What is required to register and obtain a Georgia license plate and certificate of title for a leased vehicle?

To apply for a Georgia certificate of title and license plate for a leased vehicle, submit the following to the Tag Office in the county in Georgia where the lessee resides. If you are the leasing company and are applying for a title only, you may apply for the title at the lessee's county tag office:

• A completed MVD Title/Tag Application, Form MV-1. This form must be typed, completed electronically and printed or printed legibly by-hand in blue or black ink showing the leasing company as the vehicle's legal owner, and signed by the leasing company's authorized agent or the leasing company's attorney-in-fact.

  • Submit a power of attorney from the leasing company when the leasing company is appointing someone, i.e. lessee, to sign on their behalf. If this authorization is included in the lease agreement, then a copy of the lease agreement is required.
  • When applying for a title and tag at the same time, you should enter the lessee's full legal name and address and valid driver's license or Georgia identification card number. If jointly leased, each lessee's full legal name, valid driver's license or Georgia identification card number and signature is required. An individual's full legal name is their complete name as it appears on their valid Georgia driver's license or Georgia identification card. For individuals, enter each lessee's valid Georgia driver's license or Georgia identification card number in the spaces provided.
  • If a title only is being applied for, then the name and address of the lessee is not captured. This information will be captured at the time of registration.
  • MVD Title/Tag Application, Form MV-1, can be used to apply for both a title and a tag at the tag office in the lessee's county of residence.
  • Click on any form name and/or form number on this page to complete it on-line for printing, signing and submission.
• Original valid title or manufacturer's certificate of origin issued in the leasing company's name or properly assigned to the leasing company.

  • If a lien or security interest holder or a leasing company is holding the vehicle's title, the vehicle's original valid registration certificate and a completed T-17 (Affidavit of Title being Held by Lien or Security Interest Holder or Leasing Company) should be submitted in lieu of the vehicle's title. The processing office will then contact the titleholder requesting the submission of the vehicle's out-of-state title for the issuance of a Georgia title. The Georgia title, when issued, will be mailed to the first lien or security interest holder recorded on the MVD Tag and/or Title Application (Form MV-1). If no lien or security interest holder is recorded, the title will be mailed to the vehicle's legal owner, the leasing company.
• All satisfied liens and security interests should be released in the spaces provided on the title. The name and address of any unsatisfied lien or security interest should be recorded on the MVD Tag and/or Title Application (Form MV-1), in the order their interest in the vehicle was perfected.
• Acceptable proof that your vehicle is insured with Georgia mandatory liability insurance. You must have continuous liability insurance coverage on your vehicle to be able to legally drive your vehicle and to be able to register it in Georgia. Trailers, non-motorized vehicles and vehicles not requiring registration in Georgia do not require insurance. Click here to read important information regarding insurance requirements, i.e. Acceptable proof of insurance coverage, etc.
• You must submit proof that your vehicle has passed an emission's inspection, if an emission's inspection is required for your vehicle in your county of residence. For a list of requiring counties, exempt vehicles, cost, inspection station locations, directions, etc. Call the Georgia Clean Air Force at:1-800-449-2471 or click here to connect to their web site.
• Proof of residency in Georgia, i.e. Lease agreement, deed or closing statement for new residence, final utility bill from previous residence, moving bill, shipper's bill or truck rental agreement, or, final paycheck stub or a signed letterhead statement from your former employer.
• $20.00 annual license plate registration fee for regular passenger vehicles and light weight pick-up trucks. Click here to determine the annual registration for your vehicle.
• $18.00 title fee, if the vehicle requires a Georgia title and a Georgia title is being applied for at the time of registration. Click here to determine if the vehicle requires a Georgia title.
• $10.00 title penalty, if the leasing company has failed to apply for a Georgia title in their name within ninety (90) days of the vehicle's purchase date. This title penalty is not due if the vehicle's current title is issued in the leasing company's name.
• A manufacturing fee is due if you are requesting a special tag that requires this fee. Click here to view a list of available special tags and the requirements and fees for obtaining. Secondly, click on the applicable type of special tag. Some special tags require an additional annual special tag fee in addition to the manufacturing fee, $20.00 annual registration fee and vehicle ad valorem tax.
• $1.00 mailing fee, if the tag/renewal decal is to be mailed to you. Some counties require first time registrants to apply in-person at their office.
• Vehicle ad valorem tax may be due. Contact the tag office in the county in Georgia where the lessee resides to see if this tax is due and if due, the amount.
• Pay all applicable registration fees and vehicle ad valorem taxes due with cash, check or money order made payable to the Office of the Tax Commissioner. Please do not remit cash through the mail! Most counties require checks to be imprinted with a local bank's address. Out-of-state checks are usually not accepted. Check with your County Tag Office for other acceptable methods of payment.

The lessee will be unable to register and obtain a Georgia license plate if a Georgia title has not already been issued in the leasing company's name, when a Georgia title is required, or a Georgia title is not applied for at the time of registration. Click here to view a list of vehicles that do and do not require a title in this state.

Most title applications processed at any of the county tag offices in this state result in the printing and mailing of the titles within three (3) business days of the county's entry and approval by this department's Motor Vehicle Division at no additional charge.