Title Fee Increase

HB 1365, amends the Tax Code effective June 23, 2003. Title Application Fees increased to $33 or $28.

1. Title fee of $33 if applicant’s residence is in a county located within a nonattainment area, or is an affected county.

• Transportation Code §501.023 is still applicable (the vehicle can be titled in the purchaser’s county of residence, the county where purchased, or the county in which the lienholder resides). Therefore, the county in which the title application is filed determines the amount of title fees collected.
• According to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), the following counties are subject to the $33 Title Application Fee:
• Bastrop, Bexar, Brazoria, Caldwell, Chambers, Collin, Comal, Dallas, Denton, Ellis, El Paso, Fort Bend, Galveston, Gregg, Guadalupe, Hardin, Harris, Harrison, Hays, Henderson, Hood, Hunt, Jefferson, Johnson, Kaufman, Liberty, Montgomery, Nueces, Orange, Parker, Rockwall, Rusk, San Patricio, Smith, Tarrant, Travis, Upshur, Victoria, Waller, Williamson, and Wilson.
• $20 of the fee is sent by the County Tax Assessor-Collector to the comptroller to credit of the Texas Emissions Reduction Plan (TERP).

2. Title fee of $28 if applicant’s residence is any other county in the state.

• $15 of the fee is sent by the tax office to the comptroller to credit of the TERP.
• Beginning September 1, 2008, title fee of $28 for the entire state with $15 of the fee to credit of Texas Mobility Fund.

3. Effective July 1, 2003, a 2.5% or 1% Sales Tax Emissions Surcharge is collected for Diesel Vehicles over 14,000 pounds registered gross weight.

• 2.5% sales tax surcharge for every on-road diesel vehicle, over 14,000 pounds registered gross weight, of a model year 1996 or older, including all vehicles titled in this state.
• 1% sales tax surcharge for every on-road diesel vehicle, over 14,000 pounds registered gross weight of a model year 1997 and newer, titled in this state.
• Previously, vehicles purchased out-of-state and titled in Texas were not subject to the sales tax emissions surcharge. Now all applicable vehicles will be charged the sales tax emissions surcharge (2.5% or 1%), no matter where purchased. Either surcharge is in addition to the 6.25% sales tax.