Va. Code 46.2-646, plainly: what Virginia's expired registration law says and costs

If the number on your summons reads 46.2-646, here is what it says without the legal wrapping. It is Virginia’s registration and renewal statute, and two pieces matter most: officers cannot stop you for an expired sticker in the first three months after it lapses, and a judge can wipe the charge if you show up compliant. Neither is automatic. Below: the text, the actual prepayable cost from the state’s own fine schedule, the DMV late fee that stacks on top, and how 46.2-646 differs from the section next to it that gets confused for it.

What 46.2-646 actually says

Section A sets the mechanics: registrations run twelve months from issuance and renew on application and payment of the required fee, with the Commissioner allowed to extend a validity period by up to 90 days per occurrence during a declared emergency. Sections B and C cover monthly registration cycles and the optional multi-year renewal. None of that is what lands you in court. Two subsections do that.

Subsection D: “For any summons issued for a violation of this section, the court may, in its discretion, dismiss the summons where proof of compliance with this section is provided to the court on or before the court date.”

Subsection E: “No law-enforcement officer shall stop a motor vehicle due to an expired registration sticker prior to the first day of the fourth month after the original expiration date. No evidence discovered or obtained as the result of a stop in violation of this subsection, including evidence discovered or obtained with the operator’s consent, shall be admissible in any trial, hearing, or other proceeding.”

Read together: the state gives roughly three months of runway before an expired sticker alone is a lawful stop reason, and gives a judge the option, not the obligation, to let a summons go if you fix the problem first. Nothing in the statute states a penalty amount. That comes from elsewhere in the code.

What it costs

46.2-646 has no fine written into it. Virginia’s general rule for Title 46.2, Va. Code 46.2-113, fills the gap: “Unless otherwise stated, these violations shall constitute traffic infractions punishable by a fine of not more than that provided for a Class 4 misdemeanor under 18.2-11.” 18.2-11 caps a Class 4 misdemeanor fine at $250. That is the ceiling a judge could theoretically impose at a contested hearing.

In practice, almost nobody pays anywhere near that, because 46.2-646 is on the Supreme Court of Virginia’s statewide Uniform Fine Schedule, Rule 3B:2, which lets you skip the hearing entirely: enter a written appearance, waive court, plead guilty, and pay a fixed amount by mail or online. That schedule sets the actual prepayable numbers:

Item	Amount
Fine	$25
Processing fee (court costs)	$51
Total prepayable	$76

Source: Rules of Supreme Court of Virginia, Part Three B, Uniform Fine Schedule, current compiled rules (vacourts.gov). The rule states this schedule “is applied uniformly throughout the Commonwealth, and a clerk or magistrate may not impose a fine different from the amounts shown here,” and it does not restrict what a judge may impose at an actual hearing. So $76 is the statewide prepayable figure, but local processing fees can run higher: Fairfax County’s own prepayment sheet lists a $67 processing fee for a first charge, putting its real total at $92, not $76. Check the specific court’s fee before mailing payment. A judge hearing the case in person works from the $250 statutory ceiling, not the prepayable figure, though most first-offense cases with compliance proof do not end near that ceiling.

Can the court dismiss it

Yes, but read subsection D again: “may, in its discretion.” That is not automatic dismissal on renewal. It means a judge is allowed to let the summons go if you provide proof of compliance on or before the court date, not required to. Three things follow from that wording:

• Renewing does not close the case by itself. You have to bring the proof, or otherwise get it in front of the court, before or at the hearing.
• “Proof of compliance” is not defined in the statute. Courts generally accept a current registration card, the DMV receipt, or the new decal, but the specific paperwork a given court wants is a question for that court’s clerk, not something 46.2-646 spells out.
• Discretion means a judge could decline. Nothing in the text obligates dismissal even with proof in hand, though in practice courts routinely dismiss on a clean compliance showing since that is exactly what subsection D anticipates.

The safest path is procedural, not hopeful: renew immediately, keep the receipt and the new registration card, and either mail proof to the court before the date or bring it in person.

Renewing late: what DMV charges

The statute’s dismissal path and DMV’s fee schedule are two separate systems, and Virginia’s DMV Fees schedule (form DMV 201) prices both pieces:

Item	Amount
Passenger vehicle registration, 4,000 lbs or less	$30.75
Passenger vehicle registration, 4,001 to 6,500 lbs	$35.75
Late fee	$10.00

Source: DMV 201 fee schedule, current version (dmv.virginia.gov). DMV’s registration page confirms in general terms that “renewing your registration after it has expired” carries additional cost, without restating the dollar figure on that page; the $10 flat late fee comes from the fee schedule itself. A multi-year renewal adds a small discount rather than a penalty, and DMV’s page notes that “discounts and certain fees are not prorated or refundable.”

So a lapsed registration on a standard passenger vehicle, renewed late, runs the base $30.75 plus the $10 late fee at DMV, separate from whatever the court charges if you were also stopped and cited under 46.2-646. Renewing does not erase a summons already issued; it is the paperwork you then bring to court under subsection D.

46.2-646 versus 46.2-613 and nearby sections

The section number on the citation matters. 46.2-646 and 46.2-613 sit three sections apart in the same chapter and get priced the same on the fine schedule, but they describe different conduct.

	Va. Code 46.2-646	Va. Code 46.2-613
What it covers	Expiration and renewal cycle; charge applies to a vehicle that was registered and lapsed	Operating a vehicle that is not registered, not titled, or not displaying assigned plates or decals at all, plus misuse of registration documents
Dismissal language	Court may dismiss on proof of compliance by the court date (subsection D)	Court may dismiss on proof of compliance by the court date (subsection B), same standard
No-stop protection	Yes, no stop for an expired sticker before the fourth month after expiration (subsection E)	Not present in this section
Named penalty in the statute	None stated	None for the general operating violation; a fine of up to $250 for a first offense and a flat $250 for a second or subsequent offense is written in for the agricultural and horticultural exemption violation under subdivision A.3 only
Prepayable fine schedule amount	$25 fine, $51 costs, $76 total	$25 fine, $51 costs, $76 total for the general “operate vehicle which is unregistered, untitled, or without plates/decals” listing

The practical difference is what the officer is alleging. 46.2-646 assumes there was a valid registration that lapsed, which is why it comes with the fourth-month stop delay, a courtesy that only makes sense for something that used to be current. 46.2-613 does not carry that protection because it can describe a vehicle that was never properly registered at all, not just one whose sticker expired. Also nearby: Va. Code 46.2-600 (failure to obtain registration, also $25/$51/$76 prepayable) and Va. Code 46.2-104 (failure to carry the registration card, priced lower at $10 fine, $51 costs, $61 total on the same schedule). Check the statute number on the summons before assuming which story applies.

Prepaying versus appearing

Two different tracks follow from the same summons, and they lead to different outcomes.

Prepay. Under Rule 3B:2, you can waive the hearing, plead guilty in writing, and pay the fixed $76. That closes the case as a conviction on the record, at the flat statewide rate, with no chance to argue for dismissal.

Do not prepay. Prepaying forecloses dismissal: a written guilty plea by mail closes the case as a conviction before subsection D ever comes into play. Not prepaying keeps the dismissal option alive, whether you get proof of compliance to the court before the date by mail or bring it in person, and you are also exposed to the statute’s actual $250 ceiling if the judge does not dismiss and does not simply apply the schedule amount. Check with the specific court on whether it accepts mailed proof or expects an appearance.

If you already renewed and have the paperwork, appearing costs a trip to court but preserves the shot at dismissal that subsection D exists for. If you have not renewed and do not intend to contest the underlying fact of the lapse, prepaying the $76 is the faster, capped outcome. For the general tradeoffs between the two tracks across offenses, see the contest-or-pay guide.

Step by step

1. Read the statute number on the summons. 46.2-646 means a lapsed registration; 46.2-613, 46.2-600, or 46.2-104 mean something else, priced differently or carrying no dismissal language of its own.
2. Renew the registration immediately, in person, by mail, or online through DMV, and keep the receipt, the card, and the new decal together. Expect the base fee plus the $10 late fee if you are past the expiration date.
3. Decide whether to prepay or appear. Prepaying the $76 waives court and closes the case as a conviction. Appearing keeps the dismissal option under subsection D open but exposes you to the statute’s $250 ceiling if the judge declines to dismiss.
4. If you are not prepaying, get proof of compliance to the court by the date, by mail or in person depending on what the specific court accepts. The statute conditions dismissal on proof being provided to the court on or before the court date.
5. Check your specific court’s process. Rule 3B:2 sets the statewide prepayable amount, but how a given general district court wants proof of compliance submitted is a local clerk’s-office question, not something the statute answers.
6. If you were stopped before the fourth month after expiration, that stop may have violated subsection E, and evidence from it is inadmissible under the statute’s own terms. That is a legal question for the specific court, not something to resolve by reading the code alone.

This page explains the statute; see the Virginia expired registration law file for the fuller state entry, and the jail exposure page if the question is whether any state’s version of this offense can put you behind bars (Virginia’s cannot, on this record).