SAN ANTONIO — Starting in January most vehicles in Texas will no longer require a safety inspection before renewing registration but it’s recently caused a hiccup for some drivers.
The problem occurs when people go online to register. Because the current state law requires a vehicle to pass inspection before registration renewal, any renewal attempt before January 1 will not go through until that date.
The reason drivers are no longer required to get the inspection is thanks to House Bill 3297 that was passed by the 88th Legislature in 2023 that abolishes the vehicle safety inspection program for non-commercial vehicles.
The DMV says your vehicle registration may be renewed online 90 days prior to the expiration date or up to 12 months after the expiration date if you have not received a citation for an expired registration.
But if you’re registration is due in January or March and you go to fill out the renewal early you get this message: “The vehicle was not found. Corrected Vehicle Information may be required.”
The DMV told us that in this case the solution is simple. No registering early. You need to wait until January to renew online once the law no longer requiring an inspection takes effect.
There are still 17 counties that will still require emissions inspections if the vehicle is registered there. Those are Brazoria County, Fort Bend County, Collin County, Parker County, Galveston County, Dallas County, Rockwall County, Harris County, Denton County, Tarrant County, Johnson County, El Paso County, Travis County, Kaufman County, Ellis County, Williamson County, and Montgomery County.