Minnesota Form PS2000 — Application to Title and Register a Vehicle

About PS2000

Official name: Minnesota Form PS2000 — Application to Title and Register a Vehicle

Issued by: Minnesota Driver and Vehicle Services

Purpose: The buyer's application for a new Minnesota title and registration. Used at the deputy registrar to transfer title and pay Minnesota's 6.875% Motor Vehicle Sales Tax.

When required: Buyers must apply for the new title at a deputy registrar within 20 calendar days after the title is assigned. A bill of sale is not required for a titled vehicle — the transfer must take place on the title.

When you use PS2000

PS2000 (version PS2000A-50, 01/2024) is the Application to Title/Register a Vehicle from the Minnesota Department of Public Safety, Driver and Vehicle Services (DVS). You file it at any of the nearly 200 deputy registrar offices.

Minnesota titles cars, trucks, motorcycles, buses, vans and large trailers. For those, the transfer happens on the title itself. Minnesota does not title trailers of 4,000 pounds or less unless there is a lien or a title was issued before; for those, the seller can assign ownership on the back of the registration card, on a PS2000 or on a bill of sale, and every buyer completes a PS2000. The form also warns that without proper ownership papers, such as an out-of-state title, no Minnesota title is issued.

The form, section by section

• A, vehicle and insurance: year, make, model, body style, color, VIN, vehicle type and use, fuel type, new or used, and your auto insurance company, policy number and expiration date.
• B, disclosures and the seller's assignment: the odometer reading with no tenths (actual, over the mechanical limits, or not actual), and whether the vehicle has had damage over 80% of its actual cash value. The seller certifies the vehicle is free of all liens and assigns it to the buyer; all sellers sign.
• C, loans: the first secured party if the vehicle is financed. More lenders go on Form PS2017.
• D, buyers: full names, driver license numbers, dates of birth, and the residence and mailing address. You can ask for renewal notices by email instead of paper.
• F, buyers under 18: one of three statements, such as being 17 and having finished an approved driver training course.
• H, the registration period and the Purchaser's Motor Vehicle Sales Tax Declaration (see below).

The sales tax declaration

The form notes that a vehicle bought by a Minnesota resident is taxable as soon as it is driven on a Minnesota road. A non-resident who moves in must register within 60 days, or right away if the other state's registration has lapsed.

1. Line 1: the full purchase price.
2. Line 2: minus any trade-in allowance (describe the trade-in on line 6).
3. Line 3: the net purchase price.
4. Line 4: 6.875% of line 3.
5. Line 5: minus any tax paid to another state. The result is the net sales tax due, paid when the vehicle is registered.

Signing

• All buyers and owners must sign. The form says not to sign until it is completed in its entirety.
• By signing, you confirm you are of legal age, bought the vehicle subject only to the liens shown, will keep it insured on public roads, and that your statements are true.

Fees, deadline and plates

• Typical transfer fees for a titled vehicle (DVS, March 2025): title $8.25, $2 for each lien, transfer tax $10, public safety vehicle fee $3.50, tech surcharge $2.25, filing fee $12, and 6.875% sales tax.
• Deadline: the law gives 20 calendar days after the title is assigned. DVS papers still say ten days, so finish within ten to be safe.
• In Minnesota the license plate and the registration taxes pass to the new owner with the vehicle (Minn. Stat. §168.15), with some exceptions.

What to Include in a Minnesota Bill of Sale

A complete bill of sale usually includes:

• Seller name, address
• Buyer name, address
• Year, make, model
• VIN
• Odometer
• Sale price
• Date of sale
• Seller signature