How To Register A Rv In Montana

California Law

You indicated that you are currently a resident of California .

California Registration

California requires that vehicles be registered before being used in the state. The general registration requirement is found in the California Vehicle Code at Section 4000. The section provides, as relevant:

(a)(1) No person shall drive, move, or leave standing upon a highway, or in an offstreet public parking facility, any motor vehicle, trailer, semitrailer, pole or pipe dolly, or logging dolly, unless it is registered and the appropriate fees have been paid under this code or registered under the permanent trailer identification program, except that an off-highway motor vehicle which displays an identification plate or device issued by the department pursuant to Section 38010 may be driven, moved, or left standing in an offstreet public parking facility without being registered or paying registration fees.

Furthermore, a Montana LLC-owned motor home could not operate in California with its Montana plates indefinitely. Section 6700 of the Vehicle Code provides, as relevant:

( A nonresident owner of a vehicle, otherwise exempt from registration pursuant to this section or Section 6700.2, may operate or permit operation of the vehicle in this state without registering the vehicle in this state if the vehicle is registered in the place of residence of the owner and displays upon it valid license plates issued by that place. This exemption does not apply if the nonresident owner rents, leases, lends, or otherwise furnishes the vehicle to a California resident for regular use on the highways of this state, as defined in subdivision ( of Section 4000.4.

© Any resident who operates upon a highway of this state a vehicle owned by a nonresident who furnished the vehicle to the resident operator for his or her regular use within this state, as defined in subdivision ( of Section 400.4, shall cause the vehicle to be registered in California within 20 days of after its first operation within this state by the resident.

Section 4000.4, referenced above, provides:

(a) Except as provided in Sections 6700. 6702, and 6703, any vehicle which is registered to a nonresident owner, and which is based in California or primarily used on California highways, shall be registered in California .

( For purposes of this section, a vehicle is deemed to be primarily or regularly used on the highways of this state if the vehicle is located or operated in this state for a greater amount of time than it is located or operated in any other individual state during the registration period in question.

Therefore, in order to avoid triggering the registration requirement, the motor home must be used in any other single state for longer than it is used in California in a given year. The motor home can be used in multiple states as long as it is used in one of them for longer than it is used in California, for example by spending three months in California, six months in Nevada, two months in Arizona, and one month in Texas. Please also keep in mind that you must comply with the registration requirements of whatever other states you use the vehicle in. If the vehicle is going to spend a substantial length of time in a state other than Montana , check that stateâ€™s registration requirements to ensure that you can comply.

California Sales and Use Tax

California imposes a sales tax upon transactions occurring within the state. The tax is levied by the California Revenue and Taxation Code, Section 6051. The section provides:

For the privilege of selling tangible personal property at retail a tax is hereby imposed upon all retailers at the rate of 2 Â½ percent of the gross receipts of any retailer from the sale of all tangible personal property sold at retail in this state on or after August 1, 1933, and to and including June 30, 1935, and at the rate of 3 percent thereafter, and at the rate of 2 Â½ percent on and after July 1, 1943, and to and including June 30, 1949, and at the rate of 3 percent on and after July 1, 1949, and to and including July 31, 1967, and at the rate of 4 percent on and after August 1, 1967, and to and including June 30, 1972, and at the rate of 3 Â¾ percent on and after July 1, 1972, and to and including June 30, 1973, and at the rate of 4 Â¾ percent on and after July 1, 1973, and to and including September 30, 1973, and at the rate of 3 Â¾ percent on and after October 1, 1973, and to and including March 31, 1974, and at the rate of 4 Â¾ percent thereafter.

California â€™s corresponding use tax is imposed by Section 6201. The section provides:

An excise tax is hereby imposed on the storage, use, or other consumption in this state of tangible personal property purchased from any retailer on or after July 1, 1935, for storage, use, or other consumption in this state at the rate of 3 percent of the sales price of the property, and at the rate of 2 Â½ percent on and after July 1, 1943, and to and including June 30, 1949, and at the rate of 3 percent on and after July 1, 1949, and to and including July 31, 1967, and at the rate of 4 percent on and after August 1, 1967, and to and including June 30, 1972, and at the rate of 3 Â¾ percent on and after July 1, 1972, and to and including June 30, 1973, and at the rate of 4 Â¾ percent on and after July 1, 1973, and to and including September 30, 1973, and at the rate of 3 Â¾ percent on and after October 1, 1973, and to and including March 31, 1974, and at the rate of 4 Â¾ percent thereafter.

If you purchase your vehicle outside of California , the sales tax will not apply. However, if you purchase from a California dealer, sales tax can be avoided by having the vehicle delivered to you outside the state. Section 6396 provides:

There are exempted from the computation of the amount of the sales tax the gross receipts from the sale of tangible personal property which, pursuant to the contract of sale, is required to be shipped and is shipped to a point outside this state by the retailer by means of: (a) facilities operated by the retailer, or ( delivery by the retailer to a carrier, customs broker or forwarding agent, whether hired by the purchaser or not, for shipment to such out-of-state point.

For purposes of this section, the term â€œcarrierâ€ shall mean a person or firm engaged in the business of transporting for compensation tangible personal property owned by other persons, and includes both common and contract carriers. The term â€œforwarding agentâ€ shall mean a person or firm engaged in the business of preparing property for shipment or arranging for its shipment.

California has previously used a 90-day exemption for the use tax. However, as part of the state budget passed by the California legislature in September 2008, that exemption was removed and the law was changed back to the one-year exemption used by the state from 2004 to 2007. Section 1620 of Title 18 of the California Code of Regulations provides, as relevant:

( Use tax.

(5) Purchase for Use in this State â€" Vehicles, Vessels, and Aircraft â€" 12-month test (From October 2, 2004, through June 30, 2007).

(A) Purchased for Use in California . Except as provided in subdivision ( (5)(D) below, the provisions of subdivision ( (5) apply from October 2, 2004, through June 30, 2007. A vehicle, vessel, or aircraft purchased outside of California which is brought into California is regarded as having been purchased for use in this state if the first functional use of the vehicle, vessel, or aircraft is in California . When a vehicle, vessel, or aircraft is purchased outside of California, is first functionally used outside of California, and is brought into California within 12 months from the date of its purchase, it is rebuttably presumed that the vehicle, vessel, or aircraft was acquired for storage, use, or other consumption in this state and is subject to use tax if any of the following occur:

1. The vehicle, vessel, or aircraft was purchased by a California resident as defined in section 516 of the Vehicle Code, as that section now reads or is hereinafter amended.

2. In the case of a vehicle, the vehicle was subject to registration under Chapter 1 (commencing with section 4000) of Division 3 of the Vehicle Code during the first 12 months of ownership.

3. In the case of a vessel or aircraft, that vessel or aircraft was subject to property tax in this state during the first 12 months of ownership.

4. The vehicle, vessel, or aircraft is used or stored in this state more than one-half of the time during the first 12 months of ownership.

( Evidence Rebutting Presumption. This presumption may be controverted by documentary evidence that the vehicle, vessel, or aircraft was purchased for use outside of this state during the first 12 months of ownership. This evidence may include, but is not limited to, evidence of registration of that vehicle, vessel, or aircraft, with the proper authority, outside of this state.

Operative September 20, 2006, in the case of a vehicle, this presumption also may be controverted by documentary evidence that the vehicle was brought into this state for the exclusive purpose of warranty or repair service and was used or stored in this state for that purpose for 30 days or less. The 30-day period begins when the vehicle enters this state, includes any time of travel to and from the warranty or repair facility, and ends when the vehicle is returned to a point outside the state. The documentary evidence shall include a work order stating the dates that the vehicle is in the possession of the warranty or repair facility and a statement by the owner of the vehicle specifying dates of travel to and from the warranty or repair facility.

To avoid being assessed a use tax on the vehicle, therefore, the motor home must have its first functional use outside the state of California . It must then spend more than half of the first year outside of California . After that time, it can be brought to California without being assessed a use tax. Additionally, during that first year, the vehicle must not be required to register in California , as outlined above.

Summary

Your motor home must be either purchased from a dealer outside of California or must be delivered to you outside of California by a California dealer. After it is purchased, the motor home can be exempted from tax if the first functional use of the motor home is outside of California . It must then be used or stored in California for less than half of the first year that you own it, and must not be required to register in California during that time. Once you have complied with this use tax exemption, the motor home may be registered in California if you wish. However, if you are able to comply with the California registration exemption, it is advantageous for you to continue to register the vehicle in Montana , which enables you to take advantage of Montana â€™s lower registration fees.