Georgia Department of Revenue

**MVD Office Hours: 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday thru Friday excluding state holidays **

How long is a dealer-issue temporary tag valid?

A dealer-issue temporary tag is valid for thirty-days (30) from the date you purchase the vehicle from the dealership.

You may operate your vehicle with the dealer-issue temporary tag affixed during the thirty-day period of time that you have to register and to obtain a license plate for it from your County Tax Commissioner's office. The dealer cannot issue you an extension or another tag. Your vehicle must be covered with the required liability insurance for it to be legally driven and for it to be registered and a license plate issued or transferred to it. Non-motorized vehicles and vehicles exempt from registration in this state do not require liability insurance.

We encourage dealers to remove the license plates from trade-in vehicles and return them to the vehicle owners. The vehicle owner may transfer the license plate from their trade-in vehicle to their newly purchased vehicle when both vehicles require the same price/type license plate.* The selling dealer is not required to apply for a license plate or license plate transfer for you, but is encouraged to do so.

For vehicles requiring a Georgia title, a license plate cannot be issued or transferred until either a Georgia title has been issued for the vehicle in the applicant's name or a title is applied for at the time of application. The selling dealer is required to obtain a title for their customer when the vehicle requires a title.

If the selling dealer fails to obtain a title, when a title is required, for transfer to you (the purchaser) within five-days (5) of the expiration date of your dealer-issue tag, you may obtain one thirty-day (30) temporary tag from your County Tax Commissioner's office. You will be required to turn in your dealer-issue temporary tag for destruction; show proof of ownership (bill of sale) and positive identification, your valid Georgia driver's license or Georgia identification card. Click here to see if your vehicle requires a Georgia title.

Situations When the Dealer Cannot Issue a Temporary Tag

Your vehicle, i.e. a commercial traveling interstate, is to be registered under the International Registration Plan (IRP).
Your vehicle is a salvage vehicle.
Your vehicle is not self-propelled.
The dealer did not sell the vehicle to you.

*Example: Your license plate for your pick-up truck (traded-in) can be transferred to your passenger car or pick-up truck (newly purchased) but your trailer license plate cannot because they are issued a different type/price license plates. Click here to view a chart showing the different license plate types and the cost for each.