Newfoundland and Labrador Bill of Sale for MRD Transfers

Newfoundland and Labrador Bill of Sale Requirements

Additional Forms Required

• Bill of Sale or Statement of Gift — printed on the back of the Vehicle Registration Document
• I No Longer Own This Vehicle – Notification of Ownership Change (form 170357) — the seller's Notice of Sale, due within 10 days
• Affidavit – Sale/Acquisition of a Motor Vehicle (form 0202_750-100b/07.2021) — only if the price is below the Red Book wholesale value
• RST declaration — for a gift to immediate family or a trade-in
• Safety inspection certificate from an Official Inspection Station — cars, light trucks and vans; valid 30 days

In Newfoundland and Labrador, vehicle transfers go through the Motor Registration Division (MRD), part of the Department of Government Services. Older forms still say Service NL, which is an old name. You can transfer online at MyGovNL, or in person, by phone, or by mail or fax to one of 11 MRD offices. The St. John's area office is at 149 Smallwood Drive in Mount Pearl.

When people search for a bill of sale in NL, they usually want the official form. It is called the Bill of Sale or Statement of Gift, and it is printed on the back of the Vehicle Registration Document, together with the seller's notice. So you do not need a separate government form. MRD asks for the date, the buyer's name and driver's licence number, the year, make and model, the plate and serial numbers, the price, and the seller's name and signature. Every registered owner must sign.

Our generator gives both sides a clean written record. It covers names and addresses, the year, make, model and VIN, the odometer, the price and how it was paid, the date, and signature lines. It is not an official MRD form, so fill in the form on the registration document too.

The steps are short. The seller fills in the bill of sale and collects the buyer's full legal name, daytime phone, postal code, and licence number or date of birth. The buyer gets a safety inspection if one is needed. Within 10 days, the buyer submits the transfer and pays the tax, the $50 fee ($16 for seniors 65 and older) and any fines on their own record. Within the same 10 days, the seller files a Notice of Sale.

The tax is 15% Retail Sales Tax (RST), not HST. MRD collects it on the greater of the price paid or the Canadian Red Book average wholesale value. MRD can look up that value from the plate number or the first 10 digits of the VIN. HST applies only when the seller is an HST registrant, such as a dealer.

The NL quirk is the sworn affidavit. If you paid less than the Red Book value, you and the seller both swear the Affidavit – Sale/Acquisition of a Motor Vehicle before a Justice of the Peace, Notary Public or Commissioner of Oaths. Tax is then charged on the real price. No affidavit is needed when the wholesale value is about $1,200 or less. A written appraisal from an approved appraiser, within 15 days, is the other option.

Cars, light trucks and vans up to 4,500 kg need a safety inspection certificate before the transfer. It comes from an Official Inspection Station and is valid for 30 days. Motorcycles are exempt. MRD's rules list no emissions test.

Gifts to immediate family are tax-free and need no inspection, unless the vehicle is imported. NL's list is wide: it covers any in-law relationship, as well as spouses, parents, children, siblings, grandparents and grandchildren. Bring proof the vehicle was registered to the giver and an RST declaration. The official pages do not say whether the plates stay with the vehicle, so ask MRD at 1-877-636-6867. Before paying, run a Lien Check on the Personal Property Registry by VIN.