{"id":105,"date":"2026-05-07T10:41:20","date_gmt":"2026-05-07T10:41:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dallasrelocationhubs.com\/?p=105"},"modified":"2026-05-11T05:00:38","modified_gmt":"2026-05-11T05:00:38","slug":"five-things-to-know-about-texas-license-plates-why-two-plates-are-required-and-more-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dallasrelocationhubs.com\/?p=105","title":{"rendered":"Five things to know about Texas license plates: Why two plates are required and more"},"content":{"rendered":"
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For more than 100 years, Texas has been issuing license plates to vehicle owners. With more than 26 million vehicles registered in Texas today, plates are ubiquitous in the Lone Star State.<\/p>

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But what is their purpose? Where do the fees you pay go? And what about their design?<\/p><\/div>

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Here\u2019s everything you need to know about license plates in Texas:<\/p><\/div>

The basics<\/strong><\/h2><\/div>

License plates are issued to drivers as proof of their registration. Fees associated with license plates and registration fund the building and maintenance of public roadways. The state\u00a0 in vehicle registration, title fees and vehicle sales taxes in the 2025 fiscal year, according to the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles (TxDMV).<\/p><\/div>

The current design, which has been in use since 2012, is called \u201cThe Texas Classic.\u201d The design, according to\u00a0TxDMV, was the first in the country to feature two embedded high-visibility security threads to help law enforcement identify legitimate plates.<\/p><\/div>

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In addition to plates, drivers are issued windshield registration stickers which must be replaced yearly when registration is renewed. The annual registration fee for passenger vehicles 6,000 pounds or less is $50.75 to the state plus additional fees including local county fees. These fees vary by county with Dallas, Collin, Denton,\u00a0Kaufman and Rockwall counties all adding an additional $11.50 while Tarrant and Ellis counties charge an additional $10.<\/p><\/div>

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License plates are a standard 12 inches wide by six inches tall with rounded corners. Texas drivers are required to have two plates: one in the rear and another in the front.<\/p><\/div>

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How do you register your car?<\/strong><\/h2><\/div>

In order to register a car in Dallas County, you\u2019ll need two key things: car insurance and a vehicle emissions inspection.<\/p><\/div>

For insurance, Texas requires minimum coverage of $30,000 per injured person, up to a total of $60,000 for everyone injured in an accident and also $25,000 for property damage. An emissions inspection is only required in certain counties in Texas, mostly those around major cities, including Dallas and Fort Worth. Inspections can be done at any station certified by the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) and can be done quickly \u2014\u00a0 often under half an hour \u00a0\u2014\u00a0 at a cost of $18.50 in North Texas.<\/p><\/div>

Once you have both of those, you\u2019ll need to go to your county tax-assessor collector office. You\u2019ll need your insurance card, a passing emissions inspection and proof of ownership such as the title or, if moving to Texas, registration from a previous state in order to complete the registration process.\u00a0<\/p><\/div>

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Why does Texas require two plates?<\/strong><\/h2><\/div>

According to the Texas Administrative Code, the two-plate requirement serves various purposes:<\/p>

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