Botswana - Transfer of Ownership of a Motor Vehicle

Advertisement

Procedure

Apply In-Person

1. All applications for Transfer of Ownership of a Motor Vehicle are filed and process at the Department of Road Transport and Safety office {DRTS} office, which is under the Ministry of Transport and Communications, (View address/contact details below).
2. Collect the transfer of motor vehicle ownership form (if applicable), form available at the inquiries desk at the Department of Road Transport and Safety Offices across the country.
3. Read through the instruction section carefully and fill the application form accurately as per your request, if you require any assistance when filling the form or have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask the DRTS Officer for assistance.
4. Submit the completed form, along with the attachments (mentioned below under the ‘Required Documents’ section) to the Registration and Licensing Officer at any Department of Road Transport and Safety permit-issuing office for approval.
5. The official will then verify, if all the necessary information and documents have been provided and that the applications comply with the selection criteria, if everything is in order, you ( the applicant) will be advised to pay for the application fee (non-refundable) to the Registration and licensing officer
6. The application file will then be forwarded to the department responsible for evaluation, processing, and consideration.
7. If the authorized official is satisfied that all the conditions as set for the application have been met, the transfer will be approved and the new owner of the vehicle will be registered and issued with a signed/stamped new vehicle registration book (logbook) against his/her identification document

Advertisement

Required Documents

Applicants are required to submit the following;

• Current original registration book completed and signed by both parties
• Certified copies of valid identities for both current and new owners
• For all organizations, the registration book must be stamped and signed by an authorized personnel

In case of the deceased owner:

• Certified copy of death certificate
• Certification letter from Kgosi, District Commissioner, or a Court order indicating the legal beneficiary.
• Certified copy of the beneficiary’s applicable identity

Note: If there is a dispute the beneficiary shall be determined by a competent court of law and should submit the following document;
In case of Court order

• Writ of execution
• Copy of Court order (addressed to the Department of road transport and safety)
• Copy of notice of sale

For auctioned vehicles:

• Registration book completed and signed by both the current and new owners
• Proof of purchase

Office Locations & Contacts

Ministry of Transport and Communications

Physical Address:
West Gate Mall, Unit No. 28, Western Bypass 
Tel. (+267) 361-2000 
Fax. (+267) 390-7236 
E-mail: [email protected]
Toll-free Line: 17779

Department of Road Transport and Safety
Physical Address:
Tshomarelo House, Botswana Savings Bank Building

Postal address:
Private Bag 0054
Gaborone
Botswana
Tel. (+267) 368-8600
Fax. (+267) 3914338
Email. [email protected]​
Toll-Free Number: 17779

Ministry contact details link:Link
THE DEPARTMENT OF ROAD TRANSPORT AND SAFETY OFFICES AND SERVICES OFFICES REGIONAL OFFICES CONTACTS DETAILS LINK:Link
Opening hours: 07:30 – 16:30, Monday to Friday, except on public holidays

Eligibility

• All citizens and residents are eligible.

Car title changes occur due to several reasons outlined below;

• When selling or purchasing a new vehicle (in such a scenario, the car dealership must handle the transfer process.)
• When selling or buying a second-hand car. In this case, the new owner must apply for the transfer of ownership to their name within two weeks of purchase.
• When gifting or bequeathing an automobile or when receiving a car as a gift or donation.
• When inheriting a vehicle.
• During a car auction event
• After finishing paying off your car loan.
• When transferring car ownership to family members.

Fees

The costs involved are as follows;

• Individuals and Companies  BWP 169.00
• Government (Central Transport Organisation and Botswana Defence Force) auctioned vehicle prices will be determined by the vehicle weight.

Validity

Explain the time until which the certificate/document is valid.
e.g. Birth Certificate Valid Forever

Documents to Use

Please attach documents that can be used by people. e.g. links

Sample Documents

Please attach sample completed documents that would help other people.

Processing Time

• Within the day/immediately

Related Videos

Videos explaining the procedure or to fill the applications.
Attach videos using the following tag <&video type='website'>video ID|width|height<&/video&> from external websites.
Please remove the '&' inside the tags during implementation.
Website = allocine, blip, dailymotion, facebook, gametrailers, googlevideo, html5, metacafe, myspace, revver,
sevenload, viddler, vimeo, youku, youtube
width = 560, height = 340, Video ID = Can be obtained from the URL of webpage where the video is displayed.
e.g In the following url 'http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0US7oR_t3M' Video ID is 'Y0US7oR_t3M'.

Instructions

Please provide other instructions related to the certificate/documents.
e.g. The state office holds birth records since january 1908.

Required Information

• Full name of the original and new owner of the vehicle
• Contact details of both the parties
• Identification document details of both parties
• Vehicle registration details
• Residential address of both parties
• Declaration by both parties

Need for the Document

• This is the process of transfer of ownership of a vehicle to the second party and is processed/approved by the Department of Road Transport and Safety office {DRTS}, which is under the Ministry of Transport and Communications office.

Information which might help

Enter other informations which might help.

Other uses of the Document/Certificate

• A vehicle registration book (logbook) is used to prove ownership of a vehicle
• Vehicle registration book can be used to secure loans from a financial leading institution

External Links

Government service portal: Link

Others

More information which might help people.