Registering a used car in France: change of keeper
The mini calculator prices the registration of a used car from three inputs: your region, the fiscal horsepower and the year of first registration.
Registration of a used car
Change of keeper · Grand Est
€193.76
| Y1, half rate (over 10 years) | €180.00 |
| Y4 + Y5 | €13.76 |
| Fine if the one-month deadline is missed | €135.00 |
Age counted from 1 January of the year entered: the full calculation is precise to the month.
When you buy a second-hand car that already has French plates, you must get a new registration certificate, the “carte grise”, in your own name; French officials call this a change of keeper. The price has three parts: the regional tax (line Y1), which is your region’s rate per fiscal horsepower times the figure in box P.6, a fixed tax of €11 (Y4) and a delivery fee of €2.76 (Y5). The regional tax is halved once the first registration shown in box B, even one made abroad, is 10 years old or more. No CO₂ malus or weight malus is charged, because those were paid when the car was first registered in France. On 20 October 2026 in Grand Est, a 6 CV car costs €373.76 if first registered in 2020 and €193.76 if first registered in 2012. The buyer has one month from the sale to apply; after that, a fixed fine of €135 can be issued.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and sources
How the price is built
A change of keeper shows three amounts on the certificate. Line Y1 is the regional tax: the rate per fiscal horsepower (“cheval fiscal”) of the region you live in, times the CV figure in box P.6, times an age coefficient. Line Y4 is the fixed tax of €11 and line Y5 the delivery fee of €2.76. Lines Y2 and Y3 stay at zero for a used passenger car: Y2 only concerns goods vehicles and Y3 holds the malus taxes of a first registration. Y1 plus Y4 is rounded to the nearest euro and the fee is then added, the same rule the State’s own simulator uses.
Take a 6 CV car in Grand Est, where one CV costs €60 on 20 October 2026: the regional tax is €360 and the full certificate €373.76. Once the car is past 10 years, that line drops to €180.
Four regions side by side
| Region | 5 CV, 2021 | 5 CV, 2014 | 8 CV, 2021 | 8 CV, 2014 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Est | €313.76 | €163.76 | €493.76 | €253.76 |
| Île-de-France | €358.76 | €185.76 | €565.76 | €289.76 |
| Pays de la Loire | €268.76 | €141.76 | €421.76 | €217.76 |
| Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes | €228.76 | €121.76 | €357.76 | €185.76 |
The gap between columns comes only from the regional tax; the fixed part never moves. In Île-de-France the surcharge for Île-de-France Mobilités is halved in the same way. To see every region at once, open the region comparison.
Box B decides the age
Age runs from the date of first registration printed in box B to the day you file the application. Box I, the date of the current certificate, plays no part: a car sold three times keeps the date it first took to the road. For a car that came from abroad and was later registered in France, box B carries the foreign date, and that is the one that counts.
Example: a 6 CV car first registered on 15 November 2016 costs €373.76 in Grand Est on 20 October 2026. Filed on 15 November 2026, the same application costs €193.76. The ten-year rule page walks through this timing in detail.
What each side has to do
- The seller fills in the transfer form (“certificat de cession”) with the buyer, declares the sale online and receives a transfer code to give the buyer.
- The seller hands over the old certificate crossed out, marked “vendu le” with the date and signature, along with the latest roadworthiness test report (“contrôle technique”) when the car is old enough to need one.
- The buyer applies on the ANTS website, the State agency for registrations, within the one month set by article R322-5 of the Highway Code. Applying is free: you only pay the taxes. A licensed garage or agent can also file for you and add a service fee.
- A temporary certificate lets you drive until the final one arrives by post.
The €135 fine is the fixed amount for fourth-class offences under article R49 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
When other rules apply
Adding or removing a spouse, inheriting or receiving a car as a gift, and importing a car each follow their own rules: see inherited or gifted car and car imported from the EU. Motorbikes have their own coefficient, covered on the motorbike and scooter page.