Is a V5C proof of ownership?

No. It records the registered keeper, who is responsible for taxing and registering the vehicle. Ownership still needs separate evidence such as the purchase receipt. The document is still the one DVLA uses for keeper changes, so its absence is a practical problem even though it is not title.

Does vehicle tax transfer to the buyer?

No. DVLA cancels the seller's tax after the keeper change and refunds complete unused months. The buyer must tax the vehicle before driving it, or declare it off the road. Credit card fees and the published Direct Debit or 6 month surcharges are not refunded.

How much is a replacement V5C?

The replacement service usually costs £25. Online or phone applications normally arrive within 5 to 7 working days when the recorded details do not change. A postal V62 is usually 4 weeks. There is no refund if you later find the original.

What is the difference between V5C/2 and V5C/3?

V5C/2 is the green new keeper slip for a private buyer, with a 12 digit reference used to tax immediately. V5C/3 is the yellow section for a sale or transfer to the motor trade. Destroy the yellow section after an online trade notification. Do not mix the two paths.

Is it free to change the address on a V5C?

GOV.UK says it is usually free. You can be fined up to £1,000 if you do not tell DVLA when you move. Tax first if the vehicle needs taxing in the next 4 weeks. Contact DVLA if the new logbook has not arrived after 4 weeks.

Can a new keeper tax without the green slip?

No. GOV.UK says if you are the new keeper you cannot tax without a new keeper slip. Apply for a V5C by post on form V62. The usual fee is £25 unless you later enclose the slip from the most recent V5C.

How long does a tax refund take after a sale?

The refund is a cheque for full months left, sent to the name and address on the logbook, calculated from the date DVLA gets your information. Contact DVLA if it has not arrived after 8 weeks. Wrong-name cheques go back to Refund Section, DVLA, Swansea SA99 1AL.

What if I sell without a logbook?

You cannot use the online transfer service. Write to DVLA Swansea SA99 1BA with your name and address, the registration, make and model, the exact date of sale, and the new keeper's name and address. Missing any of those can reject the notification and any refund.

V5C logbook

The V5C, from buying to selling

Summary: The UK V5C logbook records the registered keeper and provides the references used to notify DVLA and tax a vehicle; it is not proof of ownership. Under DVLA guidance checked in September 2026, a replacement usually costs £25, and a buyer must arrange new vehicle tax because the previous keeper's tax does not transfer.

£25

Usual replacement V5C fee

GOV.UK, Get a vehicle log book (V5C) (as of 7 September 2026)

5 to 7

working days

GOV.UK, Get a vehicle log book (V5C) (as of 7 September 2026)

12 digits

Reference number on a new keeper slip

GOV.UK, Tax your vehicle without a vehicle tax reminder (as of 7 September 2026)

Checked on 7 September 2026.

What is a V5C logbook for?

The V5C is the vehicle registration certificate. It records the registered keeper, the vehicle's identity, and the document references used to tax it and to tell DVLA about a sale. GOV.UK is explicit that it is not proof of ownership. A purchase receipt still matters.

The current keeper uses an 11 digit reference on the V5C to tax the vehicle. A buyer uses a 12 digit reference on the green new keeper slip (V5C/2). A sale to the motor trade uses the yellow V5C/3 section. Changing address is a separate, usually free, update. You can be fined up to £1,000 if you do not tell DVLA when you move.

A replacement for a lost, stolen, damaged or destroyed V5C usually costs £25. Online or phone applications, when the recorded details stay the same, usually arrive in 5 to 7 working days. Postal applications on form V62 usually take 4 weeks.

V5C/2 is the green new keeper slip used to tax immediately. V5C/3 is the yellow motor trade section. Address and details changes are a separate, usually free, DVLA update. GOV.UK, September 2026.

How do I replace, update or transfer a V5C?

Replace it if the paper is gone and the record is still right. Change the address if you have moved. Notify a sale if the car has a new keeper. Those are three different GOV.UK services. Using the replacement service after you have moved posts the new document to the old address.

The online services run Monday to Friday 7am to 9pm, and Saturday and Sunday 7am to 8pm, except the written-off notification service, which GOV.UK lists from 7am to 7pm.

Lost, stolen, damaged or destroyed, details unchanged: replace online or by phone for the usual £25.
New UK address: change the V5C address, usually free, after taxing if a licence is due in the next 4 weeks.
Private sale: notify DVLA, give the buyer the green V5C/2, keep the confirmation.
Motor trade or insurer: use the yellow V5C/3 path, or the written-off service with the insurer as trader.
No logbook at all on a sale: write to DVLA Swansea SA99 1BA with the date and the new keeper's details.

How do I tax with a V5C, a green slip or a V62?

Current keeper: 11 digits from the V5C, or a V62 at a Post Office while a replacement is under way. New keeper: 12 digits from the green slip. No slip: you cannot tax as a new keeper until a postal V5C is issued. A recent MOT can take up to 2 days to appear.

Tax does not transfer on a sale. DVLA refunds complete unused months to the seller. Contact them if that cheque has not arrived after 8 weeks.

Document references used to tax a vehicle
Who you are	What you hold	Reference
Current keeper	V5C in your name	11 digits
New keeper	Green V5C/2 slip	12 digits
Current keeper, V5C missing	V62 replacement in progress	Tax with the replacement application or at a Post Office
New keeper, no slip	V62 by post	Cannot tax until the new V5C is issued

GOV.UK Tax your vehicle without a vehicle tax reminder, checked 7 September 2026.

What goes wrong with the V5C?

People treat it as a title deed. It is not. People leave a sale un-notified and then receive a late licensing letter. People buy without a green slip and drive home. People wait 6 weeks for a missing replacement without telling DVLA, then pay £25 again.

How do I change the address on a V5C?

You must update the logbook if you change your address. GOV.UK says it is usually free. You must also change the address on your driving licence, update a vehicle tax Direct Debit if you pay that way, and change the address on a V750 or V778 if you have a personalised number off a vehicle. You can be fined up to £1,000 if you do not tell DVLA when you move.

The online address service is for a new UK address and for the registered keeper. You cannot use it if you need to change name and address together, you have already sent the logbook, you have lost it, the vehicle is on the fleet scheme, or the new address is abroad, including the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or Ireland.

You need the registration, the logbook reference number, and a UK address. If the vehicle needs taxing in the next 4 weeks, tax it on the current V5C before you change the address. By post, a new-style logbook with multi-coloured numbered blocks on the front uses section 3 for the new address, with no PO Box, and you send the whole book to the DVLA address in that section. An older style uses section 6, signed, sent to the address in section 8. Do not tick the new keeper box on the older form.

Contact DVLA if the new logbook has not arrived after 4 weeks. After 6 weeks without telling them, the £25 replacement fee applies again. If you are moving abroad with the vehicle, take the logbook and register it in the country you are moving to.

What is different in Northern Ireland, for a company car, or for a hire car?

DVLA in Swansea still issues the V5C for Northern Ireland. Taxing at a Post Office there also needs an MOT certificate valid when the tax starts, and an insurance certificate or cover note. The £25 replacement fee and the 5 to 7 working day online wait are the same published figures.

A company car still has a registered keeper. If that keeper is the company, the company's details have to match the V5C before a sale or a replacement. Fleet scheme vehicles cannot use the public replacement service. A hire car is not a keeper change: you do not get a green slip when you collect it, and you do not notify DVLA when you hand it back.

A motorcycle, van or motorhome uses the same V5C, the same green slip, and the same tax-does-not-transfer rule. The MOT class and the tax class differ; the keeper document does not.

Example

Selling a car privately on a Saturday and taxing it that afternoon

Sale: Saturday 3pm, private buyer, V5C in the seller's name
Tax on the car: Still showing as taxed for the seller
Buyer: Has insurance arranged, MOT valid
Online service hours: Saturday 7am to 8pm

Seller notifies DVLA online with the buyer's full name and address and hands over the green V5C/2.
Buyer taxes immediately with the 12 digit reference. The seller's remaining full months will be refunded to the seller, not passed on.
Buyer keeps the slip until the new V5C arrives. Seller keeps the DVLA confirmation.
If the MOT had passed the day before, they would wait up to 2 days or take the certificate to a Post Office.

The car leaves taxed in the buyer's name the same afternoon. Driving on the seller's record is not a published option, even overnight until Monday.

Which V5C myths should I ignore?

Myth: the logbook proves you own the car. It records the keeper.

Myth: tax runs until the end of the month after a sale. It is cancelled when DVLA is told, with a full-month refund to the seller.

Myth: a new keeper can drive home for a fortnight on the old tax. GOV.UK does not publish that.

Myth: changing address and replacing a lost V5C are the same £25 job. Address changes are usually free. Replacements usually cost £25.

Common questions

Is a V5C proof of ownership?: No. It records the registered keeper, who is responsible for taxing and registering the vehicle. Ownership still needs separate evidence such as the purchase receipt. The document is still the one DVLA uses for keeper changes, so its absence is a practical problem even though it is not title.
Does vehicle tax transfer to the buyer?: No. DVLA cancels the seller's tax after the keeper change and refunds complete unused months. The buyer must tax the vehicle before driving it, or declare it off the road. Credit card fees and the published Direct Debit or 6 month surcharges are not refunded.
How much is a replacement V5C?: The replacement service usually costs £25. Online or phone applications normally arrive within 5 to 7 working days when the recorded details do not change. A postal V62 is usually 4 weeks. There is no refund if you later find the original.
What is the difference between V5C/2 and V5C/3?: V5C/2 is the green new keeper slip for a private buyer, with a 12 digit reference used to tax immediately. V5C/3 is the yellow section for a sale or transfer to the motor trade. Destroy the yellow section after an online trade notification. Do not mix the two paths.
Is it free to change the address on a V5C?: GOV.UK says it is usually free. You can be fined up to £1,000 if you do not tell DVLA when you move. Tax first if the vehicle needs taxing in the next 4 weeks. Contact DVLA if the new logbook has not arrived after 4 weeks.
Can a new keeper tax without the green slip?: No. GOV.UK says if you are the new keeper you cannot tax without a new keeper slip. Apply for a V5C by post on form V62. The usual fee is £25 unless you later enclose the slip from the most recent V5C.
How long does a tax refund take after a sale?: The refund is a cheque for full months left, sent to the name and address on the logbook, calculated from the date DVLA gets your information. Contact DVLA if it has not arrived after 8 weeks. Wrong-name cheques go back to Refund Section, DVLA, Swansea SA99 1AL.
What if I sell without a logbook?: You cannot use the online transfer service. Write to DVLA Swansea SA99 1BA with your name and address, the registration, make and model, the exact date of sale, and the new keeper's name and address. Missing any of those can reject the notification and any refund.