How to Get a Dealer License in Virginia: Cost & Requirements

Last updated: October 2, 2026

Virginia’s dealer certificate costs $270. Getting to the point where you can pay it costs considerably more. A two-day course and a $50 test come first, the bond has to stay in place three consecutive years, and the Motor Vehicle Transaction Recovery Fund takes $350 a year for the first three — $1,050 that almost nobody budgets for.

The Recovery Fund Is the Hidden Cost

Virginia runs a Motor Vehicle Transaction Recovery Fund that compensates consumers harmed by licensed dealers. New dealers pay into it annually for the first three years at $350 a year.

Set against the $270 certificate, that is the larger number by a factor of four. A first-time independent dealer’s real three-year cost of entry looks like this:

Item	Cost	Notes
Dealer certificate	$270	Initial licensing
Motor Vehicle Transaction Recovery Fund	$350 × 3 years = $1,050	Annually for the first three years
Dealer-operator qualification test	$50	Form MVDB 57, taken at a DMV customer service center
Two-day dealer-operator course	Fee set by VIADA	Required before the test
Additional license type endorsement	$50 each
Salesperson license	$50 each	The dealer-operator’s is included with certification
First two dealer plates	$60	Additional plates $26 each
Surety bond	$50,000	Must stay in effect three consecutive years
Virginia LLC	$100	$25 annual registration fee, due in your formation month

The Course Comes Before the Application

Virginia is one of a handful of states where you cannot simply apply. The dealer-operator of any new independent dealership must successfully complete a course of study before being permitted to sit the qualification test:

1. Register for the two-day Independent Dealer-Operator course, taught by the Virginia Independent Automobile Dealers Association (VIADA). There is a fee, set by VIADA.
2. Complete form MVDB 57, the Dealer-Operator/Salesperson Qualification Test Application, and pay the $50 test fee to DMV.
3. Sit the Independent Dealer-Operator Qualification Test at a DMV customer service center.

Two things worth knowing. The dealer-operator receives a salesperson license as part of certification — provided the correct box is ticked on the MVDB-57, so read that form carefully. And qualification is not permanent: you must complete a recertification online course or test every 24 months to keep it.

The Bond Runs Three Years, Not One

Virginia requires a $50,000 surety bond from a corporate surety licensed to do business in the Commonwealth and approved by the Attorney General.

The unusual part is the term. The bond must remain in effect for three consecutive years from the date the dealership opens. In most states a dealer bond is an annual purchase you renew alongside the license; in Virginia the first three years are a committed block, which changes how a surety will price and underwrite it.

What the Premises Have to Be

• Owned or leased by the applicant, and it cannot be a residence.
• Room to display at least ten vehicles.
• 250 square feet of permanently enclosed office space for your exclusive use — not shared, not partitioned off someone else’s floor.
• The office must contain a desk, chairs and filing cabinets, a working telephone listed under the dealership name, utilities including electricity and space heating, and an internet connection and an email address.
• Dealership identification in lettering, stencil or fixture of no less than six-inch lettering, visible from the front.

Three more signs go inside, and they are easy to forget on inspection day: a processing fee sign of 8½ × 11 inches posted visibly if you charge one, a salesperson roster posted visibly, and a business hours sign at the entrance.

How to Get Licensed, In Order

1. Form the entity — the phone line, the sign and the bond all carry the dealership name.
2. Register for and complete the two-day VIADA dealer-operator course.
3. File MVDB 57 with the $50 fee and pass the qualification test at a DMV customer service center, ticking the salesperson box.
4. Secure premises with room for ten vehicles and 250 sq ft of exclusive enclosed office space, and fit it out down to the internet connection.
5. Put up the six-inch lettering outside, and the roster, hours and processing-fee signs inside.
6. Bind the $50,000 bond with an Attorney General-approved corporate surety, on a three-year term.
7. Apply to the MVDB with the $270 certificate fee, $50 per salesperson, and $60 for your first two plates.
8. Budget $350 a year for the Recovery Fund for your first three years, and diary the 24-month recertification.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who issues the dealer license in Virginia?

The Motor Vehicle Dealer Board (MVDB), a separate body from the Virginia DMV. The MVDB licenses dealers and salespeople, while the DMV administers the dealer-operator qualification test at its customer service centers. Applications and dealer packets come from the MVDB.

How much does a Virginia dealer license cost?

The dealer certificate is $270, each additional license type endorsement is $50, and each salesperson license is $50. Your first two dealer plates are $60 and additional plates are $26 each. The number people miss is the Motor Vehicle Transaction Recovery Fund: $350 a year for the first three years, or $1,050.

Do I need a course for a Virginia dealer license?

Yes. The dealer-operator of any new independent dealership must complete a two-day Independent Dealer-Operator course, taught by the Virginia Independent Automobile Dealers Association, before being permitted to take the Independent Dealer-Operator Qualification Test at a DMV customer service center. The test costs $50 on form MVDB 57, and you must recertify by online course or test every 24 months.

How much is the Virginia dealer bond?

$50,000, from a corporate surety licensed to do business in the Commonwealth and approved by the Attorney General. Unlike most states, the bond must remain in effect for three consecutive years from the date the dealership opens, so it is not a single annual purchase.

Sources

Source	What it confirms
Virginia MVDB — How to Become a Dealer	Fees, Recovery Fund, premises and office spec, signage, plate fees
Virginia MVDB — Independent Dealer-Operators	Two-day VIADA course, MVDB 57, $50 test, 24-month recertification, $50,000 three-year bond
Code of Virginia, Title 46.2, Chapter 15	Motor vehicle dealer statute
Motor Vehicle Dealer-Operator Study Guide Materials	Test scope

Comparing states? See our dealer license guides for every state we cover.