AUTO TITLE MANUAL - Franklin County, Ohio

FRANKLIN COUNTY CLERK OF COURTS
AUTO TITLE MANUAL
Dealer Reassignment Used as Evidence for an Original Title
Many states do not require a dealer to obtain a title in the dealer’s name before
assigning ownership. In fact, many vehicles are assigned multiple times before a new
certificate of title is issued.
Certificate of Title
Reassignment(s) showing complete chain of ownership
Ohio Title Application
Out-of-State inspection
Other applicable supporting evidence
Note: The preceding should be used as a guide when filling out paperwork. As is noted
by the last bullet point under each heading, other supporting evidence may be required
depending on the titling circumstances. When in doubt, call our Customer Service Line.
Motor Vehicle Tax
The following terms and their definitions are provided to clarify the text below:
Gross tax = purchase price multiplied by county tax rate.
Vendor discount = gross tax multiplied by .0075
Net tax = gross tax minus vendor discount
Casual Transactions
A casual transaction is a transaction between two parties, neither of which is a licensed
motor vehicle dealer. On a casual transaction, the gross tax amount is remitted to the
Clerk of Courts. The current tax rate for Franklin County is 6.75%. Therefore, on a $100
sale, the tax would be figured as $100 x .0675 = $6.75.
Dealer Transactions
On a dealer sale, tax is figured on the full purchase price on a used vehicle and on the
purchase price minus any trade-in on a new vehicle purchase. The net tax is remitted to
the Clerk’s office. For example, on a $15,000 purchase price with no trade-in, the tax
would be figured as $15,000 x .0675 = $1012.50, $1012.50 x .0075 = $7.59, $1012.50 -
$7.59 = $1004.91. $1004.91 is the amount that would be remitted to the Clerks’ office.
Lease Dealer Transactions
At the end of a lease when the leasing dealer sells a vehicle, the leasing dealer is entitled
to the vendor discount. The end of the lease buyout would be used for the purchase price.
Net tax would be figured the same as in the formula above.
The lease dealer is required to process the paperwork, collect the tax and remit the net tax
to the Clerk’s office, and provide their customer with an Ohio title. When a vehicle has
been titled as a lease or rental, the title cannot be transferred for ninety days (except to an
insurance company in conjunction with an insurance claim).
18 FRANKLIN COUNTY TITLE DIVISION CUSTOMER - CUSTOMER SERVICE LINE (614) 525-3090
462-3090