Guide7 min read7 views
Updated 2 November 2026 · Written by the Wahanaya.lk team
To sell a three-wheeler in Sri Lanka, fill in the MTA 6 transfer form with the buyer, hand over the CR book, revenue licence and insurance, then both of you submit the paperwork to the DMT within 14 days. Unlike cars, three-wheelers don't need a TIN for the transfer.
You sell a three-wheeler the same basic way you sell a car: agree a price, fill in the DMT's MTA 6 transfer form with the buyer, hand over the CR book, revenue licence and insurance, and both of you submit the paperwork to the Department of Motor Traffic (DMT) within 14 days. The one big difference is that three-wheelers are exempt from the TIN rule that now applies to car and van transfers.
You need the original Certificate of Registration (CR book), the current year's revenue licence, a valid insurance certificate, and a valid Vehicular Emission Test (VET) certificate. Both you and the buyer need your National Identity Cards, and you'll fill in the MTA 6 form together, with the MTA 8 form recording that possession has passed to the buyer. If your three-wheeler's CR book has been lost, you'll need a duplicate from the DMT before you can transfer it — plan for this ahead of any sale, since it takes time to issue.
Based on DMT fee schedules published online, the statutory class transfer fee for a three-wheeler is around Rs 3,000, with an additional Rs 1,000 DMT service charge, as of November 2026. This is lower than the fee for cars and jeeps. Fees are set by the DMT and have been revised before, so confirm the exact amount at your nearest DMT office or divisional secretariat on the day you go, rather than relying on an old figure.
No. Since 5 January 2026, both parties to a vehicle ownership transfer have had to provide a Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) — but three-wheelers are specifically excluded from this requirement, along with motorcycles, hand tractors and tractors. If you're selling a three-wheeler, you only need NICs, not TINs, for the DMT paperwork. This is a genuine difference from selling a car, so don't assume the same rule applies.
Fill in the MTA 6 form with the buyer's and your details, the three-wheeler's registration number, and the agreed sale details, then both of you sign it. The seller keeps copies A and A1 of the MTA 6, and hands copies B and B1, plus copy C of the MTA 8, to the buyer. As the seller, send copy C of the MTA 8 to the DMT by registered post within 14 days to notify them the vehicle has changed hands — this step protects you, because until the transfer is recorded, you stay legally linked to the three-wheeler for things like fines or accidents. The buyer then takes their copies, along with the CR book, revenue licence, insurance and emission certificate, to a DMT counter to complete the transfer. If the paperwork is complete, the DMT normally issues an acknowledgement the same day and posts the new CR book, in the buyer's name, within a few weeks.
The Fuel Pass system links one mobile number, one NIC and one vehicle, so your QR code doesn't automatically transfer with the three-wheeler. As the seller, log in and remove the vehicle from your Fuel Pass account once the sale is done. The buyer then registers the three-wheeler afresh under their own NIC to get a new QR code and the standard weekly fuel quota. If you can't remove it yourself, the Ministry has said it periodically clears vehicles from Fuel Pass once ownership has changed at the DMT — but it's faster and cleaner to do it yourself at the time of sale. Rules and quotas on Fuel Pass have shifted more than once, so check fuelpass.gic.gov.lk for the current process before you hand the three-wheeler over.
If your three-wheeler operates as a hire or metered taxi under a route permit, that permit is a separate approval from the CR book and does not move automatically to the buyer. The relevant transport authority handles route permit transfer requests, including transfers to a relative, through its own application form. If you're selling a three-wheeler that's actively used for hire work, sort out the route permit transfer alongside the DMT ownership transfer, or the buyer may not legally be able to keep running it for hire under that permit.
The law requires the transfer paperwork to reach the DMT within 14 days of the sale, and going over this adds a penalty fee. The DMT has announced it will strictly enforce this rule from December 2026, partly to stop sellers being left legally responsible for vehicles they no longer own. If you've already sold a three-wheeler and haven't filed the MTA 8 notice yet, do it as soon as possible rather than waiting.
Before you list it, check what similar three-wheelers are going for on price check, and when you're ready, post your ad on post ad or browse other listings under vehicles. If a buyer wants to pay through a lease, our leasing calculator can help them work out the monthly payment. And if anything about the transfer paperwork or fuel pass process is unclear, ask in the Wahanaya forum — other sellers who've been through it recently can often tell you what the DMT counter actually asked for.
When a buyer pays through a lease or bank loan, their finance company sends an approved valuer to inspect your car and registers itself as absolute owner on the CR book before you get paid, so expect extra paperwork and a short delay versus a cash sale.
Wahanaya.lk team8 min read
The safest payment is a bank transfer or bank draft you verify yourself by checking your own banking app or calling your bank — never a screenshot the buyer sends you. Don't hand over the CR book, keys or signed MTA 6 form until the money has actually settled in your account.
Wahanaya.lk team7 min read
Yes — the DMT's ownership-transfer system checks that your vehicle's VET (emission test) certificate and revenue licence are both in date before it lets the transfer go through, so renew an expired VET before you sell, unless your vehicle is exempt.
Wahanaya.lk team7 min read
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