A “transfer only” transaction is one where the vehicle’s ownership is changing but the registration is not being renewed at the same time. This is distinguished from a “transfer and renewal” where both the ownership change and the registration renewal are processed simultaneously. A transfer-only transaction may be appropriate when the vehicle’s registration is still current and won’t expire for some time — you’re transferring ownership but the registration doesn’t need to be renewed yet.
The fees for a transfer-only transaction differ from a transfer-and-renewal transaction. Make sure you’re calculating and collecting the correct fees for the type of transaction. Your DMS should handle this, but verify the calculations — especially if the vehicle’s registration status is unusual (PNO, expired, out-of-state, etc.).