| (a) To renew vehicle registration, a vehicle owner
must apply to the tax assessor-collector of the county in which the
owner resides or a county tax assessor-collector who is willing to
accept the application.
(b) The department will send a registration renewal
notice, indicating the proper registration fee and the month and year
the registration expires, to each vehicle owner prior to the expiration
of the vehicle's registration.
(c) The registration renewal notice should be returned
by the vehicle owner to the county tax assessor-collector in the county
in which the owner resides or a county tax assessor-collector who
is willing to accept the application, or to that tax assessor-collector's
deputy, either in person or by mail, unless the vehicle owner renews
via the Internet. The renewal notice must be accompanied by the following
documents and fees:
(1) registration renewal fees prescribed by law;
(2) any local fees or other fees prescribed by law
and collected in conjunction with registration renewal; and
(3) evidence of financial responsibility required by
Transportation Code, §502.046, unless otherwise exempted by law.
(d) If a registration renewal notice is lost, destroyed,
or not received by the vehicle owner, the vehicle may be registered
if the owner presents personal identification acceptable to the county
tax assessor-collector or via the Internet. Failure to receive the
notice does not relieve the owner of the responsibility to renew the
vehicle's registration.
(e) Renewal of expired vehicle registrations.
(1) If the owner has been arrested or cited for operating
the vehicle without valid registration then a 20% delinquency penalty
is due when registration is renewed, the full annual fee will be collected,
and the vehicle registration expiration month will remain the same.
(2) If the county tax assessor-collector or the department
determines that a registrant has a valid reason for being delinquent
in registration, the vehicle owner will be required to pay for 12
months' registration. Renewal will establish a new registration expiration
month that will end on the last day of the eleventh month following
the month of registration renewal.
(3) If the county tax assessor-collector or the department
determines that a registrant does not have a valid reason for being
delinquent in registration, the full annual fee will be collected
and the vehicle registration expiration month will remain the same.
(4) Specialty license plates, symbols, tabs, or other
devices may be prorated as provided in §217.45(d)(2) of this
title (relating to Specialty License Plates, Symbols, Tabs, and Other
Devices).
(5) Evidence of a valid reason may include receipts,
passport dates, and military orders. Valid reasons may include:
(A) extensive repairs on the vehicle;
(B) the person was out of the country;
(C) the vehicle is used only for seasonal use;
(D) military orders;
(E) storage of the vehicle;
(F) a medical condition such as an extended hospital
stay; and
(G) any other reason submitted with evidence that the
county tax assessor-collector or the department determines is valid.
(6) The operation of a vehicle with an expired registration
that has been stored or otherwise not in operation that is driven
only to an inspection station for the purpose of obtaining an inspection,
if applicable, required for registration, will not affect the determination
of whether the registrant has a valid or invalid reason for being
delinquent.
(f) For purposes of Transportation Code §502.407(c),
the county tax assessor-collector's office of the county in which
the owner resides is closed for a protracted period of time if the
county tax assessor-collector's office has notified the department
that it is closed or will be closed for more than one week.
|
| Source Note: The provisions of this §217.28 adopted to be effective March 12, 2015, 40 TexReg 1096; amended to be effective December 4, 2016, 41 TexReg 9335; amended to be effective March 1, 2022, 47 TexReg 968; amended to be effective November 14, 2024, 49 TexReg 8980 |
