 a year for a car, $9 for a motorcycle. State law (A.R.S. 49-551) adds a $1.50 annual air quality fee at registration. |
| Vehicle license tax (VLT) | The big number, paid every year with registration. A.R.S. 28-5801 sets the car's value at 60 percent of the manufacturer's base retail price in the first year, then 16.25 percent less each year after. The tax is $2.80 per $100 of that value in the first year and $2.89 per $100 after, with a $10 minimum. So an older car costs far less to register than a new one. |
| Sales or use tax | None when you buy from an individual. The Arizona Department of Revenue says casual sales between individuals are not subject to use tax. Keep the bill of sale as your proof that you bought from a person, not a dealer. |
| Late registration penalty | $8 for the first month the registration is delinquent and $4 for each month after, up to $100. |
| Level III inspection | $50, by appointment, for a salvage car being retitled as restored salvage. |
Arizona forms and deadlines
| Buyer's deadline | Present the signed title to MVD and apply for title and registration within 15 days of the sale (A.R.S. 28-2058). |
|---|---|
| The title | The seller signs the assignment on the back with the warranty of title and hands it over at delivery. If a lender is shown, you need the lien release. |
| Odometer | The seller gives you an odometer disclosure for a car of model year 2011 or newer that is less than 20 model years old. Model year 2010 and older cars are now past the age limit and exempt. |
| Sold Notice (form 46-8502) | The seller submits it within 10 days of the sale. It protects the seller from tickets and accidents after the sale; a buyer whose seller files it promptly has a clean start. |
| Plates | The seller keeps them. Transfer, surrender or destruction affidavit within 30 days. |
| Emissions certificate | In the Phoenix and Tucson areas, the car must pass the emissions test before MVD will register it, unless it is exempt. |
| Getting the car home | Without your own registration, use the Restricted Use 3-Day Permit for the trip to the emissions station or the 30-day general use permit. |
If MVD cannot do a Level III inspection within 20 days of your request, state law requires it to inspect the car within 48 hours after that.
Inspections in Arizona
Arizona has no safety inspection for a used car. Its routine test is for emissions, and only where the air quality law says so. Under A.R.S. 49-542, vehicles registered in Area A (metro Phoenix) and Area B (metro Tucson) must pass, and so do cars registered elsewhere that commute into those areas to work. A car in those areas cannot be registered until it passes or gets a waiver, and the test must be done no more than 90 days before the registration expires.
Exempt from the test:
- Model year 1966 and older.
- New cars in their first five registration years.
- Electric vehicles, motorcycles and collectible vehicles.
- Cars registered outside Area A and Area B and not driven into them for work.
A dealer in Area A or B cannot hand over a car until it passes. In a sale between two people nobody tests it for you, so ask the seller for a recent passing report, and plan the trip to the station on the 3-day permit if the car is not registered.
For an ordinary used car, nobody inspects the brakes, tires, frame or airbags at any point. Run the plate here for the title and odometer history, then have a shop you choose look at the car before you pay.
Before you meet an Arizona seller
- Run the plate or the VIN here first, before the deposit. Match the year, make, model and trim to the car in front of you.
- Match the VIN on the dashboard, the driver door sticker and the title.
- Match the name on the title to the seller's ID. If a lender is listed, get the lien release.
- Ask in writing about the brand. Arizona requires a seller to disclose a salvage or restored salvage title in writing before the sale. If the report shows one and the seller did not say so, walk.
- Ask about airbags. On a recovered theft car, hiding a deployed or removed airbag is a crime here.
- Expect bare bumpers. The seller keeps the plate, so plan a permit to drive the car home.
- Check the emissions status if you live in metro Phoenix or Tucson. A car that fails cannot be registered.
- Count 15 days. That is all the time you have to apply for the title in your name.
Where these Arizona facts come from
Read on the state's own pages on October 31, 2026. Fees and rules change; the county tax office has the final word on the day you file.
- Arizona Revised Statutes 28-2058: title transfer, 15-day deadline, plates
- Arizona Revised Statutes 28-2003: title, registration and permit fees
- Arizona Revised Statutes 28-2162: late registration penalty
- Arizona Revised Statutes 28-5801: vehicle license tax rate
- Arizona Revised Statutes 28-2091: salvage and nonrepairable titles
- Arizona Revised Statutes 28-2095: restored salvage titles and inspections
- Arizona Revised Statutes 28-2354: license plate display
- Arizona Revised Statutes 49-542: emissions inspection areas and exemptions
- Arizona Revised Statutes 49-551: air quality fee
- ADOT MVD: vehicle permits
- ADOT MVD: salvage vehicles
- ADOT: front license plates
- Arizona Department of Revenue: understanding use tax
Look up a plate from another state
The reports
Works for Arizona plates and every other state. You see the car before you pay.
Basic history report
By VIN or license plate · official NMVTIS record · shows right away
- Salvage, junk, flood and rebuilt title brands
- Title history by state, with dates
- Odometer readings and rollback flags
- Total-loss records from insurers
- Theft check
- Market value for the car
Full vehicle history report
By VIN or license plate · Not instant: emailed or texted to you within two hours
- Every owner, how they used it (personal, lease, rental or fleet) and where
- Accidents and damage reports
- Title brands: salvage, junk, rebuilt, flood, fire, hail, lemon
- Odometer readings over time, checked for rollbacks
- Service and maintenance history
- Open recalls and common owner complaints for the model
Arizona license plate lookup questions
How do I look up an Arizona license plate?
Type the plate above with Arizona selected. We turn it into the car's VIN and show the year, make and model at no charge, then the $5 report shows its title brands, odometer readings, total-loss records and theft check from the NMVTIS record.
How much does it cost to transfer a car title in Arizona?
The title fee is $4 and registration is $8, plus a $1.50 air quality fee. The real cost is the vehicle license tax, figured from 60 percent of the car's original base retail price, reduced 16.25 percent for every year of age, at $2.89 per $100 for a used car. There is no sales or use tax on a car bought from an individual.
Do I pay sales tax on a car I buy from an individual in Arizona?
No. The Arizona Department of Revenue says casual sales between individuals are not subject to use tax. You still pay the vehicle license tax every year with registration. Keep the bill of sale as your proof that you bought from a person and not a dealer.
Does Arizona require a vehicle inspection?
Only an emissions test, and only for cars registered in metro Phoenix (Area A) or metro Tucson (Area B), or that commute there. Model year 1966 and older, cars in their first five registration years, electric vehicles and motorcycles are exempt. There is no safety inspection.
Can a salvage car be driven in Arizona?
Not on its salvage title, except on a 3-day permit. It needs a Level III inspection by ADOT, which costs $50 and is by appointment, plus an emissions certificate if your area requires one. It is then retitled as Restored Salvage, and the seller of a restored salvage car must disclose that in writing before any later sale.
Why do Arizona cars have no front plate?
Arizona law only requires a rear plate, and ADOT counts it among about 20 states that do not require a front one. If two plates were issued, the owner can still mount both.
Can I find the owner of an Arizona plate?
No. The federal Driver's Privacy Protection Act keeps owners' names and addresses in ADOT MVD records private, and no legitimate plate lookup shows them. You see the car, not the person.
Who runs vehicle titles in Arizona?
The Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division (ADOT MVD) issues titles, plates and registration, through its own offices and authorized third-party offices. The Arizona Department of Revenue sets the use tax rules, and the vehicle license tax is set in state law.
More ways to check a car
Find the deal, then check it.
Wheel Scout alerts you the moment an underpriced car posts on Marketplace, OfferUp or Craigslist near you, and runs the history right in the app.
The basic history report uses NMVTIS data from an approved NMVTIS data provider. NMVTIS records come from states, insurers and salvage yards; not every event is reported to it. Vehicle specs and recalls come from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Wheel Scout is not affiliated with any marketplace or government agency. Wheel Scout is not affiliated with the Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division (ADOT MVD).