Smog check repair cost waiver and the BAR Referee, how it works

What is the smog check repair cost waiver

The repair cost waiver is a one time pass for a car that keeps failing smog after you have spent real money on it. If you spend at least $650 on emissions repairs and the car still fails, the state may let you register the car anyway. The waiver does not make the car clean. It gives you more time to finish the job.

Only the Smog Check Referee can issue a waiver. The Referee is a state run network of stations that handles cases a normal smog station cannot. This guide covers both the waiver and the Referee.

The $650 amount is the current repair cost limit. State law sets a floor of $450 and adjusts it for inflation. So the limit can change over time, and you should check it before you start spending. The failed smog check guide covers your other options first.

Who qualifies and who does not

You may qualify when all of these are true.

• Your car failed at a licensed smog station and you kept the paperwork.
• You spent at least $650 on emissions related repairs and diagnosis at a licensed smog check test and repair station.
• You retested and the car still failed.
• Your car is going through its normal two year smog cycle, which means a registration renewal.

You will be turned down in these cases.

• The car got a repair cost waiver before. The limit is one per vehicle for each registered owner.
• The car has missing, modified or disconnected emissions equipment. Money spent to fix tampering does not count toward the $650.
• The car is being sold, which is a change of ownership.
• The car is being registered in California for the first time.

The law also bars waivers on initial registration of an out of state car, a direct import, a dismantled car, a car with an engine change, an alternate fuel car and a specially built car. Those cars must fully pass. If you are moving here, the Referee may help with the paperwork, but not with a waiver.

What counts toward the $650

The $650 can be a mix of repairs and diagnosis. You do not have to use the same shop that tested the car. You can use more than one shop. Keep every invoice and every diagnostic report.

• Counts are parts and labor for emissions repairs, diagnostic time and repairs paid through the Consumer Assistance Program.
• Does not count is the smog test fee, work on a tampered system, and repairs at a shop that is not a licensed smog check test and repair station.

Stations tell BAR what they spend on each repair, so you can see where $650 sits. In 2025 there were 46,033 reported repairs. 17,989 of them, or 39%, cost more than $650. So roughly four in ten reported repairs go past the waiver line.

How to get a waiver step by step

1. Fail your smog check at a licensed station and keep the vehicle inspection report.
2. Spend $650 or more on emissions repair and diagnosis. Ask each shop for a written invoice that shows the work.
3. Retest. If the car still fails, keep that second report too. You need two failed reports.
4. Call the Referee at 1-800-622-7733. A call center agent books your appointment. Have your plate or VIN, the reason you need a Referee and your latest vehicle inspection report ready.
5. Answer the virtual appointment call. Every customer starts with a virtual appointment. The call comes from a blocked number. A Referee asks for your documents and reviews them.
6. Wait 3 to 5 business days while the Referee reviews your papers. If you pass the review, you get an onsite visit.
7. Go to the onsite visit. Bring the car, your papers and a Visa or Mastercard. The Referee does not take cash or checks.
8. Register with the waiver. It lets DMV register the car now. You still need to fix the car.

Appointments last 50 minutes. Some jobs, such as engine changes, take two slots. Your car must be in safe working shape. The Referee can refuse a car with low oil, a fuel leak, a coolant leak, a heavy oil leak, loud engine noise, a lowered body or bald tires.

Do not miss the call

If you miss your virtual appointment, the system marks it abandoned. Your file is then locked for 60 days. That is a long time when your registration is due. The same 60 day lock applies if you skip an onsite visit without canceling.

To cancel, call 1-800-622-7733 during business hours, call the English cancellation line at 916-498-6799 or the Spanish line at 916-498-6798, or email Info@asktheref.org. Do it 24 to 48 hours before the appointment. If your phone blocks calls from blocked numbers, fix that before your appointment or give the call center another number.

How many waivers does the Referee issue

Not many compared with the failures. In 2025 the Referee issued 550 repair cost waivers. Of those, 491 went to cars with onboard diagnostics, which means model year 2000 and newer. Only 59 went to older cars. For the whole year California ran 11,275,981 initial smog checks, so waivers are rare.

Waivers rose from 426 in 2021 to 550 in 2025. Repairs have also gotten more costly. The average reported smog repair went from $422.93 in 2019 to $756.68 in 2025, so more owners now reach the $650 line.

A waiver is only one kind of Referee outcome. The next table shows what the visits ended in. In 2025 a waiver was about 12% of all certificates the Referee issued.

Hardship extensions are another rare tool. State law lets low income owners ask for one. The Referee issued only 2 in 2025.

What else the Referee does

The Smog Check Referee program is run by the Foundation for California Community Colleges under a BAR contract that began in 2004. Referees do not fix cars and do not test motorcycles. They do give a third party view on cases that regular stations cannot settle.

• Disputes. Referees can give a second inspection if you do not agree with a smog result. Regular stations all use the same BAR standards.
• Citations. A Referee can inspect a car cited for a modified exhaust or noise under Vehicle Code sections 27150, 27151 or 27156. The Referee cannot clear the citation. You must finish that with the court or agency that issued it.
• Parts that are no longer made. The call center runs a parts locator. If a needed part is confirmed unavailable, the Referee can give a limited parts exemption. It lasts only 90 days.
• Engine changes and kit cars. A specially built car goes to the Referee first. After it passes, the Referee puts on a BAR label so regular shops can test it later.
• Gray market cars. These are imports not built for the United States. They may need a manufacturer letter or work at a CARB licensed lab.
• Clean gas and catalytic converter labels. Referees handle alternative fuel kits and converter label questions.
• Wrongly flagged cars. If DMV says your car needs a check but you think it is exempt, a Referee can confirm.
• Gross polluters with no STAR nearby. After repairs, a gross polluter has to pass at a STAR station. If none is near you, the Referee can do it.

Law enforcement citations fell from 6,146 in 2022 to 4,685 in 2025. BAR referrals nearly doubled, from 2,932 to 5,714. Catalytic converter labels fell from 8,969 to 722. Disputes stayed between 5,475 and 6,595 a year. Total Referee inspections dropped from 28,895 in 2022 to 21,928 in 2025. In the first nine months of 2026 they were 14,739.

Where the Referee stations are

BAR counted 35 Referee stations in the 2025 annual report and 40 in September 2026. Most are in the enhanced smog areas, 29 of the 35 in 2025. There is no public street address list, so use the call center to find the closest one. Many Referee stations are on community college campuses. Larger RVs may not fit at every site, so tell the agent if you drive one.

Referee stations fail far more cars than regular stations. In 2025 they failed 71.8% of the 4,419 newer cars they tested for the first time, compared with 7.8% at all stations. That is because the cars sent to the Referee are the hard cases. It does not mean the Referee is stricter. The Referee follows the same standards as everyone else.

See more station and test counts in California smog check by the numbers. If you are weighing retirement over repairs, read the vehicle retirement guide.

Tips to avoid a wasted waiver trip

• Get the diagnosis in writing before you buy parts. A good invoice names the failed item and the repair.
• Keep both failed reports. The Referee asks for two.
• Do not touch the emissions system yourself. Tampering voids the waiver.
• Check your warranty first. Emissions parts can be covered for years, and a dealer may fix the car for free. See your owner manual or call CARB at (800) 242-4450.
• Apply for CAP at the same time if you have low income. CAP repairs count toward the $650.
• Plan for the next smog check. A waiver only delays the work, because the car must fully pass at the next biennial check.