You sold, scrapped, or had your car stolen. The plate cancellation (baja) cancels your vehicle registration in Jalisco — and removes your legal responsibility for the vehicle. Without the baja, you remain the owner on paper, and every fine, accident, and unpaid refrendo lands on you.

The baja is cheap or free and resolves the same day. Here's how.

2026 Cost

ItemCost
Baja procedureNo official fee published
Counter administrative cost$0 – $200 MXN (varies)
Outstanding debts (back refrendos, fines)Charged before the baja is processed
The system won't process the baja if you have open debts. Before going to UNIRSE, check what you owe at gobiernoenlinea1.jalisco.gob.mx with your plate number.

When does the baja apply?

1. You sold to someone outside Jalisco. The buyer will register in their state. If you sold to someone inside Jalisco, what you need is an ownership transfer, not a baja.

2. Total destruction of the vehicle. Totaled car, dismantled at a junkyard, destroyed in an accident. The baja frees you from the refrendo even if the car no longer exists.

3. Total theft with a police report. When the car is stolen and not recovered. You need the police report (denuncia).

4. You're moving to another state. You'll register the car there. First, cancel in Jalisco — you can't have the same car active in two state registries.

Important: you cannot cancel out-of-state plates in Jalisco. If your plates are from Nayarit, BCS, or any other state, the baja must be filed in the state that issued them.

What to bring

Original and copy of each:

  • Owner's documents:
  • Valid INE, license, or passport
  • Proof of address (max. 3 months old)
  • Power of attorney + apoderado's INE, if a third party files
  • Police report (only in theft cases)
  • Foreign residents: valid resident card, FM2, or FM3
  • Vehicle documents:
  • Physical plates to surrender (not applicable in theft cases)
  • Registration card (tarjeta de circulación)
  • Baja application form (filled at the counter)

Step by step in Puerto Vallarta

1. Check for debt. Go to gobiernoenlinea1.jalisco.gob.mx with your plate. If there are back refrendos or fines, pay first.

2. For theft cases, file at the Fiscalía first. Fiscalía General del Estado, Av. Francisco Medina Ascencio at Pilaretes (Hotel Zone). File the police report. The folio is issued same day.

3. Show up at UNIRSE Fluvial Vallarta. Av. Grandes Lagos #236, Fracc. Fluvial Vallarta. Mon–Fri 8 AM–4 PM. Appointment not required, but arrive before 9 AM for the shortest line. Optional booking at agendador-shp.jalisco.gob.mx.

4. Fill out the baja form at the counter and hand over plates + registration card.

5. Get the baja receipt. Save it on paper and as a photo. It's your only proof that you're no longer responsible for the vehicle.

Total time: a single 1–2 hour visit if your documents are complete.

Want Pepe to file the baja for you?

Pepe checks debts, preps paperwork, goes to UNIRSE (and to the Fiscalía if it's a theft case), and sends you the receipt by WhatsApp. Send him a photo of your registration card, ID, and plates.

👉 Message Pepe on WhatsApp

What happens if I DON'T file the baja?

  • You remain the legal owner with the SET. Fines, accidents, and misuse keep landing on you.
  • The annual refrendo accrues ($1,100 MXN car / $600 MXN motorcycle). If you stop paying, it grows as debt.
  • You can't register another vehicle in your name in Jalisco without settling the prior one's debts first.
  • If the buyer commits a serious offense (hit-and-run, criminal use), you can be summoned to testify.

Baja vs. Ownership Transfer

ProcedureWhen it appliesWhat changes
Baja de placasSale outside Jalisco, destruction, theft, moving out of stateThe vehicle leaves the registry. You're released from obligations.
Ownership transferYou sell to someone who'll keep using the car in JaliscoThe vehicle stays active but in the new owner's name.

If you sell within Jalisco to someone in Jalisco, it's not a baja — it's an ownership transfer.

FAQ

How much does a plate cancellation cost? No official fee published in 2026. The counter may charge a small administrative cost or nothing. What you DO pay is any outstanding debt.

Do I need an appointment? Not required, but arrive before 9 AM for the shortest line.

I sold my car months ago and never filed the baja — what do I do? File now. Accrued refrendo and fines are charged before the baja is processed. After that, you're clear going forward.

My plates were stolen but not the car — baja or replacement? Replacement. The baja applies when the entire vehicle leaves the registry. For stolen plates with the car recovered, file a plate replacement with a police report.

I'm a foreign resident — can I file it myself? Yes. You just need a valid resident card, FM2, or FM3 plus the standard documents.

What happens to the pedimento if I cancel an imported car? Nothing. The baja cancels your state registration. The R1 pedimento remains valid — it only proves the car entered Mexico legally. If you re-export, that's a separate customs procedure.

Does the baja affect my credit? No. It's an administrative procedure that only cancels your state registration. It doesn't show on credit reports or affect your ability to finance another vehicle.

Ready to file the baja

Don't keep the legal responsibility for a car that's no longer yours. Pepe handles it without you losing half a day at UNIRSE.

WhatsApp

👉 Message Pepe on WhatsApp

Based on the 2026 Ley de Ingresos del Estado de Jalisco. Last reviewed: May 2026.