Bengaluru RTO offices and codes: KA-01 to KA-53

Read a Bangalore plate such as KA 03 AB 1234 in four parts, left to right. KA is Karnataka, 03 is the code of Bengaluru East, the office at Kasturinagar, AB is the letter series and 1234 is the four-digit number.

Worth knowing: The two digits after KA name the office that first registered the car, so a car bought new through Electronic City still reads KA-51 after its owner settles in Yelahanka. The code on a Bengaluru plate does not change on a move anywhere in Karnataka, and it changes only if the car is re-registered outside Karnataka or its registration details are changed.

Any Bengaluru car registered new from 1 April 2019 left the dealer with its High Security Registration Plate (HSRP) already fitted.

An older car from KA-02, KA-41 or any other city office needs one installed. Book it through the booking portal the Karnataka Transport Department names on its website, which sends owners to the SIAM site, and check there the date for your vehicle. Plate stickers and the rest of the rules are in our Karnataka RTO guide.

In the department’s 2021-22 annual report, the Bangalore RTO list has ten coded offices in Bengaluru Urban, nine of them for private cars, plus an office at Chandapura for which the department gives no code.

Two names catch people out. The department names the KA-03 office after Kasturinagar, while older directory pages still put it in Indiranagar, and many listings call the KA-41 Jnanabharathi office Rajarajeshwari Nagar RTO.

Below, office by office, are the nine Bengaluru RTOs that register private cars, then the KA-57 office and Chandapura. Street addresses come from directories rather than a department list, so confirm yours before you set off. Opening hours for the Bengaluru offices could not be confirmed from an official source, as directories disagree even on Saturdays; check with the office before you go.

Bengaluru Central RTO, KA-01

KA-01 is one of the two city offices headed by a Deputy Commissioner for Transport and Senior RTO. Most directories still place it at the BDA complex in Koramangala, but one encyclopaedia entry reports a move to HSR Layout, and the department’s 2021-22 report records a new building for the office, so check where it works from now.

Bengaluru West RTO, KA-02

The Bengaluru West office carries KA-02. Directories agree on Rajajinagar, which is why so many people know it simply as Rajajinagar RTO.

Bengaluru East RTO at Kasturinagar, KA-03

The department’s own website names this office Bengaluru East (Kasturinagar). Some older listings still send KA-03 owners to a BDA complex in Indiranagar, so go by the Kasturinagar name. The department has also announced an open auction for the KA03 NU series at this office.

Bengaluru North RTO, KA-04

The Bengaluru North office registers cars under KA-04. Directories list it in a corporation complex on Subedar Chatram Road in Yeshwanthpur, though they give it different door numbers.

Bengaluru South RTO, KA-05

Like Central, the South office is led by a Deputy Commissioner for Transport and Senior RTO. Directories still give the Jayanagar shopping complex in 4th T Block, one encyclopaedia entry reports a move to J.P. Nagar, one directory names Anjanapura, and the department’s 2021-22 report says a new building was nearly finished, so confirm the location first.

Jnanabharathi RTO, KA-41

The Jnanabharathi office holds KA-41, and it is the one many listings call Rajarajeshwari Nagar RTO. It runs one of the two automated driving test tracks in Bengaluru.

Yelahanka RTO, KA-50

KA-50 is the Yelahanka office. Directories do not agree on its address, one group naming the Karnataka Housing Board complex in Yelahanka New Town and another Singanayakanahalli, so confirm before you travel.

Electronic City RTO, KA-51

The Electronic City office carries KA-51 and runs the city’s second automated driving test track. Its address changes from one directory to the next, so check it before the trip.

K.R. Puram RTO, KA-53

Krishnarajapuram, shortened to K.R. Puram, gives KA-53 its name. Both addresses that directories give for it lie on Old Madras Road, one at Bhattarahalli and one at Hosabasavanapura.

Autorickshaw and state transport office, KA-57

KA-57 is a Bengaluru code, but not one a private car will be given. The department lists this office for autorickshaw permits and state transport undertaking vehicles, such as KSRTC and BMTC buses, and directories place it in Shantinagar.

Chandapura RTO, listed as KA-59

The department’s 2021-22 report lists an RTO at Chandapura in Bengaluru Urban but gives it no code. Some directories tie KA-59 to Chandapura and others to Banashankari, so treat KA-59 as listed but unconfirmed.

Worth knowing: With nine private-car codes and several offices that may have moved, match the KA code on your Registration Certificate (RC) to this list before you leave home, and book any driving test slot on Sarathi first.

For a car you already own, the Registration Certificate (RC) answers this, as the KA code on it names the office that keeps your file. For a new car, the dealer applies to the office that covers your home address, not the one nearest the showroom.

Worth knowing: The table follows the official office names rather than a street-by-street list. If your area lies between two offices, ask the dealer or the nearer office which one takes it.

Type the registration number into the finder at the top of the page to see which office registered an existing car.

Moving house inside Bengaluru, say from Jayanagar to Yelahanka, changes only the address on the RC. Update the RC and inform your insurer, while the KA code on the plate stays untouched.

Some cars you see on Bengaluru roads were registered just outside the city. Devanahalli (KA-43) and Nelamangala (KA-52) serve Bengaluru Rural district, and Ramanagara (KA-42) has been a district of its own since it was carved out of Bangalore Rural on 23 August 2007.

Devanahalli is an Assistant RTO (ARTO), and the department’s 2021-22 report groups it with the Bengaluru Urban offices even though the town lies in Bengaluru Rural district. An address there still goes to Devanahalli, not to a city office.

Road tax on a Bengaluru car is the Karnataka lifetime tax, paid once at the first registration and the same at every city office. The car’s cost and whether it is electric set the rate, and the rate is the same whether the car is owned by an individual or a company.

The RTO fee is a national amount, so the KA-03 office at Kasturinagar charges exactly what Devanahalli or Mysuru charges for the same task. Pay it on the Vahan portal, and on a new car the dealer pays it as part of the on-road price.

For example: Register a new car bought on a loan at K.R. Puram, and the KA-53 office collects ₹2,300 in RTO fees before any road tax, which is ₹600 for registration, ₹200 for the smart card RC and ₹1,500 to record the loan.

Keep a KA-02 car past its 15th year and renewing the registration costs ₹5,000, or ₹10,000 once it passes 20. Miss the renewal date and a car is charged ₹500 for each month of delay, a motorcycle ₹300.

A choice number costs extra. The department’s 2021-22 annual report lists ₹20,000 for one from the running series and ₹75,000 from an advance series, and advance series also go to open auction, as the department has announced for the KA03 NU series at Kasturinagar.

Karnataka road tax with its cess and the HSRP plate are paid separately from these fees.

The Bengaluru dealer lodges the registration on Vahan for you, and approval comes from the office that covers the address on your papers. Live in Yelahanka and buy in Jayanagar, and the car is still registered through the Yelahanka office.

Transfer a used Bengaluru car at the office named on its RC, such as Jnanabharathi for a KA-41 car, or start it on Vahan. On the paperwork side, the seller files Form 29, both sides sign Form 30, and Rule 81 puts the fee at ₹300 for a car or ₹150 for a motorcycle.

From the day the RC shows the new owner, that owner has 14 days to move the policy into their name too.

Removing a loan (hypothecation) from the RC in Bengaluru

After the final instalment, file the lender’s No Objection Certificate (NOC) with Form 35 on Vahan, and the loan comes off the RC at no fee. Our Karnataka RTO guide lists the papers for each step.

Most Bengaluru RTO work starts on the Vahan portal for vehicles or the Sarathi portal for licences. Karnataka has run contactless services since 1 November 2021, with 15 Sarathi and 18 Vahan services that need no visit to the office.

Duplicate RC and RC status check in Bengaluru

A Yelahanka (KA-50) owner who loses the RC, or finds it damaged, applies to that office on Form 26 and pays the duplicate fee in the fees table. To look up any KA number, use the Kiwi Insurance RC status check.

Driving licence services in Bengaluru

Apply for a licence on Sarathi or at a Bangalore One or Karnataka One centre. The two automated driving test tracks in the city are at Jnanabharathi (KA-41) and Electronic City (KA-51). Licence renewals and permits are explained in our Karnataka RTO guide.

Whatever KA code your car carries, search its number on echallan.parivahan.gov.in or in mParivahan to see any challan and pay it. The challan itself shows what each offence costs.

Every other fine is on our Karnataka RTO guide.

A car from Mysuru or Hubballi needs only a new address on its RC, as a KA number is valid all over Karnataka. A car from another state is different. Once it stays in Karnataka for more than 30 days it owes Karnataka road tax, and once it has been kept here for more than 12 months it must be re-registered with a KA number.

If you are leaving Karnataka with a Bengaluru car, ask the office on its RC, such as Bengaluru North for KA-04, for the No Objection Certificate (NOC) on Form 28 before you go. The Karnataka Act sets refund rates for part of the lifetime tax when a car moves to another state, so ask the office on your RC how to claim it.

When the registration moves to Karnataka, the tax is a share of the lifetime tax set by the car’s age, from 93% for a car up to 2 years old down to 25% after 15 years.

Worth knowing: A new KA number or a new address is the moment to inform your insurer, so that the policy matches the RC. Form 28 and the other moving forms are covered in our Karnataka RTO guide.

Bengaluru buyers whose work may move them to another state can ask the dealer for a Bharat series (BH) number rather than a KA code, so a later transfer needs no No Objection Certificate (NOC).

If you work in the private sector, your employer signs Form 60 for the dealer, and it must have offices in 4 or more states or union territories. The format is YY BH #### XX, where YY is the year of first registration, the four digits are allotted at random, and XX represents the alphabetic series, which can be a single letter or two letters. It is black on a white plate, like any other private car.

Our Karnataka RTO guide covers who can apply and the tax that BH cars pay every 2 years.

Nearly every form here can be filed online through the Vahan portal or the Sarathi portal. Print one only if your Bengaluru office asks for paper, and take it to the office whose KA code is on the RC.

When to use each form is covered in our Karnataka RTO guide. Forms outside these thirteen are in the list of RTO forms on the Parivahan Sewa website.

How insurance links to the Bengaluru RTO

The dealer needs a valid policy before a Bengaluru office will register a new car. When a used car changes hands, the RC moves first and the policy follows within 14 days. If a car from another state gets a KA number here, inform your insurer so the policy carries the new number.

Worth knowing: A KA-09 car registered in Mysuru keeps its Zone B rating after its owner moves to Bengaluru, as the zone follows the office that registered it. Even so, inform your insurer that the car now lives at a Bengaluru address.