DMVCosts

Gifting a Car: Taxes & Fees by state

Every state has a cheap path for keeping a car in the family - and a expensive trap for doing it wrong. Do it right (the state's gift affidavit, the qualifying-relative list) and the tax is $0 to $25. Do it wrong ('I'll just sell it to my son for $1') and several states tax the transfer on book value as if it were a market sale.

The qualifying-family list differs by state, and so does whether non-family gifts count: California exempts any genuine gift; Texas restricts the $10 rate to immediate family. State pages below give the exact rules, forms, and a calculator for both scenarios.

Family gift cost
$0–$25 + title fee
The $1-sale myth
Backfires in most states
Key paperwork
Gift affidavit + title
Federal gift tax
Rarely applies (<$19k excl.)

01 - Choose your state

Live, verified calculators

Every figure is checked against official DMV, tax-office, or comptroller sources - with the sources linked on the page.

02 - The basics

Gift a Car basics

Is gifting better than selling for $1?

Almost always. States with book-value floors (Texas taxes 80% of SPV on non-gift transfers) treat the $1 sale as a taxable sale at the floor value. The official gift route with the affidavit is the cheap, audit-proof path.

Who counts as 'family' for a tax-free gift?

The common core: spouse, parents, children, grandparents, grandchildren, siblings. States diverge on step-relations, domestic partners, and in-laws - and gifts to friends are fully exempt in some states (California) and fully taxable in others (Texas).

Does the recipient owe income tax on a gifted car?

No - gifts aren't income. The giver could theoretically owe federal gift tax, but the annual exclusion ($19,000 per recipient, 2026) covers almost every car; above that it's just an IRS Form 709 filing against the lifetime exemption.

03 - Keep going

Every vehicle cost, covered