Buy a car out of state and register it at home without a tax surprise

This step produces a one-page note with three facts from your state's DMV or revenue department: the sales tax rate on a private-party vehicle purchase, whether the state credits tax you already paid to the seller's state, and where and when the tax is paid — almost always at registration, not at the point of sale. The trap is assuming the seller's state collects the tax and you are done; the bill that decides your delivered price is your home state's.

1. Open your state DMV or revenue department website and search for “out-of-state vehicle purchase” or “vehicle use tax”.
2. Record the tax rate on a private-party purchase, and whether county or city taxes add to it.
3. Find the credit rule: whether tax paid to the seller's state is offset, and what proof it takes — a tax receipt, or a line on the title.
4. Write down where and when the tax is paid: at the DMV during registration, or on a revenue form such as Illinois's Vehicle Use Tax Transaction Return (Form RUT-25).