How to check a California vehicle dealer's license.

Use California DMV's Occupational License Lookup to check a dealer business. If you are choosing a dealer education course, use DMV's separate approved-provider list.

Start with the official lookup.

Open the DMV lookup instructions and follow Search OLL.
Choose Vehicle Dealer under Business Category.
Enter at least one field: Business Name, Address, City, Zip Code or License Number. Then choose Search. These field labels were checked in the public DMV application on October 23, 2026.
Compare the returned business identity and location with the dealer you intend to contact. Read the license status and any available adverse-action information; a similar name alone is not an identity match.

If you cannot find a matching record, check the number, spelling and business category before drawing a conclusion. A missing result alone does not establish that a business is licensed or unlicensed. Resolve a mismatch with DMV before relying on it.

What can the public record show?

DMV's OL 100 Public Information Guide, page 2 lists the following disclosure limits. The currently linked form is revision September 2015; this is a description of DMV's guide, not a reproduction of a particular dealer's result.

Listed as available online: license status; business number, name, address, branch name/address and telephone; owners' names/titles; and current or prior adverse-action status and dates, without other details.
Not available online: bond details. The guide lists these as available through other request channels.
Not publicly releasable in that guide: consumer-complaint counts, pending consumer complaints, and owners' home addresses or home telephone numbers.

Do not interpret an online record as a complaint-free rating or a guarantee about a vehicle or transaction. DMV's OLL terms provide the information without an accuracy warranty and do not guarantee uninterrupted service.

Need a document or certified result?

For information missing from OLL, document copies or certification of search results, use DMV's Occupational Licensing information-request instructions. They link OL 100 and explain fees and disclosure restrictions. A search screenshot is not a DMV certification.

For unresolved licensing questions, use the Vehicle Industry Services contact page. It identifies assistance for licensees/applicants and the separate Investigations route for complaints about dealers. This site does not submit requests or complaints.

Checking a course is a different task.

A dealer business record does not establish approval to provide dealer education. Use DMV's Dealer Education Providers list and check the class type and delivery method. Its legend marks one asterisk for prelicensing only and two for continuing education only. The first column is Online/home study continuing education; it does not establish online prelicensing approval. DMV says classes are held in a classroom unless noted there.

Initial used/wholesale-only licensing and renewal have different education requirements. Education does not issue or renew the dealer business license by itself. Read DMV's dealer licensing requirements, or our separate prelicensing and continuing-education information.

Sources and blank search form reviewed October 23, 2026. No individual dealer record was searched for this guide. California Licensing Education is a private provider, not a government agency or the DMV lookup service.