Vehicle Industry Registration Procedures Manual

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Section 3 of 38

Chapter 2: General Information – Licensees

2.015 Business Partner Automation Program

Chapter 2 General Information — Licensees

2.015 Business Partner Automation Program

The Business Partner Automation (BPA) program allows DMV to establish contracts with qualified industry partners who have a business need to process vehicle registration and titling transactions from their remote locations.

Dealers enrolled in the BPA program must process new and used retail and lease transactions using electronic programs that are provided by first-line service providers. Transactions involving motorcycles, recreational vehicles, and off-highway vehicles, subject to identification are exempt from the electronic processing requirement.

Business partners are authorized to process and issue validated registration cards, full year registration stickers, automobile and commercial license plates, and may charge an additional fee for their services.

The BPA program allows business partners to process certain types of transactions. BPA partners are currently authorized to process:

  • New vehicle reports of sale for auto and commercial vehicles.
  • Full year registration renewals for automobiles, commercial vehicles, and motorcycles.
  • Registered owner transfers.
  • Salvage certificate applications.
  • Junk applications.
  • Nonrepairable certificate applications.
  • Vehicle license fee (VLF) refunds (restricted to salvage pools only).
  • Legal owner transfers.
  • Nonresident vehicles.
  • Miscellaneous originals.
  • Replacement titles.
  • Vessels.
  • Transactions when administrative service fees (ASF) are due.
  • Personalized and special license plate assignments and/or interchanges.
  • Transactions with a special or personalized license plate.
  • Issue sequential Arts Council License Plates.
  • Issue exempt license plates.
  • Unwinds/rollbacks.
  • Disabled Veteran/Disabled Person License Plate assignments/interchanges.
  • Issue single plate truck tractor inventory.
  • Expedite posting fees transactions on “nonoriginal” applications.
  • Additions to and deletions from a PFR feet.
  • Substitute vehicle license plate(s) and sticker(s).

Electronic Filing and Documentation Preparation Fees (VC §4456.6(a),(1),(A)&(B))

The following rules apply when collecting fees from buyers:

  • Dealers participating in the BPA program may charge customers an $85 documentation fee per transaction.
  • Nonparticipating dealers may charge a $70 documentation fee per transaction.
  • A dealer may charge the purchaser or lessor an electronic filing fee, which does not exceed the actual amount the dealer is charged by a first-line service provider. California regulations prohibit consumers from being charged more than $33.
  • A dealer may not charge an electronic filing fee to the purchaser or lessor if the dealer uses a registration service to complete electronic filing process.
  • A dealer may not collect, or must immediately refund, an electronic filing fee to the purchaser or lessor if the dealer is unable to complete the transaction electronically for any reason.

The BPA program is comprised of the following types of business partners:

First-line Business Partner—A partner who receives information from DMV and uses it to complete registration and titling activities for that partner’s own business purposes.

First-line Service Provider—A partner who receives information from DMV and transmits it to another authorized business partner.

Second-line Business Partner—A partner that receives information from a first-line service provider. Second-line business partners are responsible for collecting the registration fees due to DMV and remitting them to their respective first-line service providers.

The following types of companies can become second-line business partners:

  • Registration services
  • New/used vehicle dealers
  • Vehicle rental companies
  • Vehicle leasing companies
  • Dismantlers
  • Salvage pools

Refer inquiries regarding participation in this program to the BPA Administrator, at (916) 657-6258.