Arkansas Code Annotated

Ark. Code Ann. § 27-14-903 (2026)

Registration by transferee — Title retention notes

✓ current as of May 2026

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1. The transferee of any new or used vehicle required by law to be registered shall apply for, or cause to be applied for, the registration thereof within thirty (30) days after the date of the release of lien by a prior lienholder, as provided in § 27-14-909, or thirty (30) days after the date of the transfer if no lien exists.
2. No vehicle shall be operated upon a public street or highway for more than thirty (30) days after the release of lien by a prior lienholder, as provided in § 27-14-909, or thirty (30) days after the transfer date if no lien exists, unless a valid registration plate is properly attached thereto.
A transferee shall at the same time present the certificate of title, endorsed and assigned as provided in § 27-14-902, to the Office of Motor Vehicle and make application for and obtain a new certificate of title for the vehicle, except as otherwise provided in §§ 27-14-904 and 27-14-907.
1. 1. It shall be unlawful for a dealer or other person who sells or finances the purchase of a vehicle subject to registration in this state to use a title retention note to secure his or her interest in the vehicle.
  2. As used in this section, a “title retention note” shall mean any instrument that grants the purchaser the right to possession and use of the vehicle, but withholds assignment of ownership on the existing certificate of title and its delivery to the purchaser, until full payment has been made by the purchaser, thereby thwarting the purchaser's ability to comply with subsection (b) of this section.
2. It shall be a Class C misdemeanor for a motor vehicle dealer or other seller to fail to comply with the provisions of this subsection.
This section is not intended to limit the rights of a lienholder to perfect or record his or her security interest in a motor vehicle pursuant to the provisions of §§ 27-14-802 and 27-14-806.

History. Acts 1949, No. 142, § 49; 1971, No. 158, § 1; 1983, No. 252, § 2; A.S.A. 1947, § 75-149; Acts 1991, No. 737, § 1; 1995, No. 268, § 1; 1999, No. 1307, § 1.

Case Notes

Construction.

This section, which makes retention of title a Class C misdemeanor, is directly at odds with § 18-45-202(b), which grants priority to a vendor only if the vendor keeps possession of the title; however, subsection (d) of this section provides that it is not intended to limit the rights of a lienholder to perfect or record his security interest. Bokker v. Hill, 327 Ark. 742, 940 S.W.2d 852 (1997).

Attachment.

Where owner of truck transferred it to his attorney by bill of sale in payment of attorney's fees, his attorney was not required to make application for a new certificate of title under this section, since he did not have physical possession of the truck as it was being held by the sheriff under attachment. House v. Hodges, 227 Ark. 458, 299 S.W.2d 201 (1957).

Priority of Liens.

Vendor's lien on a motor vehicle held subordinate to a mechanic's lien on the same vehicle where the vendor failed to retain title to the vehicle as required by § 18-45-202(b), even though such action is prohibited by this section. Bokker v. Hill, 327 Ark. 742, 940 S.W.2d 852 (1997).

Purchaser in Good Faith.

This section does not make a dealer who obtains title for a purchaser the agent of the purchaser so that the purchaser would be charged with knowledge of the dealer which would prevent the purchaser from being a purchaser in good faith. Commercial Credit Corp. v. Associates Discount Corp., 246 Ark. 118, 436 S.W.2d 809 (1969).

Cited: Olin Mathieson Chem. Corp. v. Southwest Cas. Co., 149 F. Supp. 600 (W.D. Ark. 1957); In re Shiflet, 240 F. Supp. 183 (E.D. Ark. 1965); Stufflebeam v. Harris, 521 F.3d 884 (8th Cir. 2008).

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 5 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1997–2025 · leading case: Midway Auto Sales, Inc. v. Clarkson, 29 S.W.3d 788 (Ark. Ct. App. 2000).

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Midway Auto Sales, Inc. v. Clarkson, 29 S.W.3d 788 (Ark. Ct. App. 2000). · cites it 8× “Ark. Code Ann. § 27-14-903 (a)(1)(Supp.1999).”

Owens v. State, 128 S.W.3d 445 (Ark. 2003). “I (2) (A) The tax levied herein and all other use taxes levied by the state shall be paid on or before the time for registration as prescribed by § 27-14-903(a). The taxes provided for in this section are not exempt from the statute under which Appellant was charged.”

Bokker v. Hill, 940 S.W.2d 852 (Ark. 1997). · cites it 8× “The issue concerns statutory interpretation and, specifically, the effect of Act 737 of 1991, now codified at Ark. Code Ann. § 27-14-903 (c)(l) (Repl. 1994), on lien priorities.”

Davis v. State, 228 S.W.3d 529 (Ark. Ct. App. 2006). · cites it 2× “2005), pertaining to failure to pay registration fees, and Ark. Code Ann. § 27-14-903 (Repl. 2004), concerning failure to transfer title.”

Cross (W.D. Ark. 2025). · cites it 2× “§ 5-53-111 , a class “D” felony; (3) failure to transfer vehicle registration in violation of Ark. Code Ann. § 27-14-903 ; and (4) defective reverse lamps in violation of Ark.”

— Ark. Code Ann. § 27-14-903(a) — 1 case

— Ark. Code Ann. § 27-14-903(a)(1) — 1 case

Midway Auto Sales, Inc. v. Clarkson, 29 S.W.3d 788 (Ark. Ct. App. 2000). “Ark. Code Ann. § 27-14-903 (a)(1)(Supp.1999).”

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