Tex. Codes » Transportation Code · TITLE 7. VEHICLES AND TRAFFIC · SUBTITLE A. CERTIFICATES OF TITLE AND REGISTRATION OF VEHICLES · CHAPTER 502. REGISTRATION OF VEHICLES
Texas Codes

Tex. Transp. Code § 502.407 (2026)

Operation Of Vehicle With Expired License Plate

✓ current as of May 2026
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Sec. 502.407. OPERATION OF VEHICLE WITH EXPIRED LICENSE PLATE. (a) A person commits an offense if, after the fifth working day after the date the registration for the vehicle expires:

(1) the person operates on a public highway during a registration period a motor vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer that has attached to it a license plate for the preceding period; and

(2) the license plate has not been validated by the attachment of a registration insignia for the registration period in effect.

(b) A justice of the peace or municipal court judge having jurisdiction of the offense may:

(1) dismiss a charge of driving with an expired motor vehicle registration if the defendant:

(A) remedies the defect not later than the 20th working day after the date of the offense or before the defendant's first court appearance date, whichever is later; and

(B) establishes that the fee prescribed by Section 502.045 has been paid; and

(2) assess a reimbursement fee not to exceed $20 when the charge is dismissed.

(b-1) For purposes of dismissing a charge under Subsection (b), "day" does not include Saturday, Sunday, or a legal holiday.

(c) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that at the time of the offense:

(1) the office of the county assessor-collector for the county in which the owner of the vehicle resided was closed for a protracted period of time in accordance with department rules; and

(2) the vehicle's registration was expired for 30 working days or less.

Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 165, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995. Amended by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 207, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1999.

Amended by:

Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1027 (H.B. 1623), Sec. 2, eff. September 1, 2007.

Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1296 (H.B. 2357), Sec. 247(6), eff. January 1, 2012.

Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 161 (S.B. 1093), Sec. 20.012, eff. September 1, 2013.

Acts 2019, 86th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1292 (H.B. 2835), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2019.

Acts 2019, 86th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1352 (S.B. 346), Sec. 2.62, eff. January 1, 2020.

Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 592 (S.B. 876), Sec. 7, eff. March 1, 2022.

Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 919 (S.B. 1923), Sec. 10, eff. September 1, 2021.

Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 765 (H.B. 4504), Sec. 1.003, eff. January 1, 2025.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 17 cases (5 in the last 5 years), 1999–2026 · leading case: Graves v. State, 307 S.W.3d 483 (Tex. App. 2010).
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Graves v. State, 307 S.W.3d 483 (Tex. App. 2010). “See Tex. TRAnsp. Code Ann. § 502.407 (Vernon Supp.”
Joseph Taylor v. State, 410 S.W.3d 520 (Tex. App. 2013). “See Tex. Transp. Code Ann. § 502.407 (West 2013).”
United States v. Steele, 353 F. App'x 908 (5th Cir. 2009). “See Tex. Transp. Code § 502.407. That Officer Cary Walker, the officer who stopped Steele, did not recite the specific section of the Texas Transportation Code that Steele violated did not make the stop invalid; so long as there was an objective reason to make the stop, “the…”
Montpas v. State, 997 S.W.2d 650 (Tex. App. 1999). “See Tex. TRAnsp. Code Ann. § 502.407 (Vernon Pamph.”
United States v. Gonzalez, 121 F. Supp. 3d 1094 (D.N.M. 2015). “Tex. Transp. Code § 502.407(a)(1). Failing to display a license plate on a vehicle’s rear bumper violates § 504.”
Francisco Javier Gonzalez v. State (Tex. App. 2015). · cites it 2× “6 TEX. TRANSP. CODE ANN. § 502.407 (West Supp.”
Alexander Howell Turner v. State (Tex. App. 2018). “See TEX. TRANSP. CODE ANN. §§ 502.407, 502.473.”
Richard Anthony Galindo v. State (Tex. App. 2019). “TEX. TRANSP. CODE ANN. § 502.407; Taylor v.”
United States v. Victor Molinero Puente (5th Cir. 2019). “Regardless of Molinero Puente’s purported conduct as a “scout” vehicle for Sanchez Villa, Officer Estrada and Agent Lozano had probable cause to stop and arrest Molinero Puente in light of his three violations of Texas law—driving with an expired license plate, driving without a…”
Joe Michael Enriquez v. the State of Texas (Tex. App. 2023). “3 TEX. TRANSP. CODE §§ 502.407, 502.475. -2- 04-21-00424-CR and Enriquez’s answers were suspicious because in his personal experience goats were not sheared 4 and because he noticed that neither Arispe nor Enriquez had sheep or goat hair on them.”
SHIRLEY, JR., ANDREW v. the State of Texas (Tex. Crim. App. 2023). “2 Appellant 1 See Tex. Transp. Code Ann. §§ 502.407 (a), 502.”
SHIRLEY, JR., ANDREW v. the State of Texas (Tex. Crim. App. 2023). “See Tex. Transp. Code §§ 502.407, 502.473. So they are not subject to suspension under the Disaster Act.”
Show all 17 citing cases →
— Tex. Transp. Code § 502.407(a) — 1 case
Prather v. City of Conroe (S.D. Tex. 2024).
— Tex. Transp. Code § 502.407(a)(1) — 1 case
United States v. Gonzalez, 121 F. Supp. 3d 1094 (D.N.M. 2015). “Tex. Transp. Code § 502.407(a)(1). Failing to display a license plate on a vehicle’s rear bumper violates § 504.”
— Tex. Transp. Code § 502.407(b)(1)(A) — 1 case
Donald Lynn Thompson, Jr. v. Matagorda Cnty., et al. (S.D. Tex. 2026).
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