Georgia Dealer Plates: Who Qualifies, Costs, and Allowed Uses

Georgia dealer plates let a licensed vehicle dealer drive inventory on public roads for business purposes without registering each car individually. They are issued by the Georgia Department of Revenue under O.C.G.A. § 40-2-38, cost $62 for the master plate and $12 for each additional plate, and are limited to demonstrating, transporting, and delivering vehicles the dealership has for sale or lease.¹

Who Can Get Dealer Plates in Georgia

Only businesses that actively sell or lease vehicles qualify. You need a Used Motor Vehicle Dealer license from the Georgia State Board of Registration of Used Motor Vehicle Dealers (under the Secretary of State) or a New Motor Vehicle Dealer registration with the Department of Revenue. Repair shops, towing companies, and other automotive businesses that do not sell vehicles are not eligible.

For the used dealer license, the Secretary of State requires:

A $35,000 surety bond in the exact legal name of the business, with a separate bond for each licensed location.
An established place of business with a publicly listed landline (cell phones and VoIP are not accepted) and signage a consumer would recognize as a vehicle dealership.
A certificate of zoning compliance from the local jurisdiction.
Garage liability insurance of at least $50,000 per person and $100,000 per accident for bodily injury and $25,000 for property damage, or a $125,000 single limit. Ordinary auto liability does not qualify.
A fingerprint background check at an approved GAPS site.
Attendance at a mandatory pre-licensing seminar.

The application fee is $180, the license runs two years, and it expires on September 30 of even-numbered years.² You must also hold a Georgia Sales Tax Number from the DOR before you apply for plates.³

How Many Plates You Can Have and What They Cost

Every dealer who registers with the DOR and pays the $62 fee receives one master plate. You can request up to two additional plates without documenting sales history. Above three total plates, you file Form MV-6B certifying how many vehicles the dealership sold during the previous calendar year, and the DOR uses that number to decide how many more plates to issue. Each additional plate is $12.¹

The common belief that a dealer with fewer than ten sales cannot get plates is wrong. Any licensed dealer can hold up to three plates regardless of sales volume. Sales documentation only matters when you want a fourth or more.³

How to Apply

Since September 2021, all dealer plate registrations and renewals go through the DRIVES e-Services portal. Paper applications by mail or in person are no longer accepted.³

The primary form is the MV-6, the Dealer, Distributor and Manufacturer License Plate Application.⁴ Upload the following through DRIVES:

Form MV-6A identifying your authorized agents and representatives.
A photocopy of your Georgia business or occupational license.
Documentation of a publicly listed Georgia landline.
A copy of your Georgia Tax ID number and Form ST2 Sales Tax Certificate.
Copies of each authorized agent’s Georgia driver’s license or ID card.
A completed Motor Vehicle Affidavit for Citizenship Verification.
Photos of your signage, sales office, and lot showing an established place of business.

The name, address, and license number on the MV-6 must match DOR records exactly. Mismatches delay processing or trigger rejection.

What You Can and Cannot Do with a Dealer Plate

The statute reads narrowly. Dealer plates are for demonstrating or transporting vehicles the dealership has for sale or lease.¹ That covers test drives with prospective buyers, moving inventory to and from auction, running cars to service, and delivering sold vehicles.

Dealer plates cannot be used on cars for hire, on leased vehicles already in a customer’s possession, or on personal vehicles that are not dealership inventory. Lending a plate to a friend or family member violates the statute.

Employee Private Use

Georgia does allow one narrow personal use. A dealership employee working at least 36 hours per week, or a corporate officer of the dealership, may drive a dealership-owned vehicle bearing a dealer plate for personal purposes. The vehicle must be owned by the dealership, though it does not need a certificate of title or separate registration.¹ Part-time employees, independent contractors, and anyone outside the dealership do not qualify.

Test Drives and the Buyers Guide

Test drives are a core permitted use, but used-vehicle dealers have a federal obligation on top of state rules. The FTC’s Used Car Rule requires a Buyers Guide on every used vehicle displayed for sale. You may take it off during a test drive, but it must be replaced immediately afterward and remain prominently visible, not stashed in a glove box or under a seat.⁵

How Dealer Plates Differ from Transporter and Temporary Plates

Georgia issues three plate types that get confused. Knowing which one you actually need matters.

A transporter plate under O.C.G.A. § 40-2-38.1 is for businesses that move vehicles between manufacturers, distributors, dealers, sellers, or purchasers without necessarily selling them. It also covers mobile homes, house trailers, and special mobile equipment. Dealers moving their own inventory for sale or lease do not need transporter plates; regular dealer plates cover that.⁶

Temporary plates are issued to retail customers at the point of sale to cover the vehicle until permanent plates arrive. Temporary plates cannot be used for demonstration, employee use, or moving inventory between locations. Those activities require dealer plates. Dealers also cannot charge customers more than the actual cost of the temporary plate plus standard shipping.⁷

Penalties for Misuse

The statute is blunt. If the DOR determines after a hearing that plates were used in violation of the law, they are revoked and confiscated.¹ Losing the plates halts your ability to demonstrate or transport inventory, which stops normal dealership operations.

Using a plate issued for one vehicle on a different vehicle without proper transfer is a misdemeanor under O.C.G.A. § 40-2-6.⁸ A Georgia misdemeanor carries a maximum penalty of a $1,000 fine, up to 12 months in jail, or both.⁹

Violating the FTC’s Used Car Rule during sales activities involving dealer-plated vehicles carries a separate federal exposure of up to $53,088 per violation.⁵

Lost or Stolen Plates

If a plate is lost or stolen, report it to local law enforcement right away. To replace it, file a notarized affidavit with the DOR certifying under penalty of perjury that the plate was lost or stolen and that you reported it to police.¹ Delayed reporting creates problems if the plate later turns up on someone else’s vehicle.

Renewal and Transfer

Dealer plates expire annually on a schedule set by the DOR. Renewals go through the DRIVES portal on Form MV-6C. Miss the renewal deadline or fail to pay the fees on time, and the DOR adds a penalty of 25 percent of the total registration fees due. On a $62 master plate, that is an extra $15.50.¹

Your dealer license, surety bond, and insurance must all be current at renewal. If any has lapsed, the DOR will not process the plate renewal until the underlying issue is fixed.³

Plates move freely between vehicles the dealership owns, which is how they are designed to work with turning inventory. They do not transfer between businesses. If a dealership closes or changes ownership, the outgoing owner surrenders the plates, and the new owner applies for fresh plates under their own license and registration.

1
Justia. Georgia Code 40-2-38 – Registration and Licensing of Manufacturers, Distributors, and Dealers
2
Georgia Secretary of State. Georgia Used Motor Vehicle Dealer Application
3
Department of Revenue. Dealer Registration
4
Georgia Department of Revenue. MV-6 Dealer, Distributor and Manufacturer License Plate Application
5
Federal Trade Commission. Dealers Guide to the Used Car Rule
6
Justia. Georgia Code 40-2-38.1 – Transporter License Plate
7
Georgia Secretary of State. Subject 560-10-32 – Temporary Registration of Motor Vehicles
8
Justia. Georgia Code 40-2-6 – Alteration of License Plates
9
Justia. Georgia Code 17-10-3 – Punishment for Misdemeanors