ROCKY MOUNT — North Carolina stopped issuing license plate stickers on Thursday, and it stopped automatically handing out a printed registration card. It did not close the Division of Motor Vehicles, and it did not move every service online.
The change is vehicle registration only. It took effect Oct. 1. Drivers still renew every year, still need an inspection, and still pay registration fees and vehicle property taxes. They can still pay by mail, in person at a license plate agency, online, or at a self-service kiosk.
“What is changing is the end product customers receive,” NCDMV Commissioner Paul Tine said. “The vast majority of the registration process stays exactly the same. You will still get your renewal notice, still need your inspection, still pay your fees and taxes on time, and still have the same convenient options to take care of business. Only the physical sticker and printed registration card are going away.”
What arrives instead
After a registration or a renewal, the division says the customer gets a receipt with the fees paid, the vehicle identification number, the plate number, and a barcode an inspection station can scan the next year. The receipt includes a link to a digital copy that can be saved on a phone or printed at home.
A printed card is no longer required. Anyone who wants one can print a free PDF from the division’s website, or pay $5 to have a copy printed at a license plate agency or mailed. The free download asks for the plate number and the last five digits of the title number. If the PDF will not download, the customer line is 919-715-7000, weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Officers are not supposed to take a phone to check a registration. The division says they use their own systems. A registration stays valid when the fees and the vehicle property taxes are paid and insurance coverage stays continuous. The guide also recommends removing old stickers from the plate on or after Oct. 1.
What the law did
The General Assembly put the change in Section 43.10 of Session Law 2026-41. Lawmakers ratified it July 2, and Gov. Josh Stein approved it at 10:30 a.m. on July 7. It applies to registrations and renewals applied for on or after Oct. 1. The paper title does not go away. The old duty to carry the card was taken out. A vehicle may still be driven through midnight on the 15th day of the month after the registration expires.
Registration is supposed to show up in the NC Wallet in 2027. That option is not available now. A driver license is a different office, and Thursday’s announcement does not close one or turn license issuance into an online-only service. Appointments are still offered at driver license offices up to seven days ahead.
Inspections, including Catawba County
A safety inspection is still required, no more than 90 days before renewal. Vehicles in 19 counties also need an emissions inspection. Catawba County is not one of them. Lincoln and Iredell counties are.
Source note
As of publication. N.C. Department of Transportation, “NCDMV Transitions to Digital Vehicle Registration Today,” Oct. 1, 2026: ncdot.gov. The Tine quotation is from that release. The customer guide was updated the same day at 11:43 a.m.: Guide to Digital Vehicle Registration. Session Law 2026-41, Section 43.10: ncleg.gov.
