What dealer plates are for, how a licensed dealer gets them, and what they cost, with the issuing agency, fee, and renewal term for each of the 24 states we cover.
How dealer plates work: they are license plates issued to a licensed dealer, not to one car. The dealer moves them between vehicles it owns and holds for sale, for customer test drives, moving inventory, and dealership business. When a car sells, the plate comes off and the buyer registers the car in their own name.
How to get them:
Demo time limits and personal-use rules differ by state, so check your state's guide before you rely on one.
A dealer plate belongs to the dealership, not to a vehicle. Instead of registering every car in inventory, a licensed dealer puts a dealer plate on whichever car needs to move: a customer test drive, a run to the auction or the body shop, or a trip on dealership business. When the car sells, the plate comes off and stays with the dealer; the buyer drives away on their own registration.
That buyer-side paperwork is the part DealerVLO handles: it fills your state's title and registration paperwork from the deal, using the official state form where the state publishes a fillable PDF and a print-ready worksheet of the deal's values where the state uses a portal or a controlled paper form.
The details are set state by state: who issues them, what they cost, how many you can have, how long a customer can demo a car on one, and whether any personal use is allowed. New York, for example, caps customer demos at 24 hours, while Texas lists personal use among its permitted uses. Always check your state before you rely on a rule from another one.
These three get mixed up a lot. Only the first one stays with your lot; the other two belong to a hauler or to your buyer.
| Type | Who it's for | State examples |
|---|---|---|
| Dealer plate | A licensed dealer, on vehicles it owns and holds for sale: demos, inventory moves, dealership business. | Every state here. Massachusetts issues them under a Section 5 general registration; Maryland calls them dealer tags; Missouri's are "D" plates. |
| Transporter plate | A business that moves vehicles it isn't selling, such as haulers and drive-away services. | Massachusetts and New York register them separately from dealer plates. Pennsylvania requires a contract with the dealer and limits them to loads of 1,000 pounds or less. Illinois has a similar in-transit plate. |
| Temporary tag | The buyer of a car you sold, while their title and registration process. | Florida's temporary dealer plate (30 days), Georgia's temporary operating permit, Massachusetts' 20-day temporary registration, North Carolina's temporary marker. Texas replaced paper buyer tags with a metal plate issued at the sale on July 1, 2025. |
Some states also have short-term plates for the dealer's own use. California puts temporary dealer plates in your DMV account as soon as you're licensed, to use while the metal plates arrive, and Texas sells dealer temporary plates for inventory before standard plates are issued. Colorado adds a fourth kind: a full-use dealer plate that allows personal driving but is priced like a regular registration.
Dealer plates are only valid while the credentials behind them are, and in some states insurance is one of those credentials. Massachusetts asks for proof of insurance with the Section 5 application and expects liability insurance kept current. Tennessee requires $300,000 of liability insurance for the dealer license the plates ride on. Washington lists insurance alongside the license and bond as things to keep current.
The state guides don't say who covers a customer during a test drive. Ask your insurance agent how your policy treats cars running on dealer plates before you hand over the keys.
Each figure comes from that state's full guide, verified against the state agency (dates on each guide). Fees change; confirm with the agency before you order.
| State | Issued by | Cost per plate | Term | Guide |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Alabama Department of Revenue (ALDOR) | $25 per dealer plate (ALDOR fee list) | Confirm the plate year with ALDOR | Guide |
| Arizona | Arizona MVD | $30 per plate (A.R.S. 28-4533) | Annual (with the dealer license) | Guide |
| California | California DMV Occupational Licensing | $92 per plate per year (+ county fees) | Renews with your dealer license | Guide |
| Colorado | Your County Clerk (authorization on your AID license) | $30 first demo plate, $7.50–$10 each after | Renewed through your County Clerk | Guide |
| Connecticut | CT DMV (Dealers and Repairers Licensing Unit) | $145 per plate ($79 motorcycle) | Renews with the two-year license | Guide |
| Florida | County tax collector / license plate agent | $17 tax + $27/yr use tax per plate; temp $2 + $2.50 fee | Annual | Guide |
| Georgia | Georgia DOR Motor Vehicle Division (DRIVES) | $62 first plate, $12 each additional | Renewed through DOR (confirm your plate year) | Guide |
| Illinois | Illinois Secretary of State | $45 first set + $13 per duplicate set | Annual (calendar year, with the license) | Guide |
| Indiana | Indiana Secretary of State, Auto Dealer Services | $40 for first 2 plates; $15 each extra (+ service charge) | Annual, renews with your dealer license | Guide |
| Iowa | Iowa DOT (Dealer Programs) | $40 per plate per two years (+ $70 certificate) | Expires December 31 of even-numbered years | Guide |
| Maryland | Maryland MVA | $150 per tag | Three years (with the dealer license) | Guide |
| Massachusetts | Massachusetts RMV (Section 5 Division) | $20/plate + $100/yr master registration | Annual | Guide |
| Minnesota | Minnesota DVS (Form PS2405) | $86 first 4; $51 each after | Per registration year (license year) | Guide |
| Missouri | Missouri DOR Motor Vehicle Bureau | $50 first plate, $10.50 each additional | Calendar year (expires Dec 31) | Guide |
| New Jersey | NJ MVC (Business Licensing Services) | $257.50 per set of 5 (~$51.50/plate) | Tied to the dealer license (expires March 31) | Guide |
| New York | New York DMV, with your dealer registration | $20 per set (one plate) per year | Expires with your dealer registration | Guide |
| North Carolina | NCSHP Investigative Services Unit | $46.25 first five, $23.13 each after | 2 years, with the dealer license (fee per plate per year) | Guide |
| Ohio | Ohio BMV (with the dealer license) | $50.25 master plate (required), $10.25 each additional | Follows the two-year license cycle | Guide |
| Oregon | Oregon DMV Business Licensing Unit | 1 included; extras $55 each | Renews with the three-year certificate | Guide |
| Pennsylvania | PennDOT (Form MV-349) | $70/yr or $140/2yr (car dealers) | 1 or 2 years | Guide |
| Tennessee | Your County Clerk (license via the TN MVC) | $50.05 master plate, $26.40 each additional | Renewed through your County Clerk | Guide |
| Texas | TxDMV (order in eLICENSING) | $90 standard plate; $10 dealer temporary plate | 2 years, expires with your GDN | Guide |
| Virginia | Applied for through the MVDB (form MVDB-9) | $60 for the first two, $26 each additional | Annual (fees listed per one-year renewal) | Guide |
| Washington | Washington DOL | $50.75/set original, $38.75 renewal | Annual (renews with the license) | Guide |
Selling a car to a buyer who has no plates to transfer is a different question: that is the buyer's own temporary registration, not your dealer plate. For an example, see Massachusetts temporary registrations for buyers, or compare dealer temporary tag rules by state.
Inventory, the deal jacket, and your state's title and registration forms filled from each deal — $29/month flat. $29/month, free to try — cancel any time.
Dealer plates are issued to a licensed dealer rather than to one car, and the dealer moves them between the vehicles it owns and holds for sale: customer test drives, runs to the auction or the shop, and dealership business. When a car sells, the plate comes off and stays with the dealer, and the buyer registers the car in their own name. To get them, get your dealer license first, then apply to the agency that issues dealer plates in your state (usually the DMV, in some states the county clerk or tax collector), pay the per-plate fee (about $10 to $150 per plate in the 24 states covered here), and renew on your state's schedule. Demo time limits and personal-use rules differ by state, so check your state's guide before you rely on one.
Dealer plates are license plates a state issues to a licensed vehicle dealer, rather than to one specific car. The dealer moves them between the vehicles it owns and holds for sale, so inventory can be test-driven, moved between the lot, the auction, and the shop, and used for dealership business without registering each car. They are not how a buyer drives a car home: a sold vehicle gets the buyer's own registration.
Get your dealer license first; every state covered here ties dealer plates to an active dealer license. Then apply to the agency that issues them in your state (the DMV, RMV, MVA, or in some states the county clerk or tax collector), pay the per-plate fee, and renew them on the schedule your state sets, usually with the license. Each state guide below walks through the exact steps.
It depends on the state and on how many plates you order. In the 24 states covered here, fees run from about $10 to $150 per plate: Ohio charges $10.25 per additional plate, New York $20 per set per year, and Maryland $150 per tag, which covers its three-year license term. Several states price the first plates differently from additional ones, and a few add county or material fees.
Yes, they expire, and they usually renew with the dealer license. Most states covered here renew them every year, but Pennsylvania offers one- or two-year plates, Maryland tags run the license's three-year term, and Texas plates expire the same day the dealer license does. If the license or bond lapses, the plates stop being valid with it.
Some states cap the count by your sales. Ohio allows up to 2 plates at 1 to 10 sales a year, North Carolina up to 3 below 12 sales, and Illinois gives a dealer with 50 sales one master set plus up to seven duplicate sets; Georgia starts at one plate for your first five sales. Others, like Colorado and Massachusetts, let you order what you need, but the agency can question a count that looks out of line with your sales.
The state plate rules we checked don't spell out a traffic stop, so here is what they do say. Pennsylvania requires the dealer-plate registration card to stay with the vehicle, Illinois expects each plate matched to its registration card, and Washington notes that law enforcement can check which plate is on which car. Carry the card, keep a plate log, and make sure the trip is a use your state allows, such as a demo inside New York's 24-hour limit.
Usually people mean the temporary tag a buyer drives home on, not a dealer plate. Florida's temporary dealer plate is good for 30 days, and Georgia calls its version a temporary operating permit. Texas ended paper buyer tags on July 1, 2025 (HB 718); dealers there now issue the buyer a metal plate at the sale. California dealers also get temporary dealer plates in their DMV account to use while the metal plates arrive.
Dealer plates go on vehicles the dealership owns and holds for sale. Transporter plates are a separate registration for businesses that move vehicles: in Massachusetts, vehicles they don't own and aren't selling, like drive-away services and haulers; in New York, vehicles they don't hold for sale. Pennsylvania transporter plates also need a contract with the dealer and are limited to loads of 1,000 pounds or less.
In several states the plates depend on it. Massachusetts asks for proof of insurance with the dealer plate application and expects liability insurance kept current, Tennessee requires $300,000 of liability insurance for the dealer license the plates ride on, and Washington lists insurance with the license and bond as things to keep current. Ask your insurance agent how your policy covers cars running on dealer plates, including customer test drives.
Generally yes, since demonstrating a vehicle for sale is one of the main things dealer plates are for, but states limit how long. New York, for example, treats a customer demo over 24 hours as loaning the dealer's plate. Check your state's guide for its demo and loan rules.
Only where the state allows it. Texas lists personal use by the dealer, family, and employees among the permitted uses of its dealer plates, and Colorado sells a separate full-use dealer plate priced like a regular registration. California rules personal use out, and most of the states covered here limit dealer plates to demos, inventory moves, and dealership business. Treat personal use as not allowed unless your state's rules say otherwise.