FAQs

Yes! Effective December 2019, under a new vendor contract, the TxDMV decided that all plates should be found in one spot as a matter of convenience for all Texans. Therefore, on the site you will find both My Plates Select plates as well as all State Sponsored plates, both qualified and non-qualified. Use the filtering options on the Create A Plate page to easily identify your options. After you choose your plate, you will have the opportunity to either check-out online, or if it is a qualified plate to download and print the required form for completion.

If it is a My Plates Select plate, call 888-769-7528 M-F 8a-5p or send us an email at [email protected]

If it is a State Sponsored plate, whether Qualified or Non-qualified, call 888-368-4689 or email via contact form at www.txdmv.gov/contact-us.

My Plates Select plates are introduced by the vendor. My Plates Select plates offer the following benefits:

• Layaway: a no-fee 5-payment plan that allows you to reserve a plate message while you pay
• Multi-year terms and multi-year discounts: 3-year and 5-year terms offer convenience and long-term savings
• Eligible for periodic rebates and promotions: sign up for our PL8NEWS e-newsletter to get these offers
• Eligible for restyle or porting: change your background design or move your message from a State Sponsored plate
• Can be purchased or sold in a My Plates Auction: auctions occur each year, sign up for PL8NEWS e-newsletter to stay tuned
• Up to 7-characters of personalization: over 40 backgrounds allow 7 character personalization
• Backgrounds designed with dynamic full color: color from end-to-end of the plate design make these plates pop, especially a Premium Embossed design
• All designs (except Premium Embossed, Passenger only) can be ordered on all 4 primary vehicle types: Passenger, Motorcycle, Trailer and Private Bus
• Online instant ordering: 100% of portfolio can be ordered online
• Personalized messages may be Restyled to an eligible new background for $50, or Upgraded to an Embossed design for $75; please call our friendly customer service center at 888-769-7528 M-F 8a-5p

State Sponsored plates are specialty license plates introduced by legislation or through the TxDMV that benefit non-profit programs. State Sponsored plates are:

• Only 1-year plate terms, renewable annually
• Qualifying plates, such as military or occupations, and Non-Qualifying plates, such as causes and organizations
• Up to 6 characters of personalization
• Designs are on the left-hand margin of plate only and full color backgrounds unavailable
• A portfolio consisting of some plates available for online ordering, some requiring download of a TxDMV form and ordering from your County Tax-Assessor Collector
• Subject to a credit card convenience fee per TxDMV requirement

Plates are available for purchase with one, three and five year terms. Plate terms commence at time of completed purchase per TxDMV procedure. The purchase of a one-year plate term may cause additional fees to be collected at your County Tax Assessor-Collector office to establish a single expiration date for both the specialty plates and your vehicle registration. This fee may include up to an additional twelve months of plate fees for a new vehicle with two-year registration.

Available only with My Plates Select plates, multi-year terms (three and five) give you the convenience of not having to renew and pay for your specialty plate each year, as well as offering great savings for purchasing your longer term up-front versus paying annually. Purchasing a three-year term can offer you savings up to 23%, and a five-year term offers even more, up to 49%!

Renewal: When your term is completing and renewal is due, the fee will be a line item on the registration renewal notice you receive annually from the TxDMV. There are three options available to renew your registration: In the majority of Texas counties, you can renew your vehicle registration online at www.texas.gov, renew by mail, or renew in person at your local county tax assessor-collector's office.

Available only on My Plates Select designs and from time-to-time, savings are offered via rebate checks mailed automatically to qualifying purchasers between 4 and 6 weeks after a successful plate order. Because My Plates uses Texas.gov, the official payment engine of the State of Texas for all purchases, we are unable to offer up-front discounting as this system does not support revised pricing. State Sponsored plates are not eligible for rebates or promotions because their fee splits are set by legislation. Rebates on My Plates Select plates require the use of a valid Rebate or Promo Code at time of purchase and are not up-front discounts.

Available only on My Plates Select plates, Layaway is an easy way to reserve your plate message while you pay for the plate over 5 equally-sized monthly auto-payments. As long as you complete the plan, Layaways are free of charge, and you can pay off your Layaway order early without penalty. Once your plan is fully paid, your plate will be ordered, manufactured and sent to your County Tax Assessor-Collector office just like a normal plate.

• Background Only: available on My Plates Select and State Sponsored plates, you pick your design and a random plate number will be generated
• Personalized: available on My Plates Select and State Sponsored plates, you pick your design and then choose your own message up to 6 letters/numbers.
• 7-Letter Personalized: available only on 30+ My Plates Select designs, you pick your design and then choose your own message up to 7 letters/numbers. Please visit our Create A Plate page to view all the available options
• My Plates Premium Embossed plates have additional production steps taken to raise the plate message and the "Texas" jurisdiction above the surface of the plate, and are available only for multi-year terms and for Passenger vehicles

Yes and No.

• Yes, when you purchase multiple My Plates Select plates in one transaction or multiple State Sponsored plates in one transaction.
• No, if you attempt to combine these two types of plates into one single transaction.

Because behind-the-scenes financial activity differs between My Plates Select and State Sponsored plates, you cannot combine these two types of plates into one single purchase transaction. Please purchase the one type, then return and purchase the other.

Possibly.

When you buy a one-year plate, additional fees may be collected at your County Tax Assessor-Collector to establish a single expiration date for both the specialty plates and your vehicle registration. They may have to prorate either your vehicle registration fee or your plate fee to synchronize your vehicle registration period with the first annual period for your plates. This fee may include up to an additional 12 months of plate fees in addition to your initial plate purchase fee for a new vehicle with a two-year registration.

For 3-year plates, additional fees could appear in your 2nd year registration renewal notice from the TxDMV. For 5-year plates, additional fees could appear in your 4th year registration renewal notice from the TxDMV.

Specialty plates may be issued to a variety of vehicles such as:

• Passenger (includes cars, light trucks, SUV's, motor homes, and buses converted to motor homes)
• Motorcycles
• Trailers (light utility and enclosed, boat, non-commercial use, and trailers whose main purpose is hauling but have minimal living quarters, but not house, camper, travel or hybrid type trailers)
• Private Buses (large buses and some SUV's designed to carry in excess of 10 passengers and not for commercial hire)
• Older vehicles carrying regular registration (however, not on officially registered Classic or Antique vehicles as that registration is unique and separate from regular registration and has its own class, fees and restrictions).

All My Plates Select designs are available for Passenger, Motorcycle, Trailer and Private Bus vehicle types, except for Premium Embossed designs, which are available in Passenger only.

For State Sponsored designs, visit our Create A Plate page, choose a specific plate and your vehicle type options will display.

Some vehicles are more difficult to classify than others or offer optional registration classes (especially off-road vehicles, vehicles with temporary living facilities, large non-commercial buses carrying persons, and trailers that may qualify for Trailer, Travel or Farm registration), so please consult the TxDMV Motor Vehicle Registration webpage for guidance on your vehicle, or contact your local County-Tax Assessor Collector office.

All My Plates Select designs are available for motorcycle/moped (except Premium Embossed). For State Sponsored designs, visit our Create A Plate page, choose a specific plate and your vehicle type options will display.

Yes, state law requires the ISA be available for all specialty license plates with a gross vehicle weight of 18,000 pounds or less. The procedure for including the symbol is slightly different, depending on which specialty plate is ordered.

For a My Plates Select specialty license plate:
If your medical condition meets the legal definition of an eligible disability:

• submit a copy of a completed and notarized Form VTR-214 to My Plates via fax, email or regular mail.
• in addition to checking the availability of the desired plate, we MUST have the completed Form VTR-214 before we can process an order with the ISA symbol via our Customer Service Center; the order cannot be processed online.
• the original Form VTR-214 must be submitted when picking up the plates at the main County Tax Assessor-Collector’s office. The My Plates fax number is 936-462-4676

For State Sponsored license plates:
If your medical condition meets the legal definition of an eligible disability:

• submit a completed and notarized original Form VTR-214 with your specialty plate order in person, or by mail, to your main County Tax Assessor-Collector’s office.
• orders with the ISA can only be placed via your main County Tax Assessor-Collector’s office, not online.
• the original form must be submitted when picking up the plates at your main County Tax Assessor-Collector’s office.

Note: Form VTR-214 is available on the TxDMV Web site and at the county tax offices. Click here to print now.

You can apply for plates and/or parking placards for persons with disabilities in person or by mail at your local county tax office in your county of residence. You will need to provide the following:

• Completed Disabled Parking Placard/Plates Application
  • Provide an original prescription from your doctor with the required information
    or
  • Have page 2 of the application signed by your doctor and notarized
• Copy of applicant's current driver license or government-issued photo identification
• Fee
  • Permanent (blue) placard - no fee
  • Temporary (red) placard - $5.00
  • Contact your local county tax office to verify fees and payment methods

Your plates will arrive at the main office of the County Tax Assessor-Collector for your county of residence in approximately three to four weeks. Please note: Embossed designs may take 4 to 5 weeks due to the additional manufacturing steps required. To produce. Cars, trucks and motor homes receive two (2) plates, motorcycles/mopeds and trailers receive one (1) plate. We encourage you to contact your main County Tax Assessor-Collector's office to confirm the plates have arrived and are available for collection.

Vehicle: yes, provided that the transfer is:

• Only to the same class of vehicle (Ex: car or truck to car or truck, motorcycle to motorcycle, trailer to trailer, etc...).
  • in this example, “truck” must have a gross vehicle weight of 18,000 lbs. or less. Please contact your local County Tax Assessor-Collector office should you need clarification regarding your truck's classification.
• Between vehicles you own: Your County Tax Assessor-Collector's office staff will issue a new registration sticker and assist with the transfer.
• To a vehicle purchased from a dealer: You should remove your specialty plates and ask your dealer to transfer the plates to your new vehicle.
• To a vehicle purchased from another motorist in a private sale: Go to your main County Tax Assessor-Collector's office to register them as you title the vehicle in your name.
• You can find more information at www.txdmv.gov/motorists.

Person: only if the plate is a My Plates Select plate won at Auction:

• My Plates hosts periodic auctions, where highly sought-after, unique and rare plate messages are bid upon
• My Plates Select Auction plates are the only Texas specialty plates that are fully transferable: between vehicles and between persons
• Auction plates may be passed down amongst a family, given to a friend, or sold to another person; all while maintaining its Auction plate transferability status
• Auction plates, once sold, may never be available again, because as long as the Auction plate is registered at the end of each 5-year term, it will not become publicly available again
• For more information on My Plates Select Auction plates, go to the My Plates Auction page

Yes! It is called "Porting", and it is done in conjunction with a new My Plates Select purchase. Please call the My Plates Select customer service center at 888-769-7528, M-F 8a-5p to Port your plate message.

Yes! It is called a "Restyle". You may Restyle by speaking to one of our My Plates Select customer service center agents at 888-769-7528, M-F 8a-5p. Restyling is done for the same term-length that you originally purchased, at a one-time charge of $50, or $75 if selecting an Embossed design.

 The TxDMV contracts with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) to manufacture all flat-print license plates. The plates are made by offenders at the Wynne Correctional Unit in Huntsville, TX. Embossed plates are sourced outside of TDCJ.

We do not offer refunds. As plates are custom manufactured specifically for you, they cannot be reused or returned.

All specialty plate renewals are handled by the TxDMV and your local County Tax-Assessor Collector office, as part of your annual vehicle registration process and form you receive from them. The end of your specialty plate term is a great time to decide if you want a new My Plates Select plate and message, or to keep the one you have. Because your life changes, so should perhaps your plate and message. If you want a new My Plates Select plate, call our friendly Customer Service Center at 888-769-7528, M-F 8a-5p or just click here to Create A Plate.

Yes, you can do so through the normal online plate purchase process. You will need the recipient's name and address, including their county of residence, and identify them as the "Plate Owner" in the order process. All specialty plates are delivered to the County Tax Assessor-Collector office of the "Plate Owner", which is not necessarily the same as the "Purchaser's" county of residence. Policies regarding picking-up another person’s plates may differ by County, and you are encouraged to contact the "Plate Owner's" County Tax Assessor-Collector office for details.

While we do not offer gift cards for purchase, My Plates still make a great gift! Please reference FAQ #21, or the Customer Service Center will be pleased to answer any questions regarding the purchase of a plate as a gift for another and assist you in that order if desired.

These will be handled by your local county tax office:

• There is a $6 charge for the replacement of personalized plates.
• If the plates were damaged in production or shipping, there is no charge to order a replacement.

Note: Plates damaged in production/shipping should be identified at receipt and immediately brought to the attention of the county tax office. The tax office will collect the plates and request remanufacture.

T-Plates were redesigned to meet legibility concerns. The original designs, on the road since 2009 and eligible to remain in use until 2021, are read like this. The new T-Plate designs, launched in late 2014, feature messages that are read just like any other personalized message; read the T right along with the remainder of the message in the center of the plate.

Yes.

Available room for special characters: The designs on plates affect the number of letters, numbers and special characters allowable as part of a personalized message. My Plates Select plates can contain a combination of up to 8 letters, numbers and special characters.

These special characters can personalize your plate:

• Dash
• Period
• Heart
• Silhouette of the State of Texas
• Lone Star
• A "space"
• The International Symbol of Access (ISA)

Yes. To assist law enforcement, the TxDMV has added holographic security features into the sheeting of every plate. A 3M Ensure(TM) seal may be seen in the center of the plate. Two 3M Ensure(TM) virtual security threads may be seen running vertically from the top of the plate to the bottom of the plate. The threads can sometimes appear as squiggly lines when reflecting light. If you have any questions regarding the security features, please call the TxDMV customer service center at 1-888-368-4689.

Plates are sometimes removed from inventory due to organization request, or for not meeting State plate threshold minimums or for being sunset per State requirements. If your plate design is removed from the program, it will be valid for the remainder of its purchased term. Specialty plates are valid for the original term purchased (1, 5, or 10 years before 12-01-14 and 1, 3, or 5 years if purchased on or after 12-01-14.) At the end of your term, you will have the option of selecting another specialty license plate or obtaining a general issue license plate. Click link for additional information: Discontinued Plates

Every purchased plate message is reviewed by the TxDMV following the sale. Some messages will be declined after purchase. A purchased message deemed by the TxDMV at the time of their review as indecent, vulgar or derogatory or references illegal activity, among other reasons, will be declined. The full list of official decline criteria are reviewable here: TxDMV Plate Guidelines and Restrictions

• If your My Plates Select plate message is declined, you will be contacted by My Plates Customer Service within a few days of your purchase.
• If your State Sponsored plate message is declined, you will be contacted by the TxDMV Customer Service Center within a few days of your purchase.

In both cases, you will have the opportunity to change to an acceptable message, appeal your declined message to the TxDMV or request a full refund.

We are sorry to hear that you left Texas but hope that you are settling into your new home. Your Texas license plates are yours to keep. Consider them a souvenir from our great state and something to remember us by. Should you choose to recycle your old Texas plates, cut them into pieces and place them in the recycle bin. This will prevent fraudulent use of the plates.