Can I register a car without a SEPA mandate?

No. Where tax is due, registration depends on an authorisation to collect the motor vehicle tax – except in a certified hardship case.

May the vehicle tax be collected from a third party's account?

Yes. The law names the account of the vehicle keeper or of a third party.

Does the dealership learn of the customer's tax arrears?

Only with the customer's written consent may the registration authority tell the commissioned third party the result.

Vehicle tax at registration: SEPA mandate and arrears

Q: From which tax arrears is registration refused?

Keeper-related arrears of less than 5 euros do not prevent registration; above that they do.

In short: Vehicle tax is part of the registration decision in Germany: the authority may only register a vehicle once an authorisation to collect the tax from an account has been given and the future keeper has no motor vehicle tax arrears. Arrears of less than 5 euros do not prevent registration. Online this is checked automatically. With Zevra, registration costs from €10 per case.

The most common silent reason for rejection at the dealership is an unpaid tax amount of the customer. All details come from § 13 of the Motor Vehicle Tax Act (KraftStG).

Zevra is the B2B platform for digital vehicle registration for car dealers, registration services and fleets: cases are entered in the dealer portal and filed nationwide by power of attorney with qualified electronic signature – from €10 per registration, no base fee, no minimum volume.

Last updated: 2026-10-10 · Zevra editorial team · Reviewed by Mohamed Gabal, owner

Vehicle tax at registration: SEPA mandate and tax arrears

What does the law require before registration?

Requirement	Rule
Collection authorisation	written authorisation to collect the tax from an account of the keeper or a third party
Tax arrears	none; arrears under 5 euros do not prevent registration
Tax exemption	prove the requirements or make them credible
Hardship	certificate that the authority waives the collection authorisation

From whose account may the tax be collected?

From the account of the vehicle keeper or of a third party at a bank. For the dealership this means: the IBAN does not have to belong to the keeper, but the authorisation must exist.

What happens with tax arrears?

Registration may only take place if the person for whom the vehicle is to be registered has no motor vehicle tax arrears. The data for this check is provided to the registration authority electronically; in the online procedure the check runs automatically.

What applies when the dealership registers for the customer?

If the taxpayer commissions a third party with the registration, they must agree in writing that the registration authority discloses their vehicle tax situation to the third party. In these cases registration depends on this declaration of consent.

When is no tax due?

electric vehicles: for a first registration up to 31 December 2030 for 10 years, at most until 31 December 2035
further exemptions under § 3 of the Motor Vehicle Tax Act, for example for certain agricultural and forestry vehicles

Even with a tax exemption the requirements must be proven or made credible before registration.

What does this mean for the dealership?

In the Zevra dealer portal you enter the keeper's IBAN and SEPA mandate in the case; the check for tax arrears runs in the procedure.

With Zevra, registration costs from €10, deregistration from €2 per case, net and plus official fees.

Sources: Kraftfahrzeugsteuergesetz (KraftStG) § 13 – Nachweis der Besteuerung · Kraftfahrzeugsteuergesetz (KraftStG) § 3d – Steuerbefreiung für Elektrofahrzeuge · Fahrzeug-Zulassungsverordnung (FZV) § 19 – Portal

Vehicle tax at registration: SEPA mandate and tax arrears