Virginia Emissions Decal (inspection, license plate, renewal)

[DC Oldtimer]

If I remember right you have 30 days after moving here to get a safety inspection on the car.

But I probably dont remember right, so you should confirm this with someone who drives more than I do.

[ChristineVA]

Originally Posted by DC Oldtimer

If I remember right you have 30 days after moving here to get a safety inspection on the car.

But I probably dont remember right, so you should confirm this with someone who drives more than I do.

This is true. The DMV will not require the safety inspection at the time of registration. You have 30 days after registering to have the inspection completed. If you get pulled over for not having a sticker, you show the officer the recent registration to waive the ticket. If you are ticketed while parked you will have to appeal your ticket with proof that at time you were cited you were within 30 days of your registration. It behooves you to get the inspection done as quickly as possible.

[South Jersey Styx]

I think that 30-day rule changed. According to the VA State Police web site:

"Once you have registered a vehicle with the Division of Motor Vehicles in the state of Virginia, it must be inspected immediately; there is no grace period."

See: Virginia State Police - Safety Division

I thought emissions is dictated by population density? For example, when I first moved to Loudoun Country, emissions inspection was not a requirement. It changed after the County became more populated. Now I live in Winchester (Frederick County) and there is no emissions inspections required.

Actually I looked it up and it seems that only Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun , Prince William and Stafford Counties and certain NoVA cities require emissions:

"If your vehicle is garaged in the counties of Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, Prince William, or Stafford, or the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax, Falls Church, Manassas or Manassas Park, your vehicle must meet the emissions inspection requirements. Inspections are valid for two years and may be obtained by having your vehicle inspected by a certified emissions inspection station."

Commonwealth of Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles

[flrnova]

I didn't bother inspecting one of my cars for about two years, so don't worry about it. I like having a clean windshield.

[car54]

Originally Posted by ChristineVA

This is true. The DMV will not require the safety inspection at the time of registration. You have 30 days after registering to have the inspection completed. If you get pulled over for not having a sticker, you show the officer the recent registration to waive the ticket. If you are ticketed while parked you will have to appeal your ticket with proof that at time you were cited you were within 30 days of your registration. It behooves you to get the inspection done as quickly as possible.

There is no grace period on the Safety Inspection, nor has there ever been. Va plates with no safety inspection and they can ticket you. I'm sure that there are cops out there that will cut a newcomer some slack on it, but they don't have to.

DMV will never ask for proof of the Safety Inspection, nor even mention it (unless asked)....because it has nothing to do with registering the car. For years, they did have a sign posted on the wall telling people that the sticker is required...don't know if they still do or not.

Basically, the Safety Inspection is between you and the cops.

[bornindc]

Originally Posted by South Jersey Styx

I thought emissions is dictated by population density? For example, when I first moved to Loudoun Country, emissions inspection was not a requirement. It changed after the County became more populated. Now I live in Winchester (Frederick County) and there is no emissions inspections required.

Actually I looked it up and it seems that only Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun , Prince William and Stafford Counties and certain NoVA cities require emissions:

"If your vehicle is garaged in the counties of Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, Prince William, or Stafford, or the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax, Falls Church, Manassas or Manassas Park, your vehicle must meet the emissions inspection requirements. Inspections are valid for two years and may be obtained by having your vehicle inspected by a certified emissions inspection station."

Commonwealth of Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles

The emissions test is required in jurisdictions with elevated air pollution levels (read: lots of traffic). Theoretically, if our NoVa air quality improves enough they will no longer be required.

[smy2011]

How to get 2011 Decals.

[smy2011]

What do I need to do to get my 2011 decals for auto?

[Flamingo13]

Renew your registration that should have been mailed to you, if not, contact the DMV. After you pay your renewal, they send back your new registration w/the new yr. stickers.

[michgc]

I have an interesting story to relay. Over Thanksgiving we were up in Pennsylvania driving on a residential street. We pass a police car and my dh as a joke says to me, "Okay play it cool." Next thing you know the cop's lights are on and he's pulling us over. We could not imagine what for. Turns out he was running license plate numbers through the computer and when he ran ours through, it came up that our car's registration had expired. He tells dh, "I see the '11' stickers on the plate but when I run the plate it says that your registration hasn't been renewed since 09." Huh? DH pulls out the registration and shows him that it most certainly was renewed. My husband who is a big license plate collector suggests that perhaps a specialty plate with our number hasn't been renewed. Cop goes back to his car and is gone for quite awhile. Finally comes back and says, that it is our car's tag that shows it hasn't been renewed, but when he plugs in the VIN it shows that it has. He's like "Man, Virginia's computer system is all messed up." And he lets us go. The next day, my husband calls the VA registration office. The woman on the other end makes a note of it and says this is not the first time that this has happened that the computer wasn't updated properly.

Moral of the story? Carry your registration on you! And you may be stopped even if you are not in Virginia.