To apply, you must:
10 Missouri Dealer License Requirements
Missouri Dealer Licenses are issued by the Missouri Department of Revenue, Motor Vehicle Bureau, Dealer Licensing Section. This page covers Missouri's 7 Dealer License types, their requirements, bond amount, costs, and how to apply.
Name your Dealership
Your company name is the first step, because you'll use it through the entire Dealer License process. Missouri's Dealer application lists 5 ownership types: Individual, Partnership, Corporation, Limited Liability Company, and Other.
An LLC keeps your business separate from your personal life and adds trust to the name.
If you'll trade under a name other than your legal one, register it as a fictitious name with the Secretary of State first. The application lists both names. Adding an owner later takes a signed statement and that person's criminal record.
Choose your Dealer License Type
Missouri licenses each category separately, at each location, on a single form. Form 4682 covers 7 Dealer License types, 3 auction licenses, and a manufacturer license. Most people start with the Used Motor Vehicle and Powersport Dealer license or the Wholesale Motor Vehicle Dealer license. Missouri splits powersport, trailer, boat, and RV sales into their own licenses.
| License Type | What It Lets You Do |
|---|---|
| Used Motor Vehicle and Powersport DealerRetail. One checkbox on the form: “Used MV, Powersport Dealer.” Numbers D-2000 to D-9999 | Buy and sell used cars, trucks, motorcycles, ATVs, and personal watercraft. A first-time applicant attends the 4-hour Dealer Educational Seminar. Requires the $50,000 bond and a dealer garage policy |
| Wholesale Motor Vehicle DealerNumbers start with W | Buy and sell with other licensed Dealers and at the dealer auctions. No seminar. Same building, lot, and sign rules as a retail Dealer, plus the $50,000 bond and garage policy |
| New Motor Vehicle Franchise DealerNumbers D-0 to D-999 | Sell new vehicles under a manufacturer's franchise, licensed by the same Department on the same form. No seminar; $50,000 bond and garage policy required |
| New Powersport DealerNumbers D-1000 to D-1999 | Sell new motorcycles, ATVs, and personal watercraft. No seminar; $50,000 bond and garage policy required |
| New and Used Trailer DealerNumbers start with T | Buy and sell trailers, and up to 5 boats a year without a Boat Dealer license. $50,000 bond; no garage policy and no seminar. May buy 1 driveaway plate to demonstrate a trade-in vehicle |
| Boat DealerNumbers start with M | Buy and sell boats and vessels; selling 6 or more a year requires this license. $80 license fee, the $50,000 bond, and a garage policy. No seminar |
| New and Used Recreational Motor Vehicle (RV) DealerNumbers start with RV | Buy and sell new and used RVs. No seminar. Earns dealer plates faster: 2 per 10 sales for the first 50 sales |
| Wholesale Motor Vehicle AuctionNumbers start with WA | Run an auction for licensed Dealers. No bond, no garage policy, no seminar, and no dealer plates |
| Public Motor Vehicle AuctionNumbers start with A | Run an auction open to the public. No bond, garage policy, or dealer plates. Requires 2 extra 2-by-2-foot signs reading “Attention Buyers: Vehicles sold at this auction may not have had a safety inspection” |
| Motor Vehicle, Trailer, and Boat ManufacturerNumbers start with DM | Build motor vehicles, trailers, or boats. No bond and no garage policy; up to 350 dealer plates |
| Special Event Motor Vehicle AuctionA temporary license under RSMo 301.580 | Up to 3 events a year, 3 consecutive days each, with 90% of the vehicles 10 or more years old. $1,000 fee, a $100,000 bond, no plates, and no office test. The application is due 90 days ahead |
Get your Dealer Bond (Corporate Surety Bond)
A Missouri Dealer License requires a $50,000 corporate surety bond or irrevocable letter of credit, filed with the Department of Revenue (RSMo 301.560.1(3)). The bond covers a customer if the Dealer breaks a dealer law, and the state can claim against it.
The same $50,000 applies to new franchise, used, powersport, wholesale, trailer, and boat Dealers; auctions and manufacturers file no bond. A $50,000 bond costs only $500 a year, priced at 1% after a credit check.
Deliver a vehicle before you pass clear title, under Missouri's 30-day delayed-title process (RSMo 301.210(5)), and the bond rises to $100,000. That same $100,000 filing is what allows 60-day temporary permits instead of 30-day ones. A Special Event Motor Vehicle Auction posts its own $100,000 bond.
| License Type | You Pay | Bond Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Used Motor Vehicle and Powersport DealerMissouri - USED Motor Vehicle or Boat Dealer's License ($50,000) | $500/yearabout $42 a month, after a credit check | $50,000 |
| Wholesale Motor Vehicle DealerSame bond product | $500/yearabout $42 a month, after a credit check | $50,000 |
| New Motor Vehicle Franchise or New Powersport DealerMissouri - NEW Motor Vehicle or Boat Dealer's License ($50,000) | $500/yearabout $42 a month, after a credit check | $50,000 |
| Boat DealerMissouri - USED Motor Vehicle or Boat Dealer's License ($50,000) | $500/yearabout $42 a month, after a credit check | $50,000 |
| Any Dealer delivering before clear titleThe optional tier. Missouri - Motor Vehicle or Boat Dealer's License ($100,000) | $1,000/yearabout $83 a month, after a credit check | $100,000 |
| Wholesale Auction, Public Auction, and ManufacturerNot named in RSMo 301.560.1(3) | No Bond Required | |
Get your Dealer Insurance (Dealer Garage Policy)
A Missouri Used, Wholesale, New Franchise, Powersport, or Boat Dealer License requires a dealer garage policy, filed with the application (RSMo 301.560.1(3)). Trailer Dealers, auctions, and manufacturers are exempt. You submit a copy of the current policy showing the policy number, the insurer, and the insured.
Missouri publishes no minimum coverage amount for the garage policy. The Department requires proof that a policy exists, not proof of a limit, and your insurance agent sets the price. The application also has you certify financial responsibility, meaning liability insurance, for every vehicle you own or operate on the road.
Set up your Dealer Office (Bona Fide Established Place of Business)
A Missouri Dealer License requires a “bona fide established place of business” (RSMo 301.560.1(1)). That means a permanent enclosed building or structure, owned or leased, that you actually occupy and use as your place of business. One rule covers used, new, wholesale, powersport, trailer, and boat Dealers and both auctions. Wholesale gets no lighter standard.
The law never mentions a home or a residence. A building used mainly for another business qualifies only if an area is “clearly designated and segregated and records are separately maintained.” The Department's manual even allows a manufactured home or travel trailer as the office, “anchored to the ground and the wheels removed.” The table below has the exact rules.
| Every license type | |
|---|---|
| Building | A permanent enclosed building or structure, owned in fee or leased. The public must be able to contact you there at any reasonable time, and your books and records are kept there |
| Display lot | Off the public street and for the Dealer's exclusive use, large enough for the vehicles you're licensed to sell. It needs unencumbered visibility from the nearest public street. No square footage is published, and an enclosed garage does not count |
| Sign | Permanent, exterior, weather-resistant, with the business name in letters at least 6 inches high. A temporary sign is fine while the permanent one is on order; send the work order and a photo with the application |
| Hours | At least 20 hours a week, on at least 4 of the 6 days Monday through Saturday. Only hours between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. count. Sunday sales are prohibited, apart from off-premises shows and the statute's carve-outs |
| Phone and email | A working telephone number and an email address for official correspondence, kept the whole registration year |
| Parking | No parking-spot rule exists in the statute or the rules |
| Zoning | Missouri's application asks for no zoning document. Your city or county code still decides whether the parcel can host a dealership |
Attend the Dealer Educational Seminar — first-time Used Dealers only
A first-time Missouri Used Motor Vehicle Dealer must complete a Dealer Educational Seminar, 4 hours minimum, in the 12 months before applying (RSMo 301.560.10). Wholesale, new franchise, powersport, trailer, boat, and RV Dealers are exempt, and so are auctions and anyone already holding a Missouri Dealer License.
Missouri has no Dealer exam. The seminar ends with a Dealer Educational Seminar Certificate from the Department, not a test.
The seminar:
- At least 4 hours
- Taught by a Department-approved provider. Pick one from the approved provider list; 3 are listed today: MOIADA, Missouri Dealer Seminars, and Accredited Missouri Dealer Training
- Bring a non-expired federal or state-issued photo ID; the provider checks every attendee's identity
- The provider sets the price. Missouri publishes no seminar fee
Pass the Background Check (MACHS Name-Based Criminal Record)
Every owner, partner, and principal officer of a Missouri Dealer must attach a name-based criminal record from the Missouri State Highway Patrol (12 CSR 10-26.020(6)). It must be issued within 6 months of the license. Missouri takes no fingerprints today. A 2025 law, RSMo 301.551, lets the Department require them; so far it has not.
You pull your own record on the Patrol's Missouri Automated Criminal History Site (MACHS), online, and pay MACHS directly, not the Department. Results are usually near-instant, and MACHS keeps them for only 30 days. An owner who lives in another state or country submits a record from the highway patrol or equivalent agency where they live.
What a record does
A conviction is not an automatic denial. The Department “may refuse” a license (RSMo 301.562.1). Its good-moral-character rule treats the convictions below as “prima facie evidence” for denial, “except with a showing of evidence to the contrary” (12 CSR 10-26.221). Every waiting period runs from the conviction date to the date you apply, not from release or probation.
| Conviction | Presumption of Denial Lasts |
|---|---|
| A felony relating to the acquisition or transfer of motor vehicles, trailers, motor vehicle parts, or boats | No time limit: “has ever been convicted” |
| Any other felony | 5 years from the conviction |
| A misdemeanor relating to the acquisition or transfer of vehicles, trailers, parts, or boats | 3 years |
| Any other misdemeanor, contempt of law in a civil or administrative proceeding, or a prior dealer-type license revocation without rehabilitation | 3 years |
| Any offense related to a Dealer's duties, or involving fraud, dishonesty, violence, or “moral turpitude” (RSMo 301.562.2(3)) | 10 years from the finding of guilt or plea |
A plea of guilty or nolo contendere counts “whether or not sentence is imposed,” so a suspended imposition of sentence counts. A pending charge alone is not a listed ground. Form 4682 asks no yes-or-no conviction question: each person checks “Criminal Record Attached,” and the Department reads the record itself.
The way back
Denied on the felony or vehicle-misdemeanor grounds, you can request a hearing to show “substantial rehabilitation or improvement in character” (12 CSR 10-26.221(2)). The request goes to the Division Director by mail, fax, or email to [email protected]. Any refusal also comes with written reasons and the right to file a complaint with the Administrative Hearing Commission.
Missouri's expungement law (RSMo 610.140) lets you leave an expunged offense off most forms. Section 10 makes an exception for an application for a state-issued license to practice your profession, and a Dealer License application reads as one. Disclose it.
Pass the Site Inspection (Highway Patrol Certification)
A Missouri Dealer's place of business is inspected and certified by a uniformed member of the Missouri State Highway Patrol before you apply. The Department's manual puts the certification “prior to submitting the application to the dealer licensing section.” The officer completes Form 5748, Inspection and Certification, and you attach it to your application.
What to know:
- The officer checks your building, sign, and display lot against the office rules, and whether a trailer office is anchored with its wheels removed
- In the listed first-class counties, an authorized city or metropolitan police officer can certify instead. A sheriff or marshal cannot
- Boat Dealers and manufacturers may be inspected, at the Department's discretion
- Emergency-vehicle-only Dealers are exempt from the inspection and the place-of-business rule
Get your Dealer License Plates
A Missouri Dealer License starts with up to 2 dealer plates, ordered on the license application (RSMo 301.560.3). The first plate is $50 on a 1-year license and each additional plate $10.50, prorated by month. Dealer license plates, or dealer tags, let you drive your inventory on the road.
Missouri allows personal use: any employee, owner, or officer of the licensee can drive on a dealer plate (12 CSR 10-26.060(3)). So can a customer on a test drive, and a customer whose own vehicle is in for service or repair. Wholesale and public auctions get no dealer plates.
The rules:
- How many: 2 to start, a 3rd after your 15th sale, then 1 more for every 10 sales. RV Dealers get 2 per 10 sales for their first 50
- Service and repair loaners: a customer whose vehicle is in for routine service drives on your plate for up to 2 business days. A repair, including a recall, allows 24 business days
- Long test drives: a test drive over 48 hours needs a signed, dated demonstration agreement on your letterhead
- Not allowed: a vehicle hired or loaned to others, or a regularly used service or wrecker vehicle. Parades, private events, and charity events are fine
- Temporary plates: a new applicant can get up to 3, valid 30 days, void when the regular plates arrive
- Trailer Dealers: may buy 1 driveaway plate to demonstrate a motor vehicle taken in trade
Submit your Dealer License Application (Form 4682)
You apply to the Missouri Department of Revenue online at mydmv.mo.gov, under Businesses, or by mail on Form 4682. The license fee is $150 a year for a motor vehicle, wholesale, or trailer Dealer, and $80 for a Boat Dealer. Both are prorated by the month you apply. Every fee is itemized under costs.
Every owner, partner, corporate or company officer, and registered agent is listed with a Social Security number and date of birth. There is no EIN field. The regulation allows a driver's license number “and/or” a Social Security number (12 CSR 10-26.020(2)(E)), but Form 4682 has only an SSN blank.
No owner has to live in Missouri, and no copy of an ID goes in. An owner in another state or country attaches a criminal record from where they live. The business itself must be in Missouri, and Missouri's dealer law names no in-state agent requirement.
Dealer License Cost
A Missouri motor vehicle Dealer License costs $150 a year, prorated by the month you apply; a Boat Dealer License is $80. Every other fee on this page is in the table.
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Dealer LicenseMotor vehicle, wholesale, or trailer Dealer; also each auction and manufacturer license | $150 a year, prorated by monthDoubled for the 2-year license issued after 3 years |
| Boat Dealer or Boat Manufacturer License | $80 a year, prorated by monthDoubled for the 2-year license |
| Dealer Bond | $500 a year, 1% of the $50,000 bond, after a credit check$1,000 a year for the $100,000 delayed-title bond |
| Dealer garage policy | Priced by your agent; Missouri publishes no minimum limit |
| Dealer plates | $50 first plate, 1-year license$100 first plate, 2-year license$10.50 each additional plate a year; $21 on a 2-year licenseAll prorated by month |
| Driveaway plateTrailer Dealers only, to demonstrate a trade-in motor vehicle | $44.50 a year plus $9 processing$89 for 2 years plus $18 processing |
| Dealer Educational SeminarFirst-time Used Dealers only | Priced by the approved provider; not a state fee |
| Criminal record (MACHS), per owner | Paid to the Highway Patrol's MACHS site, not the Department |
| Late renewal | $25 if received less than 60 days before December 31$50 after December 31 |
| Special Event Motor Vehicle Auction license | $1,000 |
| Replacement license certificate | $8.50 |
| Dealer system record printThe Department's printout of your dealer record | $8.50 |
| Copy of a dealer sales report | $3 a month; free for your own report |
| Copy of your dealer application and documents | $1.50 per license year |
Dealer License Renewal
A Missouri Dealer License expires December 31 every year, whatever month it was issued. Renewal is the same $150, or $80 for a Boat Dealer. After 3 consecutive years, the Department issues a 2-year license at renewal, at double the fee.
Missouri publishes no grace period. Buy or sell on a lapsed license and you title and pay tax on those vehicles as an unlicensed party.
Renew with:
- A fresh MACHS criminal record for every owner, issued within 6 months. MACHS keeps results only 30 days, so pull it close to filing
- The Highway Patrol certification every year for your first 3 years, then every other year
- The $25 late fee if the Department receives your renewal less than 60 days before expiration; $50 after December 31
- Any owner you want to add or remove; at renewal that takes no separate statement
Common Questions
Can you get a Missouri Dealer License with a felony?
Yes, it's possible: Missouri has no automatic felony bar. The Department “may refuse” a license (RSMo 301.562). Its rule treats a felony as a presumption of denial that you can rebut at a rehabilitation hearing (12 CSR 10-26.221). A felony involving the acquisition or transfer of vehicles, trailers, parts, or boats has no time limit.
Any other felony carries a 5-year presumption from the conviction date. Every owner attaches a MACHS criminal record, so the Department sees the conviction either way. An expunged offense has to be disclosed on an application for a state license to practice your profession (RSMo 610.140.10). The full waiting-period table is in the background check section.
Can you get a Dealer License in Missouri without a lot?
No. Used, wholesale, powersport, trailer, and boat Dealers need a display lot “of sufficient size,” a permanent building, and a 6-inch-letter sign (12 CSR 10-26.010). The lot has no published square footage. Missouri's law never bans a home address, so a house with a real lot and sign can qualify where zoning allows.
The only licenses with no location test are a Special Event Motor Vehicle Auction and an emergency-vehicle-only Dealer. See the office requirements.
How many cars can you sell in Missouri without a Dealer License?
Missouri requires a Dealer License once you sell or display for sale 6 or more vehicles in a calendar year (RSMo 301.570). Vehicles registered in your own name don't count toward that number.
How long does it take to get a Missouri Dealer License?
Once a complete new-business application is in, the Department must grant or deny it within 8 working hours (RSMo 301.560.2). That is a legal clock measured in hours, not days.
The clock starts only when the application is complete. The seminar, the bond, the garage policy, and the Highway Patrol certification all come first, and Missouri publishes no timeline for those. Plates follow within 8 working hours of payment.
Do I have to live in Missouri to get a Dealer License?
No. Missouri's rule names owners who are “residents of a state other than Missouri or another country.” They submit a criminal record from their own state's highway patrol or equivalent agency (12 CSR 10-26.020(7)). No citizenship or ID-copy requirement appears anywhere in the dealer law. Your business location must be in Missouri.
Do I need a business bank account?
No. Nothing in Missouri's dealer statute, its rules, the Department's operating manual, or Form 4682 requires one. The only banking fields on the application are for Dealers who choose to charge an administrative fee. The Department collects its 10% share of that fee by ACH (12 CSR 10-26.230). Charge no admin fee and you supply no banking information.
Can you drive a car on Missouri dealer plates for personal use?
Yes, if you are an employee, owner, or officer of the licensee (12 CSR 10-26.060(3)). A customer can also drive on the plate for a test drive. A customer whose own vehicle is in for service gets 2 business days; a repair allows 24.
A plate never goes on a vehicle hired or loaned to others, or on a regular service or wrecker vehicle. See the dealer plate rules.
Support
The Dealer Licensing Section handles Missouri Dealer applications and renewals, online at mydmv.mo.gov or by mail. The same Department licenses new franchise Dealers, so there is no second agency to deal with.
| Contact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Department | Missouri Department of Revenue, Motor Vehicle Bureau, Dealer Licensing Section |
| Phone | (573) 526-3669, option 7(573) 526-1631 fax |
| [email protected] | |
| Address | Motor Vehicle Bureau, Dealer Licensing SectionPO Box 43, Jefferson City, MO 65105-0043Courier: 301 West High, Room 370, Jefferson City, MO 65105-0043 |
Additional sources (4)
The forms, the portal, and the statute for each step are linked in the steps. These are the other laws and the form the page was checked against.
- RSMo 301.550, definitions — the sales needed to qualify for and renew a Dealer License: 8 or more motor vehicles a year, or 6 boats, trailers, or powersport vehicles
- RSMo 301.570 — selling 6 or more vehicles a year without a Dealer License
- RSMo 301.580, Special Event Motor Vehicle Auction — the temporary auction license: 3 events a year, a $100,000 bond, and no place-of-business rule
- RSMo 610.140, expungement — subsection 10 is the disclosure rule for an application for a state license to practice a profession
- Missouri Tax Registration Application, Form 2643-MO (PDF) — the separate business tax registration, where an EIN is an optional field. The Dealer application has no EIN field at all
