Do I have to pay taxes on a car that was gifted to me in California?

Yes, you generally do not owe California sales or use tax when a car is genuinely gifted to you, though you'll still handle standard DMV paperwork and fees.

California's tax agency treats a bona fide gift as exempt from use tax as long as you truly received the vehicle for free, meaning you paid no cash, traded no property, performed no services, and assumed no liability such as taking over the giver's loan. To document the exemption, the title should list "GIFT" rather than a sale price, and the giver typically completes DMV form REG 256 checking the gift box. Keeping a signed statement from the previous owner describing the gift, along with the VIN and a copy of the title, can help support the exemption if it's ever questioned.

Where things can get complicated is if the transfer looks like a disguised sale, for instance if any money changes hands or you assume a loan balance. In that case, the DMV may treat it as a purchase and assess use tax on the vehicle's fair market value. This is a different situation from a genuine charitable donation, where the vehicle goes to a qualified nonprofit rather than to an individual, and the tax considerations run in the opposite direction (a potential deduction for the donor, not a tax bill for a recipient).

If you're the one donating a vehicle rather than receiving a gift, keep in mind that federal gift tax rules and California use tax rules are separate from the charitable deduction rules that apply to a car donation appraisal. For questions about how donating (versus gifting) a car affects your taxes, see does gifting a car affect taxes. If you're donating a vehicle in California specifically, you may also want to check whether you need to notify the DMV.