Notary Notes Blog

The latest notary news for Pennsylvania notaries

Motor Vehicle

Where to Find Motor Vehicle, Driver Licensing Fee Information

by

As of July 1, motor vehicle and driver licensing fees have gone up.

Use these resources to keep yourself and your customers up to date on PennDOT’s fee structure:

Form MV-70S – Bureau of Motor Vehicles Schedule of Fees

This form is a comprehensive list of fees including registration fees for trucks and tractors, motor homes, trailers and semi-trailers, buses and limousines, dealer registration plates, specialty plates, and additional fee information.

Driver Licensing Payments and Fees Page

The fee categories on this page are: Driver’s Licenses; Commercial Driver’s Licenses; Motor Vehicles; Registration Plates/Placards; Miscellaneous; Title and Lien Fees; Driver Information (History) Requests; and Acceptable Forms of Payment

Remember: Submitting the wrong amount with your paperwork could cause a rejection due to insufficient fees. Not only will you inconvenience your customer by having to resubmit the paperwork, you may also be sanctioned by the Department for a violation of your agent service contract.

REAL ID Deadline Postponed to 2023

by

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced it was again postponing the enforcement date for REAL ID until May 3, 2023, citing ongoing pandemic restrictions that have impacted states’ ability to process and issue the enhanced driver licenses and identification cards.

REAL ID is optional in Pennsylvania.

There is no requirement that any resident obtain a REAL ID.

(A valid U.S. passport/passport card can be used to board a commercial flight.)

PennDOT will continue to offer standard-issue driver’s licenses and photo IDs.

Visit PennDOT’s REAL ID page: https://www.dmv.pa.gov/REALID/Pages/default.aspx

Renew CDL Products by March 31

by

Expiration dates for commercial driver licenses and commercial learner’s permits will end after the current extension expires for Pennsylvania residents in response to statewide COVID-19 mitigation efforts.

The final extension is currently in place for the following products’ expiration dates:

  • The expiration date for a commercial learner’s permit scheduled to expire from March 16, 2020, through March 31, 2021, is extended through March 31, 2021.
  • The expiration date for commercial driver licenses scheduled to expire from March 16, 2020, through March 31, 2021, is extended through March 31, 2021.

Customers with commercial products that are covered by the extension but have not yet been renewed are encouraged to renew their CDL products as soon as possible by March 31, 2021.

No further extensions will be given on these products.

Access PennDOT’s updates on their Driver and Vehicle Services Update page.

Acceptable Proof of Identity for Processing Motor Vehicle Applications

by

This Driver and Vehicle Services Update Bulletin No. 21-03 dated February 2021 is to inform you of a change in the acceptable forms of identification for titling and registering vehicles in Pennsylvania.

Effective immediately, authorized agents may accept a valid camera card along with an expired Pennsylvania identification credential, or 15 day temporary internet driver license or identification card renewal credential with an applicant’s expired Pennsylvania identification credential for the purposes of titling and registering a vehicle.

With this change, agents may now accept one of the following credentials for identification purposes to issue title and registration documents:

  1. A valid Pennsylvania Photo Driver’s License;
  2. A valid Pennsylvania Photo Identification Card;
  3. A valid Pennsylvania Photo Exempt Driver’s License;
  4. A valid Pennsylvania Photo Exempt Identification Card;
  5. A valid Pennsylvania 15-day temporary internet driver license or identification card renewal credential and expired DL/ID
  6. A valid Pennsylvania Camera Card and Pennsylvania expired identification credential (as listed above); or
  7. A valid U.S. Armed Forces Common Access Card

Dependents of Armed Forces personnel must provide a valid United States Uniformed Services Identification and Privilege Card (DD Form 1173).

Each of the identification documents listed above must be in the same name as the name listed on the motor vehicle application.

The Acceptable Proof of Identification Documents for Completing Motor Vehicle Forms Fact Sheet has been updated to reflect this change.

Pennsylvanians Experiencing Homelessness Eligible for Free ID Renewal

by

Act 131 of 2020, which Governor Tom Wolf recently signed into law, makes it possible for Pennsylvanians experiencing homelessness to be issued a free initial photo ID or renewal. Individuals will be required to apply in person at a PennDOT Driver License Center and must meet identification and other requirements. Additional information can be found on the Driver and Vehicle Services website, www.dmv.pa.gov. This section of the law is effective January 25, 2021.

The pertinent section of the Act reads:

Title 75 § 1901.  Exemption of persons, entities and vehicles from fees.

* * *

(b.1)  Identification card fees.–No fee shall be charged for an initial or renewal identification card, including for a photograph required for an initial or renewal identification card, to an individual who affirms in writing that the individual is:

  1. homeless, as defined on the effective date of this subsection in section 103 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (Public Law 100-77, 42 U.S.C. § 11302);
  2. a resident of this Commonwealth; and
  3. aware of the prohibitions on unsworn falsification to authorities set forth in 18 Pa.C.S. § 4904 (relating to unsworn falsification to authorities).

Dealers’ Documentary Fee Increases for 2021

by

The maximum documentary fee licensed dealers can charge increased from $324 to $328 for processing title work manually. The fee increased from $389 to $394 for processing title work electronically with an online provider.

The increase is effective immediately.

The documentary fee is adjusted annually according to the Consumer Price Index.