Many people in Texas have a collecting hobby.  These collectible items include signs, bikes, cars, toys, watches, coins, etc.  Collecting can be done with almost any item.  However, if you are a collector of this item, you may be breaking the law by having this in your home.

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License Plates

In many states, you are required to surrender your license plates when you are finished with your car.  That means you cannot hold onto your old plates.  If you are a license plate collector then you may be breaking the law with your license plate wall in your home, garage, or shop.

According to Junk Car Medics, these are the following states that require you to surrender your license plates.

  • Florida
  • Georgia
  • Kentucky
  • Louisiana (if not keeping a prestige or specialty plate)
  • Mississippi
  • Nebraska (if not transferring to a new vehicle)
  • New Jersey (if not transferring to a new vehicle)
  • New Mexico (if not transferring to a new vehicle)
  • New York (if not transferring to a new vehicle)
  • Pennsylvania (if not transferring to a new vehicle)

Texas isn't one of those states. So collect away and enjoy your license plate collection.  In Texas, you are allowed to keep your old plates, heck you can even transfer your plates from one car to another.  At one point in time in Texas, you had to get new license plates every 7 years, but not anymore

According to the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles, as of November 1, 2016, the State of Texas no longer requires automatically replacing your plates after 7 years. However, you may apply at your county tax office for replacement plates if your license plates need to be replaced for cosmetic or readability reasons. If you decide not to keep your license plates when you sell or dispose of your vehicle, the plates should be disposed of by defacing the front of the plate with permanent black ink, or similar method, in order to prevent their fraudulent use.

How many old license plates do you currently have?

The Top 10 Funny Rejected Texas License Plates

The Texas DMV allows you to construct a message using: letters, numbers, spaces, and symbols including hyphens, periods, hearts, stars, or the state silhouette. However the message is not allowed to be indecent, vulgar, or have derogatory content.

5 Ways You Could Be Ticketed for Your License Plates in Texas

Avoid getting a ticket by law enforcement for your license plates by making sure you avoid these things.

Gallery Credit: Billy Jenkins

Texas DMV Denies These Personalized License Plates

Vanity (or personalized) license plates on vehicles can be fun and whimsical. Some owners get very creative when it comes to the right combination of letters and numbers to get their message across in those precious seven characters or less. However, the State of Texas didn't approve the requests to have these personalized plates printed.

Gallery Credit: Lucky Larry, Mix 93-1

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