How to Check the Registration of a Car in Australia

Each state has different methods for checking registration, and the details provided vary. It's important to note that personal details of vehicle owners cannot be obtained through these checks, and any service claiming to do so is likely illegitimate. The Carify service offers a detailed vehicle registration check that includes information such as odometer reading, registration status, visual damage report, and more.

You can check the registration status of any vehicle in Australia as long as you know the vehicle identification number (VIN) or the chassis number.

It's impossible to find out the personal details of who owns a vehicle because this is a security issue, but you can learn some details about the motor vehicle. For example, you can learn the status of the vehicle and the expiry date of its registration. This is useful if you're buying a used vehicle and want to know if it's currently registered.

Be wary of any service that claims to tell you about the personal details of the people who own the vehicles, because this is probably illegitimate.

How Does Vehicle Registration Work in Australia?

Vehicle registration (rego) identifies a vehicle and tells you about its insurance. The current owner of the vehicle must pay for the rego. Notably, rego is linked to the vehicle identification number, so it's unique to every vehicle and cannot be altered without permission.

Each state and territory does registration slightly differently. Typically, state authorities will inspect the vehicle to check it is roadworthy before issuing a registration certificate. A registration check may also be necessary when transferring ownership.

Registration documents should outline:

Make
Model
Colour
Year
Plate number
VIN number
Purpose of use (i.e. commercial or personal)
Date of registration and expiry date

How to Check Registration of a Car by State

You may wish to check the rego of a used car you want to buy by performing an online search. Investing in vehicles that are already registered is the best way to ensure that they are currently roadworthy, whereas one with expired rego might be in worse condition than you thought.

Here is how to check the registration of a car, truck, motorcycle, trailer, or caravan in any state or territory.

Victoria

In Victoria, you can find out the rego details via VicRoads. All you need is the VIN or chassis number to do a check.

Visit the website here to perform a check, but note that you cannot see if a car was stolen or has finance owing.

Queensland

In Queensland, you can look at the details of a rego using the VIN number or the rego number itself. However, you cannot check by chassis number and the service will not tell you if rego has been cancelled.

The government website can be found here.

South Australia

South Australia allows you to check rego for cars and boats using the plate number. You can also check CTP insurance and heavy vehicle details via this link.

Western Australia

You can see if a car rego is expired in Western Australia by entering the plate number on the government website here.

Northern Territory

Motorists in the Northern Territory can check rego on the government website, but you must already know the registration number.

New South Wales

If you have the plate number, you can check the rego of a car that is or has previously been registered in NSW. This is one of the better services, which tells you the expiry date, any cancellations, concessions, and the CTP insurance.

Australian Capital Territory

Access Canberra allows you to check a rego as long as you have the plate number.

Tasmania

Tasmania allows you to check the rego details and expiration date using the VIN. You can do so via the government website here.

What Can a Vehicle Registration Check Tell You?

Most local government websites can tell you some basic information about a rego, but chances are that you'll want to know more when investigating a used car.

The service from Carify offers a much more detailed rego check that tells you everything you need to know about the vehicles you're looking at. All you need to do is search on our site using the VIN, and you can see: