Do you need to get license plate tabs on both the front and back plates in WA?

Submitted by Polymita t3_10aotml in Washington

I recently bought my first car used from a dealership and just got the front and back license plates in the mail, but only got the new tabs on one of the license plates, the other doesn't have any.

The registration states that the back plate needs to have tabs, but doesn't say anything about the front plate.

Do I need to get separate tabs for the front plate, or is it normal to only have tabs on the back in Washington? I want to make sure I'm not violating any bylaws, and couldn't find anything on the WA driver licensing website or via several Google searches to confirm either way.

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69rxn t1_j45g0gd wrote

You only need the tab on the back plate. Still need to mount the front plate to the vehicle though.

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Polymita OP t1_j45g3yl wrote

Thank you! Yep, I just mounted them earlier this evening.

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steven-daniels t1_j45gfw5 wrote

You do not need tabs on the front plate.

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katcomesback t1_j45g0qy wrote

just the back, when you get your tabs, they just give you one sticker

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Polymita OP t1_j45g58h wrote

Got it, thanks!

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lurkerfromstoneage t1_j45jbuq wrote

The month always stays the same. The year sticker will be the only one to come at renewal. You need to renew before the end of your month sticker. And you can easily do this online. Mine came in like 3 days very quick! Other offices may vary in time it takes to process. Obviously both need to be displayed (on the back plate yep) and it’s clearly defined which goes where… yet people still don’t do it right, by choice or just plain dumb.

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lurkerfromstoneage t1_j45j680 wrote

Month+ year = 2…. 2 stickers. For the first one… then just the year after that upon renewal.

Why are people only displaying a single year sticker? To evade renewals….? Or 2 different years next to each other….. so stupid.

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katcomesback t1_j45j9hn wrote

I’ve only had cars a few years but always had it combined in one

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lurkerfromstoneage t1_j45jp42 wrote

Like just a regular personal vehicle? They always come with 2 when you first get new plates. Then you only get year. Everyone should have a month. There’s no “combination.”

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LeftHandLuke01 t1_j46s2g4 wrote

I just ran into this yesterday while putting my new WA plates on my car. Plate with the tabs goes on the back, plate w/o goes on the front. Getting your license and registering your car are waaay easier here than in Idaho. Cheers

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[deleted] t1_j49w4d2 wrote

You didn’t ask DMV? Also, a five second google search would have sufficed 😂

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