It is a small procedure that hardly anyone does and that saves a lot of trouble. It consists of telling the DGT (Spain's traffic authority) that you have sold the vehicle, to whom and on what date. From that moment there is a record that you no longer have it.
What it is for
While the car is still in your name, everything that happens with it lands in your letterbox: speed camera fines, road tax, notices about the roadworthiness test (ITV) or compulsory insurance. Once the notice of sale is filed, the DGT knows that from that date someone else has the vehicle, and later penalties are addressed to them.
It has one more effect. Road tax is paid by whoever is the registered keeper on 1 January. If you sell in November and the buyer does not transfer, without a notice of sale next year's bill can reach you.
Deadline
The seller has ten days from the sale to report it. The buyer, for their part, has thirty days to apply for the transfer into their name. They are two separate obligations, and yours does not depend on them meeting theirs.
What you need
- Your valid DNI or NIE.
- The sale contract signed by both parties, with the date and time of handover.
- A copy of the buyer's DNI or NIE.
- DGT fee 4.1, which in 2026 is €8.67.
Always put the time in the contract. If the buyer goes past a speed camera that same afternoon, the time is what proves you were no longer driving.
How to file it
There are three routes:
- Online, at the DGT's electronic office, with Cl@ve, a digital certificate or an electronic DNI. You attach the documents and pay the fee in the same form.
- In person, at the Provincial Traffic Office, by appointment.
- Through a gestoría, which files it for you the same day.
"The notice of sale does not change the registered keeper. What changes is who answers from that day on."
What the notice does not do
It does not replace the transfer. The car stays in your name on the register until the buyer processes it, with a note that it has been sold. If weeks go by and they do not, there are further steps you can take, covered in I sold my car and the buyer never transferred it.
Nor does it cancel the insurance. You have to tell your insurer yourself, with the sale contract.
Best of all: transfer the same day
The way not to need the notice is for the transfer to be filed on the day of the sale. If seller and buyer sign and a gestoría processes it there and then, the car changes name that same day and there is no gap. How it is done and who pays what is in transferring a car between private parties and in who pays for the transfer.
Frequently asked questions
How much does the notice of sale cost?
DGT fee 4.1, which in 2026 is €8.67.
How long do I have to file it?
Ten days from the sale. The sooner the better: it protects you from the date on record.
Does the notice take the car out of my name?
No. It stays in your name until the buyer transfers it, but it is recorded as sold and from what date.
Can it be done online?
Yes, at the DGT's electronic office with Cl@ve, a digital certificate or an electronic DNI.
Does it free me from road tax?
Road tax is paid by whoever is the registered keeper on 1 January. The notice records that you sold before then, and it is what lets you challenge the bill if it reaches you.