Rego is vehicle registration, and each state runs its own. When you buy a used vehicle you have 14 days to put it in your name in New South Wales (NSW), Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia (WA), South Australia (SA) and Tasmania. What changes is the inspection: NSW does not ask for one to transfer a current registration, while Victoria and Queensland ask for a certificate.
In WA, rego is called vehicle licence. All amounts are in Australian dollars.
Transfer: deadlines, inspection and costs
| State | Deadline | Inspection to transfer a current registration | Fee | Duty |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NSW | 14 days | Not needed | $42, or $193 if late | $3 per $100; more on cars over $45,000 |
| Victoria | 14 days | Certificate of Roadworthiness less than 30 days old | Not confirmed | $8.40 per $200; more on cars over $80,809 |
| Queensland | 14 days | Safety certificate, and a gas certificate if there is a gas installation | Not confirmed | $3 to $4 per $100, depending on cylinders; $2 on hybrids and electric vehicles, up to $100,000 |
| WA | 14 days | Not shown on the page | $20.50 | RevenueWA calculator |
| SA | 14 days | Shown for heavy vehicles and trailers aged 3 years or more | $33, or $108 if late | Official calculator |
| Tasmania | 14 days | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Official calculator |
We could not read the rules for the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory.
What are the pink slip, the blue slip and the other certificates?
Each state uses its own name:
- NSW, pink slip: an annual inspection to renew, on most light vehicles over 5 years old. It lasts 6 months and is done by an authorised station.
- NSW, blue slip or AUVIS: for a registration that expired more than 3 months ago, a vehicle from another state or country, or one without plates. It lasts 42 days.
- Victoria, Certificate of Roadworthiness: done by a licensed tester and valid for 30 days.
- Queensland, safety certificate: only issued by authorised stations. It lasts 2 months or 2,000 km between private parties, and is good for one transfer only. It costs $102.70 up to 4,500 kg, at July 2026 prices.
- WA, inspection: $225.40 in the Perth area, at 2026/27 prices; repeating it costs $153.85. The certificate lasts 3 months. Outside Perth it changes: in the Pilbara it is $254.80.
And if the vehicle is registered in another state?
| Destination state | What they ask for |
|---|---|
| NSW | Form 1009, original blue slip, CTP, old plates and a visit to a centre |
| Queensland | 14 days after you move, a safety certificate and handing in the plates. If you already paid duty in the other state, you do not pay it again |
| WA | Inspection and a transfer permit of $32.40 before registering it |
| SA | A $75 identity inspection, $35 plates and duty, in person. If you move, 3 months' notice period |
SA recognises a registration from another state for up to 3 months, but warns that the seller can cancel it at any time.
If the plates are from WA, note that this registration cannot be transferred to someone who does not live there.
Can it be done online without a local licence?
It depends on the state. What is published says this:
- NSW: online only if the seller has already lodged their notice and you have a MyServiceNSW account. Without a NSW licence you need a customer number.
- Queensland: online you need a Queensland licence or customer number, and an address there. If not, in person with form F3503.
- WA: without a WA licence, certified copies of identity and age together with form MR9.
- SA: online with mySAGOV, in a browser. Also on paper, at a Service SA centre.
Official websites by state
- NSW: Service NSW
- Victoria: VicRoads (we could not check this source)
- Queensland: Transport and Main Roads
- WA: Transport WA
- SA: Service SA
- Tasmania: transport website (we could not check this source)
- Northern Territory: NT.GOV.AU (we could not check this source)
- Australian Capital Territory: Access Canberra (we could not check this source)
For the buyer's and seller's steps, see what to check before buying and selling before you leave. If you are going to cross the country, there are the road routes.
What we could not confirm
- Tasmania, the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory: we have not read their transport websites. The Tasmanian figure comes from its revenue office.
- Victoria: the data comes from Consumer Affairs Victoria and the revenue office, not from VicRoads.
- Queensland: the duty table was last updated in March 2023.
- WA inspections: the buying page cites them for vehicles from another state. We have not seen others for a current WA registration, but we have not seen a sentence ruling them out either.
Sources
All official and viewed on 5 November 2026.
- Service NSW: transfer registration
- Service NSW: vehicle from another state
- Service NSW: duty
- NSW: fees
- NSW: inspections
- NSW: buying and registering
- Consumer Affairs Victoria: selling
- SRO Victoria: calculation
- SRO Victoria: rates
- Queensland: transfer
- Queensland: in person
- Queensland: online
- Queensland: another state
- Queensland: certificate
- Queensland: rates
- WA: buying, selling and transferring
- WA: buying
- WA: selling
- WA: inspection
- WA: duty and fee
- SA: registration
- SA: transfer
- SA: another state
- SA: duty
- SRO Tasmania: duty