How to get a vanity license plate in Vermont — and what it costs
Vermonters who want to express themselves through their license plates need to pay an annual fee in addition to the yearly fee required for car registration in the Green Mountain State.
Still, the drivers of more than 20,000 vehicles in Vermont have chosen to fork up the extra cash for a vanity, or personalized, license plate that is unique to them. The Burlington Free Press recently obtained the list of those vanity plates through a Vermont public records request, and that list can be viewed here.
So, what does it take to get a more personalized license plate? Below are the guidelines, as laid out by the Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles.
The car needs to be registered in Vermont
People registering their car in Vermont need to fill out and submit a Vermont Registration, Tax and Title application, which can be obtained from a Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles office or found online at dmv.vermont.gov/registrations/license-plates/vanity-personalized-plates.
Vermont drivers L0V2SKI and H8PEAS: Highlights of vanity license plates on the road
People registering their car can pay for either one-year or two-year registration. Those fees are:
Cars and trucks (up to 6,099 pounds): $76 or $140 for gas- or diesel-powered vehicles; $74 or $136 for electric vehicles.
Motorcycles: $48 or $96 for gas- or diesel-powered bikes; $46 or $92 for electric.
Other registration fees can be found at dmv.vermont.gov/registrations/fees#Vanity.
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There's an extra fee for vanity license plates
People with vanity license plates must pay an annual fee on top of the registration fee. Personalized plates cost another $48 annually, regardless of the vehicle type.
Want a vanity license plate for your vehicle?: Look up what's already taken in Vermont.
Initial delivery for the specialized plates may also take 30 days after the application is submitted, according to the Department of Motor Vehicles.
Guidelines for what appears on the Vermont vanity license plate
For the most part, Vermonters can do what they want with the seven letters, numbers or spaces that can be used on the vanity license plate. However, there are some specific prohibitions and rules that Vermonters should know about when selecting their message, according to the Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles.
No more than two numbers are allowed with a combination of letters.
The department considers the letter "O" to be a zero.
Dots, dashes and other special characters or symbols cannot be used.
The plate cannot begin with the letter "Z."
A single-letter plate is acceptable. However, that letter cannot be "I," "J," "O," or "Z."
There are some exceptions to the maximum seven-letter character limit as well, including:
Antique and exhibit plates are limited to a maximum of four characters.
Handicapped plates are limited to a maximum of five characters.
Moped, motorcycle and small trailer plates are limited to a maximum of six characters.
Contact Elizabeth Murray at 802-310-8585 or emurray@freepressmedia.com. Follow her on Twitter at @LizMurrayBFP.
This article originally appeared on Burlington Free Press: Vermont vanity license plates: How to get one, and how much it costs
