Please review and distribute as appropriate.
The latest update to the Motor Vehicle Registration Manual (attached) is now available via Registration and Title System (RTS) workstations and at www.txdmv.gov.
The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles welcomes your feedback and encourages you to email any comments or suggestions to VTR_Title_Reg-Manual-Update@txdmv.gov (please note the underscores between VTR and Title and between Title and Reg).
Updates for this release are marked with red change bars in the text.
Various sections of the Registration Manual have been updated to reflect House Bill (HB) 718 changes as it relates to the naming convention of “Temporary Registration Plate.”
Chapter 1 – Accounting
Section 1.1, “General Provisions,” is updated to remove the $1 discount for renewals that are processed online.
Chapter 3 – Disabled Persons
Section 3.13, “Parking Privileges,” was updated to add Disabled Peace Officer license plates with the International Symbol of Access (ISA) may park in disabled parking spaces.
Chapter 4 – Driver’s Privacy Protection Act
Section 4.12, “Federal DPPA and Texas MVRDA,” was updated to add Temporary Registration Plates (30-Day, One-Trip) to the “Express Written Consent” section.
Chapter 12 – Off-Highway, Log Loader, Forestry, & Miscellaneous
Section 12.13, “Vehicles Subject to Registration or Eligible for Distinguishing License Plates,” was updated to add a new section regarding the issuance of Frac Tank License Plates.
Chapter 14 – Application for Registration
Section 14.2, “Application for Registration and Certain Permits,” was updated to add a hyperlink to the new Title & Initial Registration Transaction Types chart.
Section 14.4 “Initial Registration,” The note was updated to state military members serving abroad or out-of-state and claiming Texas residency may obtain registration without providing a physical Texas address.
Section 14.5 “Identification Requirements for Initial Registration,” was updated to add new ID requirements for initial registration and the new Title & Initial Registration Transaction Types chart.
Section 14.14 “Voluntary Disclosure of Military Status,” was updated to add a new section regarding the voluntary disclosure of military status by a registration applicant.
Chapter 16 – Temporary Permits
Various sections of Chapter 16 have been updated to reflect HB 718 changes as it relates to the naming convention of “Temporary Registration Plate.”
Section 16.2, “One-Trip (single trip) or 30-Day Temporary License Plates,” was also updated to specify that additional time can be added to a temporary registration plate that is customer supplied.
Chapter 17 – Transfer of Registration When Applying for Title
Section 17.2, “Dealer Sales,” was updated to add a new section which specifies dealers will issue metal plates at the time of the sale. Additionally, this section specifies which plates will be issued in the event dealers do not have the appropriate plate type in their inventory.
Section 17.5, “Plate to Owner Transactions,” was updated to specify what a dealer must do with a license plate on a motor vehicle if that vehicle has been purchased from the dealer.
Chapter 18 – Specialty and Personalized Plates
Section 18.3, “Souvenir License Plates,” was updated to specify that the recipient of the license plates must file an application with the county tax assessor-collector and pay the statutorily required registration.
Thank you,
Annette Quintero, Director
Vehicle Titles and Registration Division
Texas Department of Motor Vehicles
Motor Vehicle Registration Manual – April 2026.pdf
If you have any questions concerning this communication, please contact your local Texas Department of Motor Vehicles Regional Service Center.
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