You can get a temporary Louisiana license plate for your new vehicle from the dealer that sold you your car. If you are buying a car privately, you can get temporary tags at the Office of Motor Vehicles (OMV).
Temporary license plates in Louisiana can be issued by certified dealerships and the OMV.
Purchasing temporary tags is far cheaper than the fine for not having them.
Louisiana OMV issues temporary plates
The Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles allows certified dealers to issue a temporary cardboard vehicle license plate to car buyers. You can also get a temp plate directly from the OMV. This temporary tag must be fastened to the rear of the vehicle or clearly displayed in your car’s rear window.
You might also hear “temporary license plates” referred to as “temporary registration permits,” “temporary registration plates,” or “temp tags”—but they’re all terms for the same thing.
Keep in mind: Temporary permits are good for 30 days from issuance. The temporary tag must be destroyed when it expires, either after 30 days or whenever you receive your permanent metal license plates, whichever comes first.
How to get a temporary license plate in Louisiana
If you need temporary tags, it’s important to remember that you can only get them two ways:
Through a licensed dealer
Directly from the Office of Motor Vehicles
Third-party websites that advertise temporary license plates might be a scam—and you are encouraged to
to the Louisiana State Police Insurance Fraud/Auto-Theft Unit.
The following offices issue temporary license plates in Louisiana:
Alexandria
Amite
Baton Rouge
Bogalusa
Bossier City
Deridder
Gonzales
Hammond
Houma
Lafayette
Lake Charles
Leesville
Monroe
Metairie
Rayville
Shreveport
Slidell
Springhill
Sulphur
Tallulah
Thibodaux
Vidalia
The cost: These temporary permits come at a cost of $5.50 with a handling fee of $8.
Beware of fake temporary license plates
Because temporary license plates are typically made of paper or cardboard, they are somewhat easy to replicate—and this has caused problems in Louisiana.
Recently, there has been an increase in reports of people making and selling fake Louisiana temporary license plates, inspection stickers, and emissions certificates.
Some of the people involved in these incidents were also caught with fake Texas temporary license plates, aka buyer’s tags, suggesting that Texas’s rampant fake temp tag problem is bleeding over into neighboring Louisiana.
Criminals often use false temporary license plates to avoid being identified by the police.
The bottom line: Only certified dealers and the OMV can legally issue temporary license plates in the state of Louisiana.
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Can I drive a car without plates if I just bought it in Louisiana?
You cannot drive a car in Louisiana without plates.
If you don’t have plates to transfer onto your new vehicle: You’ll need to get yourself a temporary tag. If you’re buying from a private seller, you can get a temporary permit from the OMV.
License plates are cheaper than fines: Louisiana law mandates a $119 fine for a vehicle registration violation, which is a lot more than the $13.50 you’ll pay to get a nice, legal temporary permit.
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