When do license plates expire? (DMV, inspection, tax)

[sapphire]

Originally Posted by OzzyRules

I last paid at HEB about 2 years ago. Their policy at the time was, you could pay there as long as you didn't let the tags expire.

Originally Posted by ged_782

I got a new sticker at an HEB a couple of months ago for my vehicle. You need to have the renewal notice you got in the mail, and they can't do it if it has already expired. They also charge a $1 service fee.

Great info, thanks! I do it online these days, but someone else may use HEB!

[ShaneSA]

It should tell you how to do it on line. If they expire the end of January, you should have time to get it done.

[oktoflgrl]

awesome! Thanks! I knew this would be the best place to come for help.

[sdodd]

Originally Posted by sapphire

Can you still renew them at HEB? It's been years since I've done that.

Yes you can pay at HEB i do it all the time, just make sure you have proof of insurance and your license and you are good to go.

[nan5623]

Does Texas require vehicles to be inspected? Once a year or what?

[sapphire]

Yes, once a year. It's easiest if your registration tag and your inspection tag are for the same month--you get both done and you're done for the year.

[nan5623]

WOW ~~ they haven't initiated that in Illinois ~~ yet. My daughter lives in Tennessee and they have vehicle inspections there also.

[HillCountryHotRodMan]

Yahaw got my HR inspected today and me new sticker on it. Official Inspectin' Station is up to $18.00 now, in case anyone is interested.

[Steel Man]

Originally Posted by sapphire

Yes, once a year. It's easiest if your registration tag and your inspection tag are for the same month--you get both done and you're done for the year.

True. If you buy a new car, then your initial inspection is good for 2 years.

[ged_782]

Originally Posted by sapphire

Yes, once a year. It's easiest if your registration tag and your inspection tag are for the same month--you get both done and you're done for the year.

If you want your registration to expire the same month as your inspection sticker, you may have to go ahead and have your vehicle re-inspected the same month that your registration expires. I think most of the car dealers do the State Inspection on new vehicles as soon as they are delivered from the factory. That's often one way to tell right off the bat how long a new vehicle has been sitting on the dealer's lot. When the vehicle is initially registered, the expiration will be on the last day of the eleventh month after the initial registration date.

Originally Posted by Steel Man

True. If you buy a new car, then your initial inspection is good for 2 years.

Yes, the initial inspection sticker is permitted to be issued for two years, but once a two-year sticker has been issued to a particular new vehicle, all subsequent inspections are only good for one year.

I learned that the hard way several years ago when I bought a brand new car that had been sitting on a dealer's lot for a looong time. There was still a little more than a year left on the two-year sticker, but the car had a damaged windshield that the dealer agreed to replace prior to delivery. They also told me they would go ahead and issue a new inspection sticker, since the initial sticker had been issued so long ago. When I took delivery of the car, it had a new inspection sticker, but it was only for one year, giving me less time than what was left on the initial two-year sticker. They told me that the law does not allow another two-year sticker to be issued after the initial one.