Learn how to title and register motorhomes including vans, trucks, tractor units, and cargo extensions.
Before you get started
What is a motorhome?
A vehicle designed, reconstructed, or permanently altered to provide facilities for human habitation. This means there must be a lodging with cooking or sewage disposal enclosed within a solid body shell.
A camper or unit constructed separately and affixed to a vehicle does not qualify as a motorhome.
How to title and license a motorhome
Follow the steps to transfer ownership and apply for a title and registration.
Keep in mind the following additional requirements apply to motorhomes:
Scale Weight
Motorhomes with a Washington record do not require a scale weight when transferring ownership. To title a motorhome that doesn't already have a Washington record, use the scale weight from the ownership document. If there is no scale weight listed, you may provide it on a Certificate of Fact, a factory invoice, or a weight slip from a certified scale.
Recreational Vehicle Data Use Tax
Complete the Recreational Vehicle Data Use Tax form if the motor home is 20 years old or newer.
Washington State Patrol inspection
We will require a WSP inspection in these situations:
- The motor home is homemade.
- It is assembled from a conversion kit by someone other than a licensed motor home manufacturer.
- The ownership document does not show the model year or make.
Motorhomes converted from a van, truck, or truck/tractor unit
A van, truck, or truck/tractor unit may be licensed with the Motor Home Use Type if the vehicle meets the legal description of a motorhome and is used exclusively for recreation.
Drivers should post a sign stating "Not for Hire" on the side of their rig to signal law enforcement that they aren't in violation of commercial vehicle requirements. They will still need to stop at weigh stations.
Cargo extensions
A cargo extension is a device that connects to the left and right sides of a motorhome or travel trailer frame and becomes part of the frame. Cargo extensions allow extra space for owners to carry additional cargo, such as dirt bikes, legally without having to tow a trailer. The cargo extension is not titled or licensed since it is considered to be part of the motorhome or travel trailer.
Cargo extensions must meet the following criteria:
- Must have an axle with 2 wheels acting as a tag axle, to safely carry the weight of the cargo
- Must be equipped with mounted rear tail lamps, fenders, covers, flaps, or splash aprons
- Cannot be a trailer that pivots on a hitch
- Does not allow a trailer or secondary cargo extension to be attached to it
RV disposal fee
The state Department of Transportation uses this fee for the construction, maintenance, and operation of recreational vehicle sanitary disposal systems at safety rest areas.
Abandoned recreational vehicle fee
Allows Registered Tow Truck Operators (RTTOs) to transport abandoned RVs to a dismantler or disposal site without the need of a hulk hauler license.
Related laws
RCW 46.17.375 - Recreational vehicle sanitary disposal fee.
RCW 46.17.380 - Abandoned recreational disposal fee.
