Are you currently driving around in a car that isn’t registered in the state of Florida? If so, you’re going to want to change that ASAP! Just like every other state in the country, Florida requires residents to register their cars. It’s why you’re going to want to make sure that your Florida car registration is up to date at all times.
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If you’re not familiar with the Florida car registration process for one reason or another, you should change that as well. Anyone who plans on driving a car in the state should know everything from how to register a vehicle to what it’s going to cost to do it. It’ll ensure that you’re able to stay within the limits of the law at all times when it comes to your Florida car registration.
If you would like to learn more about the Florida car registration laws and find out how to register your car today, keep on reading. We have all the information you could ever want and need on Florida car registrations.
Do You Need to Have a Florida Car Registration?
As we alluded to a few moments ago, you do need to have a Florida car registration in order to drive a car in the state. You could find yourself on the wrong side of the law if you ever get pulled over and a police officer discovers that you don’t have a valid Florida car registration.
Driving with a Florida car registration can be a pretty serious offense, too. In some cases, you might get hit with a second-degree misdemeanor charge for driving without a Florida car registration. This could potentially come with up to 60 days in jail as well as a $500 fine.
The good news is that most people aren’t going to be subjected to those types of punishments if they get caught driving without a Florida car registration. But at the very least, you’re going to get hit with a large fine for driving without a valid registration in many instances. It’s why you need to make it a point to obtain a Florida car registration as soon as you begin driving a car around in The Sunshine State.
What Do You Need to Register a Car in Florida?
If you own a car that isn’t registered in Florida right now, you might be wondering what you’re going to have to do to obtain one. Fortunately, there aren’t too many things that you’ll need to have to get your hands on a Florida car registration. But you will need to be prepared to provide several different documents when registering a car in Florida.
Here are the documents that you’ll need to have to get a Florida car registration:
- Proof of your identity in the form of a driver’s license or another acceptable form of ID
- Proof of Florida auto insurance
- A filled-out Application for Certificate of Title With/Without Registration (also referred to as HSMV form 82040)
As long as you have each of these documents handy, you shouldn’t have any trouble landing a Florida car registration. But if you don’t have one of them, you’re going to need to figure out how to get them before you begin applying for car registration in Florida. Your application is going to get denied without them.
How Can You Register a Car in Florida?
Once you have all the different documents that we just mentioned in hand, registering a car in Florida is fairly easy to do. Whether you’re registering a car for the first time or renewing your registration as needed, you can usually obtain a Florida car registration without too much effort on your part. Florida has also made it easier than ever before to register a car by giving people several different options as far as how to do it.
There are three main ways in which you can register a car in Florida without breaking a sweat. Check out the options that you’ll have when trying to obtain a Florida car registration below.
1. Visit a Motor Vehicle Service Center to Register Your Car
Florida is obviously a really big state, and as a result, there are quite a few Florida DMV facilities scattered throughout it. If you want to attempt to get a Florida car registration in person, you can do it by visiting the facility that is closest to your home.
You should be aware of the fact that not all Florida DMV facilities are capable of handling requests for registrations. There are some that aren’t going to be able to assist you when you’re trying to register a car for the first time in Florida or renew a Florida car registration. But you should be able to find one somewhere within your general vicinity to assist you.
The biggest benefit of registering a car in Florida in person is that you’ll get your registration on the day that you apply for it as long as everything checks out. You won’t have to worry about printing a temporary Florida car registration or anything like that.
2. Register Your Car Online
If you’re registering a Florida car registration for the first time, you’re going to be better off doing it in-person as opposed to trying to do it from your computer or phone. But if you’re renewing a Florida car registration, you can do it right online without any issues at all. Here are the steps you’ll have to take to renew your Florida car registration online:
- Visit GoRenew.com
- Provide information about yourself, your car, and your auto insurance policy
- Wait for your auto insurance information to get verified
- Receive your Florida car registration in the mail within about 2 weeks
More often than not, renewing a Florida car registration in this way will prove to be plenty easy. But if there are any issues with your registration, you might be required to take a trip down to your local Florida DMV to sort things out. It could delay your ability to obtain a Florida car registration fast.
3. Use a Mobile App to Register Your Car
The state of Florida has really gotten with the times in recent years by introducing a mobile app called MyFlorida that makes it possible for people to renew their Florida car registrations from their phones. With a few taps on their smartphone screens, people can obtain car registration renewals in no time. Here is how it works:
- You begin by downloading the MyFlorida app through either iTunes or the Google Play store
- You provide either your license plate number or your vehicle identification number
- You wait for your auto insurance to be verified
- You instantly receive a digital document for your Florida car registration until you get your hard copy in the mail
Getting a Florida car registration through the MyFlorida app is slightly more expensive than doing it through one of the other methods. There is a $4 processing fee that comes attached to each Florida car registration renewal. But it’s a very convenient way to update your registration in a hurry without any hassle.
How Much Does It Cost to Register a Car in Florida?
As you’ve no doubt noticed by now, getting a Florida car registration is pretty easy. But what you’re probably wondering at this point is, “What’s it going to cost me?” You’ll be very happy to know that getting a Florida car registration isn’t going to break the bank. Registering your car isn’t going to cost you much at all in the grand scheme of things.
We should point out that registering a car in Florida for the first time (more on that in a few minutes!) can be a little bit costly. You’re going to have to pay $225 for an initial registration fee. But once you do that, you’ll see the costs related to a Florida car registration go way down. You’ll only have to pay between $14.50 and $32.50 to renew your Florida car registration depending on how heavy it is.
Here are the prices for the registrations that you’ll need to obtain for other kinds of vehicles:
- Motorcycles: $10
- Trucks: Between $14.50 and $32.50
- Heavy trucks: Between $60.75 and $1,322
- School buses: $44
- Wreckers: $41
- Ambulances: $40.50
- Recreational vehicles: Between $13.50 and $47.50
If you drive anything other than a car, you should find out what the fees will be for a Florida car registration for your specific vehicle.
How Often Do You Need to Register a Car in Florida?
If you’ve registered a car in Florida before, you might think that you’re good to go for the foreseeable future. But your Florida car registration isn’t going to last forever! You’re going to need to stay on top of it and renew it as necessary to avoid driving around in a car that’s not registered.
So, how often will you need to renew your Florida car registration? It all depends. Florida residents have the option of renewing their Florida car registrations for either 1 or 2 years at a time. You’ll need to figure out how long your registration lasts and then plan to renew it accordingly.
You’ll have the option to renew a Florida car registration up to three months in advance of your registration expiring. You should take advantage of this so that you don’t inadvertently wait until the last minute to renew your registration or, worse, forget to renew your registration and drive around in a vehicle without it being registered.
How Do You Prove You Have a Florida Car Registration?
After you’re all done registering a car, it’ll be simple enough to prove that you have a Florida car registration. You’ll receive a registration card for your car either at a Florida DMV or in the mail. You should stick it into your car’s glove box along with any other important documents that you have.
You’re also going to have to take things a step further, though. You’ll need to place a registration decal on your license plate to further prove that you have Florida car registration. The decal should be positioned in the box that sits in the upper right-hand corner of your license plate. You should make sure you update this decal every time you renew your registration from here on out.
How Soon Do You Have to Register a Car in Florida After Moving to the State?
If you just moved into the state of Florida, everything that we just discussed with regard to obtaining a Florida car registration is going to apply to you. But one of the things that we didn’t address yet that you might be wondering about is how long you have to register an out-of-state vehicle.
The guidelines pertaining to this tend to change every so often, so you should make sure that you check with the Florida DMV to see. But generally speaking, you’re going to have to obtain a Florida car registration for your vehicle within 30 days of you:
- Renting or buying a place to live in Florida
- Taking a job in Florida
- Putting your kids into the public school system in Florida
If you get caught driving a car without a Florida car registration after that 30-day period is up, you can be subjected to the penalties we discussed earlier. You’ll want to make it your mission to register your car before that.
Want to Find Out More About Registering a Car in Florida?
At this point, you should know pretty much everything you’ll need to know to obtain a Florida car registration. But just in case you want to know more, you can always head over to the Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles website for additional information. They have lots of useful info for those registering vehicles in Florida.
Whatever you do, don’t ignore the importance of having a current Florida car registration! It’ll help keep you out of trouble and ensure that your car is always registered properly as long as you live in the state.