Cal. VEH § 38040
This is the official text of Cal. VEH § 38040, part of California’s Vehicle Code — governs traffic laws, driver's licenses, and vehicle registration.
Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.
Official statutory text
Application for the original identification of a motor vehicle, other than a motorcycle, required to be identified pursuant to this division shall be made by the owner to the department upon the appropriate form furnished by it and shall contain all of the following:
(a) The true, full name, business or residence and mailing address, and the driver’s license or identification card number, if any, of the owner and the legal owner, if any.
(b) The name of the county in which the owner resides.
(c) A description of the vehicle, including the following, insofar as it may exist:
(1) The make, model, and type of body.
(2) The vehicle identification number or any other number as may be required by the department.
(d) Information as may reasonably be required by the department to enable it to determine whether the vehicle is lawfully entitled to identification.
(a) The true, full name, business or residence and mailing address, and the driver’s license or identification card number, if any, of the owner and the legal owner, if any.
(b) The name of the county in which the owner resides.
(c) A description of the vehicle, including the following, insofar as it may exist:
(1) The make, model, and type of body.
(2) The vehicle identification number or any other number as may be required by the department.
(d) Information as may reasonably be required by the department to enable it to determine whether the vehicle is lawfully entitled to identification.
Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site
Need a lawyer in California?
Find a California lawyer
About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the
Open US Law dataset
(Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine
(Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.