Does Nebraska Require a Front License Plate? Rules and the 2029 Change

Yes, Nebraska does require a front license plate on most passenger vehicles. State law requires two plates, one mounted on the front and one on the rear, under Nebraska Revised Statutes 60-399 and 60-3,100.¹² That rule stays in effect until January 1, 2029, when the state switches most vehicles to a single rear plate.

The Two-Plate Rule

Section 60-399 prohibits driving or parking a motor vehicle on Nebraska highways without the “proper number” of plates required under the Motor Vehicle Registration Act.¹ For a standard passenger car, two plates are issued, and Section 60-3,100 directs that one goes on the front and one on the rear.²

Proposals to drop the front plate have come up over the years. Law enforcement groups have pushed back each time, arguing that a front plate helps officers, witnesses, and automated readers identify an oncoming vehicle. That position has kept the mandate in place.

If Your Car Has No Front Bracket

You don’t have to drill into a bumper that was never built for a plate. Nebraska lets you register for a single rear plate plus a windshield decal if your passenger car was not manufactured with a front bracket.² The decal is placed on the driver’s side of the windshield and acts as your front identification.

The option costs extra. You pay a $50 nonrefundable annual fee on top of your regular registration, plus the cost of the decal, to your county treasurer at registration time. That fee goes to the state’s Highway Trust Fund. For specialty and high-end vehicles where a drilled bracket would damage the car’s appearance or aerodynamics, the yearly $50 is often an easy call.

How the Plate Has to Be Mounted

Nebraska sets specific standards for how plates are displayed. The bottom edge must sit at least twelve inches off the ground, and the plate must be fastened upright so it cannot swing.¹ All letters, numbers, and identification marks must stay “plainly visible” in daylight and under artificial light at night, which means keeping the plate clear of grease, mud, snow, or anything else that blurs the characters.

The statute also prohibits modifying the design, color, or appearance of a plate while it’s on your vehicle.¹ Tinted covers, decorative overlays, and heavily tinted frames all risk a violation if they make the plate harder to read. A simple frame that leaves every character and the registration decal fully visible is generally fine.

Placing the front plate inside the windshield does not count. The Nebraska Court of Appeals found in State v. Richardson (2008) that a plate sitting in the windshield, where the officer could not clearly read the numbers, was a traffic violation and gave the officer probable cause to make a stop.¹ The same rules apply if you use an aftermarket no-drill bracket or tow-hook mount: upright, secure, twelve inches off the ground, and legible.

What a Missing Front Plate Costs

Driving without the required plates is a traffic infraction. The base fine for failing to display two plates is $25, with $49 in court costs added on, for a total of $74.³ A separate $25 base fine applies if your plates are present but not clear and visible. Both are waiverable, so you can usually pay without appearing in court.

The ticket itself is modest. The larger risk is the stop. A missing or obscured front plate gives an officer legal grounds to pull you over, and once that stop is underway anything in plain view is fair game. A missing-plate ticket is a non-moving violation and generally won’t move your insurance rates if you pay it promptly.

Vehicles That Don’t Need a Front Plate

Not every vehicle gets two plates. When only one plate is issued, it goes on the rear.² Motorcycles and trailers fall into that category because their design doesn’t accommodate a front plate. Truck-tractors and vehicles registered under the International Registration Plan are the reverse, carrying a single plate on the front.

Historical and Vintage Plates

Vehicles with a model year at least thirty years old can qualify for historical or vintage license plates, and owners can also use original-year plates from the vehicle’s year of manufacture.⁴ A vehicle on historical plates can only be driven for test drives, parades, and hobby-related activities.⁵ Every collector applying must also own at least one other vehicle on regular plates for daily transportation. A reproduction or kit-built car styled to look like a classic only qualifies if the vehicle itself has existed for thirty or more years, counted from the year on its title.

Out-of-State Visitors

If you’re driving through Nebraska on plates from a state that only requires a rear plate, you generally don’t need to worry about a ticket. States honor each other’s registration requirements for vehicles passing through, and your out-of-state plate makes clear where you’re registered. The reciprocity only covers visitors. Once you register the car in Nebraska, you follow Nebraska’s rules.

The 2029 Switch to Rear-Only Plates

Starting January 1, 2029, Nebraska is moving to a single rear plate for most vehicles. The language is already written into Section 60-3,100: the license plate for a registered motor vehicle or trailer will be “prominently displayed on the rear” of the vehicle.² Truck-tractors and vehicles registered under the International Registration Plan will still display their plate on the front.

Until that date, the two-plate requirement remains fully in effect and officers will continue citing drivers who don’t comply. If your car has no factory front bracket and you’d rather not drill one, the $50 annual single-plate option carries you through to the 2029 changeover.

1
Nebraska Legislature. Nebraska Revised Statutes 60-399 – Display of Plates; Requirements
2
Nebraska Legislature. Nebraska Revised Statutes 60-3,100
3
Nebraska Judicial Branch. Appendix 3 Waiver/Fine Schedule
4
Nebraska Legislature. Nebraska Revised Statutes 60-3,130 – Historical License Plates; Conditions
5
Nebraska Department of Motor Vehicles. Historical Plates