Notary Notes Blog
The latest notary news for Pennsylvania notaries
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.
Effective December 31, 2020, expiration dates for commercial driver licenses and commercial learner’s permits will be extended for Pennsylvania residents in response to statewide COVID-19 mitigation efforts.
The following products’ expiration dates will be extended:
There are no additional extensions issued on non-commercial driver license, photo identification cards, learner’s permits or camera cards.
Access PennDOT’s updates on their Driver and Vehicle Services Update page.
After October 1, 2021, anyone going through airport security or entering most federal buildings will need a Real ID, a passport or a military identification.
PennDOT estimates that nearly 300,000 Pennsylvanians haven’t applied for their Real ID yet. Kurt Myers, PennDOT’s deputy secretary for Driver and Vehicle Services, believes that the department shouldn’t have any problem handling that many customers by the deadline.
“We’re by no means at full capacity right now,” Myers said. “We can certainly handle more people. We want to be sure we are meeting our customers’ needs as well as we can while keeping them safe.”
PennDOT plans to make a big marketing push early in 2021 to remind residents that the cards are available and the deadline is looming.
“We’re still planning to do the campaign that had been set for last summer,” Myers said. “That will definitely occur.”
The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) issued a final ruling to amend the odometer disclosure exemption from 10 years to 20 years. The final rule is effective January 1, 2021.
Under the amended rule, beginning with the 2011 model year and every model year thereafter, states are obligated to capture odometer disclosures for these vehicles for 20 years. In 2031, 2011 model year vehicles will become exempt from the odometer disclosure requirement. Each year after 2031, a subsequent model year (2012, 2013, 2014, etc.) will become exempt.
Also of January 1, 2021, when agents see a 2011 model year or newer vehicle with an out-of-state title branded “exempt” and are transferring the out-of-state title into a Pennsylvania Certificate of Title, agents are required to record the vehicle’s odometer reading on the PA record and apply the odometer status code “2 – Not actual mileage.”
Details—including a chart of model years and exemption dates—are included in the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation’s (PennDOT’s) Driver and Vehicle Services Update Bulletin 20-24. The bulletin will be posted on PennDOT’s website at https://www.dmv.pa.gov/Information-Centers/Business-Partner/Pages/Driver-and-Vehicle-Services-Bulletin.aspx.
Effective September 30, 2020, the following products’ expiration dates were extended for Pennsylvania residents in response to statewide COVID-19 mitigation efforts:
Expiration extension deadlines on non-commercial driver license, photo identification cards, learner’s permits and camera cards expired on August 31.
Act 48, signed into law on July 1, 2020, has added section 1369.4 of the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code. The following change takes effect on October 29, 2020:
USA Semiquincentennial registration plate. The USA Semiquincentennial registration plate became available on October 29, 2020, and will only be available until December 31, 2026. The plate design reflects the “Family of Plates” color scheme of blue, white and yellow. Pennsylvania is printed at the top and the words “Let Freedom Ring” are printed on the bottom. The plate depicts the image of the Liberty Bell with “1776-2026” above the image and the phrase “250 years” beneath the image.
To apply for this registration plate, please complete Form MV-919, “Application for USA Semiquincentennial Registration Plate.” This registration plate will be available for a motorcycle, a passenger car or a truck with a registered gross weight of not more than 14,000 pounds or a motor home for a fee of $50.
Driver and Vehicle Services Bulletins are archived on PennDOT’s Web site. Click here to see the archive page.