The U.S. state of

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

first required its residents to register their

motor vehicle A motor vehicle, also known as motorized vehicle or automotive vehicle, is a self-propelled land vehicle, commonly wheeled, that does not operate on Track (rail transport), rails (such as trains or trams) and is used for the transportation of pe ...

s in 1907. Registrants provided their own

license plate A vehicle registration plate, also known as a number plate (British English), license plate (American English), or licence plate ( Canadian English), is a metal or plastic plate attached to a motor vehicle or trailer for official identificati ...

s for display, with serial numbers assigned by their county of residence, until the state began to issue plates in 1917. , plates are issued by the

Texas Department of Motor Vehicles The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles (TxDMV) is a state agency of Texas, headquartered in Austin, Texas, Austin. The agency handles vehicle registration and titling, authorizes operating authorities of motor carriers, and gives grants to law enfo ...

(TxDMV). Front and rear plates are required for most classes of vehicles, while only rear plates are required for motorcycles, trailers and antique vehicles.

Passenger baseplates

1917 to 1974

In 1956, the United States, Canada, and Mexico came to an agreement with the

American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators The American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators (AAMVA) is a non-governmental, voluntary, tax-exempt, nonprofit educational association. AAMVA is a private corporation which strives to develop model programs in motor vehicle administration, ...

, the

Automobile Manufacturers Association The Automobile Manufacturers Association was a trade group of automobile manufacturers which operated under various names in the United States from 1911 to 1999. A different group called the Automobile Manufacturers' Association was active in the ...

and the

National Safety Council The National Safety Council (NSC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, public service organization promoting health and safety in the United States. Headquartered in Itasca, Illinois, NSC is a member organization, founded in 1913 and granted a congressi ...

that standardized the size for license plates for vehicles (except those for

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...

s) at in height by in width, with standardized mounting holes. The first Texas license plate that complied with these standards was a modification of the 1955 plate, introduced towards the end of that year.

1975 to present

Non-passenger plates

Temporary tags

Temporary tags are issued to unregistered vehicles and to vehicles registered in states that do not have a reciprocity agreement with Texas. These tags are printed on paper and are used mainly by dealers. , four types are available: three are valid for 72 hours, 144 hours, and 30 days respectively; the fourth is the "one-trip" tag, which is issued only to unladen vehicles traveling from a single origin to a single destination (either of which must be in Texas) and is valid for 15 days. In February 2022, it was reported that as many as 1.2 million fraudulent temporary Texas tags were sold in the United States in 2021. Due to inadequate security standards in the dealer application process in Texas, fraudulent individuals posing as dealers could purchase licenses for less than $800. This gave them access to the Texas DMV database, which they could use to print temporary tags and sell them online for profit. Most drivers who purchased the tags did so to make their vehicles untraceable when committing crimes, or to avoid paying tolls and registration fees.

Optional plates

Texas has more specialty plates than any other state, with 506 available.

References

External links

Texas license plates, 1969–present
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vehicle registration plates of Texas

Texas transportation-related lists Transportation in Texas