Virginia car sales tax and DMV fees

A low rate, no trade-in credit

At 4.15%, Virginia's motor vehicle sales and use tax is one of the lowest in the country, and no locality adds to it. The catch is the base: the Code of Virginia defines the sale price without any deduction for a trade-in, so a buyer who trades a car worth $10,000 pays the same tax as one who does not. Manufacturer rebates, on the other hand, are left out of the price. The minimum tax is $75, which matters only for cheap used cars.

The highway use fee, explained

Electric cars pay $135.63 a year in the 2026 DMV fee chart, updated every July 1. Gasoline and hybrid cars rated 25 mpg or more pay a smaller fee computed by the highway use fee formula: 85% of the fuel tax they avoid compared with a 23.7 mpg car over 11,600 miles. The higher the rating, the closer the fee comes to the electric-car amount. Our calculator shows it as a range because it needs the car's EPA rating.

Northern Virginia: emissions and higher local taxes

Cars garaged in Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, Prince William or Stafford counties, or in five cities of the area, need an emissions inspection and pay a $2 emissions program fee with registration; every Virginia car also needs a safety inspection at a licensed station. Personal property tax rates vary by locality and so do local registration fees, so ask your treasurer for the rate. For comparison, Pennsylvania has no yearly tax on the car's value at all.

What sets Virginia apart

• Virginia taxes a car purchase at 4.15% of the sales price with a minimum of $75, and DMV collects it at titling (Virginia DMV).
• Virginia gives no tax credit for a trade-in: the law defines the sale price without any allowance for trade-ins, but excludes manufacturer rebates (Code of Virginia § 58.1-2401).
• Registration is cheap and weight-based: $30.75 a year up to 4,000 lb and $35.75 from 4,001 to 6,500 lb for a passenger car (Virginia DMV).
• The bigger yearly bill is local: counties and cities tax vehicles as personal property and many add a local registration fee (Virginia DMV).
• Electric cars pay a yearly highway use fee of $135.63 in the 2026 fee chart, updated every July 1 (Virginia DMV).
• Gasoline and hybrid cars rated 25 mpg or more also pay a highway use fee, computed as 85% of the gas tax they avoid compared with a 23.7 mpg car over 11,600 miles (Virginia DMV).
• Cars garaged in five Northern Virginia counties and five cities need an emissions inspection and pay a $2 emissions fee with registration (Virginia DMV).
• A two-year registration costs twice the annual fee, with a small discount for renewing online (Virginia DMV).
• The original title costs $15 (Virginia DMV).

What the Virginia calculation cannot know

• Localities set and bill their own personal property tax on vehicles and, in many places, a local registration fee; DMV does not publish a statewide table, so neither is added.
• The highway use fee of fuel-efficient gasoline and hybrid cars (25 mpg or more combined) depends on the car's EPA rating, which the form does not ask; it is shown as a range up to the electric-vehicle amount.
• Safety inspection and Northern Virginia emissions test prices are paid to stations and were not read on an official page for this release.
• No dealer documentation fee cap was read on an official page for this release.
• Whether a dealer processing fee is part of the 'sale price' is not stated in the definition read; the engine leaves it out of the taxable price.