Verified RCW 46.16A.030(5) · Checked October 2026 · 19 sources
What an expired-registration ticket costs in Washington
First offense RCW 46.16A.030(5)
$150 total if expired 2 months or less, $242 if longer
Verified October 2026 against the sources on this page
There is no grace period: RCW 46.16A.030(5) makes failure to renew an expired registration before operating a vehicle on Washington’s public highways a traffic infraction. That subsection names no dollar amount (the fixed $529 fine in subsection (4) is for never registering the vehicle at all), so the penalty comes from the Supreme Court’s statewide schedule, IRLJ 6.2(d), which RCW 46.63.110(3) directs the court to set by rule. The schedule is tiered by how long the registration has been expired: a base penalty of $48 for two months or less, and $93 for over two months. IRLJ 6.2(a) says local court rules cannot change it. Those are base penalties, not what you pay, because the schedule lists them “not including statutory assessments”. On top come a public safety and education assessment of 70% of the base plus a second one equal to 50% of the first (RCW 3.62.090(1) and (2)), three fees of $5, $10 and $10 (RCW 46.63.110(7)), a $24 additional penalty (RCW 46.63.110(8)(a)) and $2 for the driver licensing technology support account (RCW 2.68.040(7)). When that sum is not a whole dollar amount, IRLJ 6.2(a) raises the base just enough to make the total the next whole dollar. For the two-months-or-less tier that is $48 + $33.60 + $16.80 + $51 in fixed fees = $149.40, so $150; for the over-two-months tier it is $93 + $65.10 + $32.55 + $51 = $241.65, so $242. The rule rounds the total, not each assessment: rounding the first assessment up on its own, as the state courts’ January 2023 worksheet shows it for a $48 base, would make the second tier $243, a dollar more than the rule allows. Those are the same totals, $150 and $242, that the Senate’s nonpartisan staff gave in its January 2026 bill report on SB 6176. Renewing late adds no late fee at the Department of Licensing.
By Mario Bailey
What to do now
- 1
Renew your tabs now
Renew online through DOL’s License Express, by mail with your renewal notice, or at a vehicle licensing office. DOL will not renew until any unpaid tickets or tolling fees are paid, so clear those first.
- 2
Respond to the ticket within 30 days
Pay it, ask for a mitigation hearing, contest it, or request a deferred finding. Missing the deadline adds at least a $25 penalty, and the court enters the full amount.
- 3
Ask for a deferred finding, with proof of renewal
If you have had no nonmoving deferral in seven years and hold no CDL, the court may set the ticket aside for up to a year and then dismiss it. Bring proof the vehicle is now registered and expect an administrative fee set by your court.
- 4
Do not leave it parked on the street
A vehicle parked on a public street with registration expired more than 45 days can be impounded under RCW 46.16A.030(7).
Washington at a glance
- Grace period
- None
- Misdemeanor?
- No, traffic infraction
- Dismissed if you renew?
- No; deferred finding may dismiss it
- Late renewal fee
- None at DOL
First offense, ordinary passenger vehicle. Each label compares Washington with every verified state.
Repeat offenses
IRLJ 6.2 sets no higher penalty for a second expired-registration ticket: the amount turns on how long the registration has been expired, not on your history, so it stays $48 base ($150 total) for two months or less and $93 base ($242 total) after that. A repeat ticket matters for the dismissal route instead: RCW 46.63.070(5)(b) allows only one deferred finding within seven years for nonmoving violations.
Is driving on expired tags a crime in Washington?
No, it is not a crime. RCW 46.16A.030(5) makes failure to renew an expired registration a traffic infraction, and RCW 46.63.020 says traffic infractions may not be classified as criminal offenses. RCW 46.63.020(7) does carve out RCW 46.16A.030, but only for the nonpayment of taxes and fees by failing to register, which is the separate gross misdemeanor in RCW 46.16A.030(6) for a Washington resident who registers a vehicle in another state to evade Washington taxes and fees (up to 364 days in jail on a first offense). Never registering the vehicle in Washington is also a different offense from letting a registration lapse: failure to make initial registration (RCW 46.16A.030(4)) is an infraction with a $529 fine that may not be suspended or reduced, a $1,136 total by the Senate staff’s January 2026 figures. DOL rules class registration paperwork violations as nonmoving violations (WAC 308-104-160).
Can it be dismissed?
Not automatically: no Washington statute or court rule dismisses this ticket on proof of renewal. The written route is a deferred finding under RCW 46.63.070(5): at a contested or mitigation hearing the court may defer findings for up to one year, impose conditions it deems appropriate, assess costs for administrative processing, and, if you meet the conditions and commit no other traffic infraction, dismiss the infraction. You can receive only one deferral within seven years for nonmoving violations, and commercial driver’s license holders cannot receive one. Each court sets its own conditions and fee. Clark County District Court, for example, says that for a Failure to Renew Registration ticket you must provide proof the vehicle is now properly registered, and it charges a $150 non-refundable administrative fee: the same as the two-months-or-less ticket total, so for that tier the gain is a dismissal kept off your driving record, not a saving. Short of dismissal, IRLJ 6.2(a) lets the court impose a lesser penalty in an individual case, though the $5, $10 and $10 fees in RCW 46.63.110(7) can never be reduced and the $24 penalty only on a finding of indigence.
What happens beyond the fine
Expired registration is a nonmoving violation (WAC 308-104-160), and Washington’s license suspension for failing to respond to a ticket applies only to moving violations (RCW 46.20.289(1)). Ignoring the ticket still costs you: you have 30 days to respond (RCW 46.63.070(1)), missing that adds a $25 statutory penalty under RCW 46.63.110(4) (Clark County District Court, for example, says an additional penalty of $52 will be added), and the court enters an order for the full penalty (RCW 46.63.070(6)), which is immediately payable and enforceable as a civil judgment (RCW 46.63.110(6)). Separately, police may impound a vehicle parked on a public street whose registration has been expired more than 45 days (RCW 46.16A.030(7)).
Frequently asked questions
Is there a grace period for expired tabs in Washington?
No. RCW 46.16A.030(5) makes it an infraction to drive on public highways without first renewing an expired registration, and neither the statute nor DOL’s renewal pages give a grace period. The penalty schedule is lighter in the first two months, a $48 base penalty ($150 total) against $93 ($242 total) once the registration has been expired over two months, so renewing quickly still saves money.
Can a Washington expired tabs ticket be dismissed if I renew?
Not automatically. Renewing does not by itself end the case. The route to a dismissal is a deferred finding under RCW 46.63.070(5): the court may set the ticket aside for up to a year on conditions, such as proof the vehicle is now registered, and then dismiss it if you stay infraction-free. It is limited to one nonmoving deferral in seven years, is not available to CDL holders, and courts charge an administrative fee ($150 in Clark County District Court). A judge at a mitigation hearing can also reduce the penalty.
Can you go to jail for expired tabs in Washington?
No. Failure to renew is a traffic infraction, and RCW 46.63.020 says traffic infractions may not be classified as criminal offenses. The jail time written into RCW 46.16A.030 belongs to a different offense: a Washington resident registering a vehicle in another state to dodge Washington taxes and fees, a gross misdemeanor with up to 364 days.
How much is an expired tabs ticket in Washington?
$150 if the registration has been expired two months or less and $242 if longer. Only $48 or $93 of that is the base penalty set by IRLJ 6.2; the rest is statutory assessments and fees that every court adds. Older figures, such as the $145 total in the state courts’ January 2023 breakdown of a $48 infraction, predate the 2025 increase of the brain injury fee in RCW 46.63.110(7)(c) from $5 to $10. DOL charges no late fee when you renew: its tab fee page lists no late renewal fee (its only late fee is for title transfers), and the vehicle fee chapter, RCW 46.17, has none either. Renewing late also does not reset your renewal month: for a lapse, DOL changes a vehicle’s registration year only if it stays unlicensed for more than the entire registration year (WAC 308-96A-300(1)).
Sources
This summary was checked against the following sources on the date shown above. Fines and fees change, verify before relying on specifics.
- RCW 46.16A.030, registration required, expired registration a traffic infraction, official text (Washington State Legislature)
- IRLJ 6.2, Monetary Penalty Schedule for Infractions, amended effective July 27, 2025 (Washington Courts)
- RCW 46.63.110, monetary penalties, schedule by court rule, $5, $10, $10 fees and $24 additional penalty, official text (Washington State Legislature)
- RCW 3.62.090, public safety and education assessments, official text (Washington State Legislature)
- RCW 2.68.040, $2 assessment on each traffic infraction, official text (Washington State Legislature)
- Senate Bill Report SB 6176, as of January 23, 2026, current-law totals of $150 and $242 (Washington State Legislature)
- House Bill Analysis ESB 5705, 2026, current assessments on every infraction: 105% of base plus $24, $5, $10, $10 and $2, with whole-dollar totals (Washington State Legislature)
- SHB 1848 as enacted, chapter 364, Laws of 2025, raising the brain injury fee from $5 to $10, effective July 27, 2025 (Washington State Legislature)
- SB 6176 (2026) bill history, not passed, Senate Rules X file March 10, 2026 (Washington State Legislature)
- Anatomy of a Standard Infraction Penalty, January 2023, $145 breakdown of a $48 base (Washington Courts)
- RCW 46.63.070, response to notice, deferred findings, official text (Washington State Legislature)
- RCW 46.63.020, traffic infractions not criminal, exceptions, official text (Washington State Legislature)
- RCW 46.20.289, suspension for failure to respond, moving violations, official text (Washington State Legislature)
- WAC 308-104-160, moving and nonmoving violations defined (Washington State Legislature)
- WAC 308-96A-300, changing assigned registration year (Washington State Legislature)
- Chapter 46.17 RCW, vehicle fees, no late renewal penalty (Washington State Legislature)
- Calculate vehicle tab fees, full fee table (Washington State Department of Licensing)
- Renew or replace vehicle tabs (Washington State Department of Licensing)
- Infractions, deferred findings and mitigation, county example (Clark County District Court)
Read next
- Va. Code 46.2-646, plainly: what Virginia's expired registration law says and costs
- How to Get an Expired Registration Ticket Dismissed
- How much is a ticket for driving without registration? Eight states, from the statutes
- Pulled over on expired tags: the ticket, the late fee, the tow, and the points
Expired Registration: other states
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General legal information, not legal advice. Statutes and penalty schedules summarized from the sources above as of October 2026.