What are the penalties for driving with an expired temporary license plate?
4 Answers
If a vehicle is driven on the road with an expired temporary license plate, it is equivalent to "driving a motor vehicle on the road without displaying a motor vehicle license plate." Specific relevant details are as follows: According to the "Road Traffic Safety Law": If a motor vehicle is driven on the road without displaying a license plate, the traffic management department of the public security organ shall detain the vehicle, notify the party to provide the corresponding license plate, and impose a fine of 200 yuan and deduct 12 points in accordance with Article 90. The traffic management department reminds: Currently, the validity period of the temporary license plates issued for motor vehicles is 15 days. Drivers must pay attention to the expiration date marked on the back of the temporary license plate and avoid carrying an expired temporary license plate on the road. Here are the solutions for an expired temporary license plate: Continue to apply for a temporary license plate: A temporary license plate can be extended up to three times. Use a formal license plate: This is possible only if a formal license plate has already been obtained. Use a fourth temporary license plate: This is also a widely used method. If all three local temporary license plates have expired, you can obtain a temporary license plate from another province or city.
I just went through this last month! My friend drove his new car with an expired temporary license plate and got pulled over by traffic police—resulting in 12 points deducted, a 2,000 yuan fine, and the car being towed. Talk about a bad deal! There are two types of temporary plates: blue-background ones are only valid for 15 days within the local area, while yellow-background ones allow cross-province travel for 30 days. If you don’t renew the official plate on time, your car insurance could even become void, leaving you to cover all costs in case of an accident. That day, I saw him sweating bullets while stuck in line at the DMV to fix the paperwork, wasting half a day. My advice: when you pick up a new car, mark the plate-switch deadline in your phone calendar and set a reminder to renew it the day before the temporary plate expires. Save yourself the headache my friend went through.
Driving with an expired temporary license plate is no small matter. I've personally witnessed a car owner being fined 2,000 yuan plus 12 demerit points on their license - equivalent to starting from scratch with a retest. If caught by traffic police, your vehicle will definitely be impounded, requiring you to bring documentation to the DMV for release, causing days of delay. Every extra kilometer driven increases your risk exponentially. At this point, your car insurance becomes useless - insurers will absolutely deny claims for any accidents. My advice: When getting a new car, first confirm the validity period of your temporary plate - blue plates for local use last up to 15 days, yellow plates for interprovincial use 30 days. Get your permanent plates promptly when due; if truly pressed for time, take a taxi rather than risk driving. If you genuinely forgot, don't gamble - contact the DMV immediately to inquire about remedial measures.
Driving with an expired temporary license plate is equivalent to unlicensed driving, and the penalties are severe! My neighbor got caught in this trap—fined 1,500 yuan and deducted 12 points, with his car impounded by the traffic police for three days. Later, during a chat, I learned that even routine maintenance shops refuse service for cars with expired temporary plates, citing the illegal status as a reason to avoid liability. Now he’s learned his lesson: he keeps a reminder for plate expiration on his phone and even printed out the DMV’s phone number to stick on his fridge. We car owners must remember: temporary plates aren’t indefinite—never play the delay game. If you accidentally drive out with an expired plate, pull over immediately and call a tow truck to return the car to the parking lot—it’s much safer.
