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How to register a motorhome

What is a motorhome?

A vehicle designed, reconstructed, or permanently altered to provide facilities for human habitations. 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 motor home.)

How to title and license a motorhome

Follow the steps to Transfer ownership to apply for a title and registration.

Keep in mind the following additional requirements apply to Motor homes:

  • Scale Weight: Motor homes 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 model year or make

Motor homes 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 motor home and is exclusively used 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 side 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 motor home 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

Related information

Questions? Need help?

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