Personalized License Plates
Every vehicle registered in Indiana must bear a license plate in a visible location on the rear of the vehicle. Regular license plates are issued for vehicles registered in Indiana every four years, or when a newly acquired vehicle is registered in the state, or when a vehicle owner becomes a resident of the state. Special recognition license plates allows motorists to support Indiana universities, colleges, military personnel, and various organizations.
Indiana's license plates
- Regular license plates
- College and university license plates
- Military license plates
- Organizational license plates
- Motorcycle license plates
The Indiana personalized license plate program was implemented in 1977. The program allows Hoosiers to show off their personal creativity while traveling in and out of state. The cost for reserving a personalized license plate is $48 annually, payable at the time of your reservation, in addition to the normal registration fees. Personalized license plate are available on a standard passenger plate background or on a special recognition license plate background (additional fees apply).
Skip your next license branch visit and create a myBMV account today. Your personal myBMV account is a virtual license branch that gives you more information about your records as well as the ability to securely access many services online.
Your myBMV account allows you to access the following services:
- Renew vehicle registrations online and receive a $5 discount through 2008
- Order a driver record or certified driver record
- Reserve or re-reserve a personalized plate
- Order duplicate titles
- Review the information in your personal record
- Update your insurance information or mailing address
- Sign up for email reminders for your driver license or registration expiration dates and other news
Accessing the services provided through your myBMV account is fast, secure and easy to use. To create your myBMV account you will be asked to provide your Indiana driver license number and the last four digits of your Social Security number.
- Create your myBMV account
- Sign in to your myBMV account
- View Frequently Asked Questions about myBMV
- Review the BMV's online security policy
After your initial personalized license plate purchase, you must reserve your plate yearly by mail. If your address changes, you must immediately file your new address with the BMV to prevent important renewal forms being sent to the wrong address. You may also apply for a personalized license plate at any Indiana license branch.
PLPs are available for:
- Passenger Automobiles
- Trucks (TK07, 09, 10, 11)
- Motorcycles
- Recreational Vehicles
You may also purchase a personalized license plate as a gift for another Hoosier motorist.
How do I reserve a personalized license plate?
You must reserve a personalized license plate before October 31 to receive that plate the following year. You may reserve a personalized license plate online by creating a myBMV account, or at any Indiana license branch. The license plate will be registered to your vehicle the following year and the plate will be mailed to you.
When does a personalized license plate expire?
Personalized license plate expire in April and all registration fees for the vehicle with the personalized license plate are due by April 30.
How do I renew a personalized license plate?
Personalized license plates are issued annually. You must pay the $48 per plate reservation fee by October 31 to reserve the license plate for the following year. If you do not pay the reservation fees for a personalized license plate on time, the license plate will be ineligible for use for the remaining time of the plate cycle.
- Renew online through your myBMV account. The personalized license plate will then be shipped directly to the customer from the BMV's mail processing center in Winchester.
- Renew in a branch: Customers who visit a license branch to renew a registration for a vehicle with a personalized license plate will be issued a 30-day temporary permit. The personalized license plate will then be shipped directly to the customer from the BMV's mail processing center in Winchester.
- Renew by mail: Customers who use mail to renew a registration for a vehicle with a personalized license plate must note on the mailed-in registration renewal document that they have reserved a personalized license plate AND they must include the personalized message on the license plate.
An example of a personalized license plate reservation:
A customer wants their personalized license plate to read GR8 PLPS. The customer should visit a license branch to complete an application form and pay the initial $48 reservation fee. The following year, the customer will receive in the mail the license plate reading GR8 PLPS. He or she must then renew the vehicle's registration in April.
Can a motorist personalize a special recognition license plate?
Yes. Special recognition license plate fees must be paid when reserving the personalized license plate. Motorists needing prior authorization from a sponsoring organization must present the form when reserving a personalized license plate.
What are the guidelines for what a personalized license plate can say?
You may use seven alpha or numeric characters plus one space without punctuation for a standard personalized license plate. For motorcycles, you may use six alpha or numeric characters. Special recognition license plates may contain up to five alpha or numeric characters.
Personalized license plates allow creativity; however, under Indiana Statue IC 9-18-15-4 (b) the BMV may refuse to issue a combination of letters or numerals, or both, that carry a connotation offensive to good taste and decency.
The BMV will deny a PLP request if an objective, reasonable person would find that the customer’s proposed expression on the PLP application falls into at least one of the following categories. This list is not exhaustive and the BMV may also refuse a PLP request not currently contemplated that does not fall into the following categories but is determined to carry a connotation offensive to good taste and decency, is misleading or is otherwise prohibited.
- Refers to, relates to, or connotes sexual acts or eliminatory functions including but not limited to breasts, genitalia, the pubic area, buttocks, etc.; additionally, references to numbers with sexual connotations, such as “69,” are prohibited unless used to identify and in conjunction with a production year and a vehicle’s make or model, e.g. “69 CHEVY”;
- Refers to or suggests the substance, paraphernalia, sale, use, purveyor of, or physiological state produced by any drug, narcotic, alcoholic beverage, or intoxicant;
- Refers to a race, religion, deity, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, or political party or affiliation; however, generally accepted references to a race or ethnic heritage (for example, IRISH) are allowable;
- Is defamatory, profane, obscene, vulgar or derogatory;
- Expresses or suggests violence or endangerment to the public welfare;
- Refers to a government, a government entity, or a government official or employee;
- Duplicates another license plate or would substantially interfere with plate identification for law enforcement purposes;
- Uses linguistics, numbers, and phonetics, translations from foreign languages or upside-down or reverse reading to reference any other prohibited numeric and letter combination; or
- Uses or refers to a trademark, trade name, service mark, copyright or other proprietary right in conjunction with language that promotes, advertises, or endorses a product, brand, or service provided for a commercial purpose unless the registrant is the verified owner of the protected mark or authorized to use such mark, e.g. “BUY COKE.”
