How to renew

You don’t need your renewal notice to renew your tabs. You can:

• Renew your tabs online and pay with a MasterCard, Visa, or American Express credit or debit card (not prepaid gift cards).
  • If your vehicle requires a DOT number, you can’t renew online for the 1st year.
  • If you need to renew your boat decals, renew your boat registration online separately.
• Renew in person at a vehicle licensing office and pay with cash, check, or money order. (An additional service fee may apply.)
• Renew by mail. Follow the instructions on your vehicle renewal notice and pay with a check or money order.

When to renew

You can renew your vehicle tabs and registration up to 6 months before the expiration date. Check your vehicle registration, renewal notice, or email reminder to find the exact date your tabs expire.

• Email reminders
  When you sign up to get email reminders, we’ll send you an email before your tabs expire. You won’t get a printed renewal notice in the mail anymore, but you’ll still have the opportunity to request a printed notice when you get the email reminder.
• Renewal notices
  If you haven’t signed up to get email reminders, we’ll mail you a renewal notice when your vehicle tabs and registration are due. Please keep your address updated so we can mail the notice to you.

Requirements

Before you renew

You can’t renew your tabs until you:

• Pay any unpaid parking tickets and related penalty fees.
• Pay any unpaid tolls. See the Department of Transportation website to see how Good To Go! electronic tolling can help you avoid unpaid tolls.
• If your vehicle has a declared gross weight over 55,000 pounds, pay Federal Heavy Vehicle Use Tax.
• If you live in a county with emissions standards, pass an emissions test.
• Meet any other requirements listed on your renewal notification.

When you renew:

• You must verify your residence street address or your principal place of business address.
• All registered owners of the vehicle must present an unexpired driver license. For information on exceptions to this requirement, contact your vehicle licensing office.
• You must pay all fees related to the renewal of your vehicle tabs and registration.
  • If your tabs will expire within 6 months, you can calculate your vehicle tab fees to find out how much it will cost to get your new tabs. For more information, see Renewal fees.
  • If you have a special license plate, you may have additional requirements or fees when you renew. For more information, see Special plates.

Donations

You may choose to donate to the Organ and Tissue Donation Awareness Account or the State Parks Account when you renew your tabs. For details, see Donations.

When you’ll get your new tabs and registration

• If you get them by mail, we’ll mail them within 7 working days.
• If you pick them up, they should be ready by the time you get to the vehicle licensing office. You’ll be required to show photo identification (such as a driver license or ID card) to get them.
• If you’re required to get replacement license plates when you renew your tabs, we’ll usually mail the new plates separately in 3–5 business days. For more information, see Required 7-year replacement plates.

If you don’t get your tabs in the mail:

• Within 7 working days, please contact the vehicle licensing office you requested them from. If the post office couldn’t deliver the tabs to your address, they may have returned them to the vehicle licensing office.
• Within 15–90 days, you may be able to get replacement tabs. See Replace lost tabs to learn more.

Deployed military

If you are a member of the United States Armed Forces stationed outside of Washington when your vehicle tabs expire, you may receive a new tab expiration date. The expiration date will be 1 year from the day you apply, so the registration is valid for a full 12-month period.

To get this new expiration date, you must provide a copy of your military orders showing the dates you were stationed out of Washington. Your tab expiration date must fall within the dates shown on your military orders.

You may apply for this new expiration date in person or by mail. It isn’t available online.

• Apply in person at a vehicle licensing office. Bring along a copy of your military orders so we can verify your deployment dates, and a check or money order for the fees. (An additional service fee may apply.)
• Apply by mail. Please include all of the following:
  • Your tab renewal notice.
  • A copy of your military orders.
  • A check or money order for the fees.