Chelan County Auditor

Motor Vehicle Sales/Use Tax Rates for Chelan County:

Vehicle = Percent of purchase price*

Vessels and non-motorized items = Percent of purchase price*

*Purchase price must roughly correspond to values supplied to us by the Department of Revenue. These amounts can be estimated by visiting a website specializing in vehicle pricing and entering your vehicle's data. The retail value should be used as an equivalent, not the trade-in value. Print out the site's estimate and bring it along when transferring your vehicle.

If your purchase price is lower due to vehicle condition, the buyer and seller must complete and sign a 'Declaration of Buyer and Seller Regarding Value of Used Vehicle Sold'
 

Basic fee structure

Licensing fees are primarily set by the legislature at the state level. Local government can also collect funding for road and transportation projects via a Transportation Benefit District (TBD) fee or Regional Transit Authority (RTA) tax. Locally, we do not pay RTA, but two cities in the region fund a TBD by having DOL collect a TBD fee for them at the time of renewal (see below).

The following elements form the primary portion of renewal fees:

• Location – Taxes and fees change as addresses cross the boundaries of city, county, or other districts. In order to ensure correct calculation, we are taking steps to verify all address against the US Postal Service’s address database. Legacy addresses for existing records might need to be manually adjusted to achieve a match.

The location address is separate from the mailing address, which is not used for rating. Some records list no address other than a post office box, and we are unable to renew until a valid address is supplied. Thank you in advance for working with us to ensure the address listed for your vehicle is as complete as possible. Don’t panic if you get a call or letter asking for more information. You did nothing wrong!

• Weight – All vehicles are assigned a weight class, even motorcycles. The weight classes are attempt to base the renewal fee structure on a vehicle's expected wear and tear to our roads.

Fees charged by a licensing subagent are the same as those charged at county offices.

Visit the DOL site for additional information, including the following topics:

• Detailed fee listing, including associated statutory authority
• Calculate your renewal tab fee

Transportation Benefit Districts
The legislature has granted cities the opportunity to create a Transportation Benefit District (TBD) to finance road repair and other street maintenance projects. These districts are created through vote of the city council, have scheduled public meetings, and are funded by the $20 TBD fee collected from each resident’s licensing renewal. Residents of the following cities will incur the $20.00 TBD fee at renewal:

1. Wenatchee
2. East Wenatchee
    

Request for fee estimate

To obtain an estimate of taxes and fees for a transfer, please email us the following information:

1. Completed DOL title application
2. The title, front and back
3. Purchase Agreement
4. Any other transaction paperwork

A quote for transfer and registration fees can be built based on the specifics contained in the above forms. If all you need is a ballpark figure, we will not need to see the forms listed above, but we will need to know key information such as purchase price and vehicle make/model/trim, your address, etc. Please include a phone number with your request.

***Please be advised that when provided with incomplete information, we may calculate a quote that turns out to be significantly different than what we calculate later when working with data from the actual paperwork.

Faxing works just as well or better. Please fax us all the pertinent paperwork and sales agreements: 509.667.6825

Posted: 12/15/2014 02:59 PM
Last Updated: 01/09/2020 09:16 AM