Can I Get My License Plate at the DMV on Saturday?
4 Answers
The working hours of the DMV are from 8:30 AM to 11:30 AM and from 1:30 PM to 5:00 PM on weekdays (Monday to Friday), excluding statutory holidays. The DMV is closed on weekends, so license plates cannot be obtained on Saturday. The process of obtaining a license plate is as follows: Rubbing: Rubbing is usually done in the inspection area of the DMV, though sometimes 4S shops can assist with this step. Vehicle Inspection: In the inspection area, submit the prepared documents to the on-duty police officer for vehicle inspection. To facilitate the inspection, the owner should open the engine compartment cover in advance and remove the engine insulation panel. Obtaining the Vehicle License and Motor Vehicle Registration Certificate: After selecting the license plate number, the staff will print the license plate receipt and request payment. After payment, wait for a period of time to receive the vehicle license and motor vehicle registration certificate. Once these documents are obtained, pay the annual vehicle and vessel tax to receive the license plate for installation.
Last time before getting license plates for my new car, I specifically researched this. Most DMVs in cities do operate on Saturdays, mainly during the morning hours. In major cities like Beijing and Shanghai, the main DMV offices usually open for half a day on Saturdays, while suburban branches might be closed all day. It's best to call the 12123 hotline or check the local traffic management website for announcements in advance. My friend last month avoided a wasted trip by checking the temporary adjustment notice on the official website. Many places now also offer online appointment services, with Saturday slots being particularly popular, so I recommend checking for new slots three days in advance. If it coincides with a statutory holiday adjustment, it gets even more complicated, and you'll need to check specific notices.
Just accompanied my cousin to handle license plates, sharing from personal experience. Currently, policies vary greatly across regions. In our provincial capital, the vehicle management office operates normally on Saturday mornings, but in the neighboring city, they only accept business on weekdays. It's crucial to verify two key points: first, whether the specific branch is open, as some sub-offices don't operate on weekends at all; second, the service hours—ours is from 8:30 AM to 11:30 AM, but they stop issuing numbers at 11 AM. It's best to call the local vehicle management office's main line after 4 PM on Friday for the most accurate information, as the staff on duty will have internal notifications. Don't go without clarifying these details—last time, my colleague wasted two hours traveling only to find the system under maintenance.
From recent changes in vehicle management services, more and more cities have started offering weekend services. However, there are two key points to note when registering a vehicle on Saturday: first, the types of services are limited—new vehicle registration is fine, but services like transfer inspections may not be available; second, operating hours are generally shorter, so it's better to go early rather than late. I've observed that service stations in the Yangtze River Delta region mostly operate on Saturdays, while some cities in central and western China still observe a two-day weekend. The safest approach is to follow the traffic police's official account—for example, in Hangzhou, you can check real-time queue numbers at various service points directly.
