Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I am having a car shipped from overseas to the US. It will end up in California, but I will be living somewhere else (long story why the car goes one place and I go another, but the summary is it is free if I do it this way). I won't have plates on the car because I need to turn them in before leaving.
What do I do about registering the car before moving it? Do I register in CA so that I have plates and registration before moving it? Are there temporary plates you can use for transiting a car? It was last US registered in VA and I have a CA drivers license.
Start with the CA DMV website and see what they have to say about trip permits. I believe they are usually for a very short period of time, just a couple of days I think. Then check with the state where the car will actually be permanently registered and see what they have to offer. If you were to register in CA then it's got to pass CA emissions test, which is probably tougher than VA and if the car is coming in to the LA area it may have to pass an even more stringent test. No sure on that though.
I worked to Sea-Land Svc and the Maersk and saw lots of cars coming in to Oakland and they can't all have been staying in CA so there must be a way, probably just a bit of a headache.
Don't forget about insurance.
I hope it winds up being easier then you expected.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
