Pennsylvania Form MV-11 is the PennDOT application for a permanent registration plate on an antique, classic, or collectible motor vehicle. File it once, with your original title and the required fees, and the plate stays with the vehicle for as long as you own it, with no annual renewal stickers.1Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Application for Permanent Antique, Classic or Collectible Registration Plate The trade-off matters: a vehicle carrying one of these plates cannot be used for daily driving or for hire, and state law caps its road use at roughly one day a week.
Who Can Use Form MV-11
The form covers three vehicle categories defined in the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code.2Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes Title 75 – 102 – Definitions
- An antique motor vehicle was manufactured more than 25 years before the current year and is maintained or restored to substantially match the manufacturer’s original specifications. Reproductions do not qualify.
- A classic motor vehicle was manufactured at least 15 years before the current year and substantially conforms to original specifications and appearance. Reproductions are excluded. A vehicle already registered as classic under an earlier definition can keep that registration as long as you don’t apply for a different registration type.
- A collectible motor vehicle has been reconstructed or modified so that it is substantially changed from the manufacturer’s original specifications and appearance, and PennDOT determines it is maintained in collectible condition. Age is not the test; the scope of modification is.
None of these plates can go on a vehicle that transports people or property for hire.3Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Antique, Classic Vehicles and Vintage Registration Plates
What to Have Ready Before You Fill It Out
Missing paperwork is the most common reason MV-11 applications come back from Harrisburg. Assemble everything before you start writing on the form.
- Your original Pennsylvania Certificate of Title. PennDOT re-brands the title and returns a new one carrying the antique, classic, or collectible designation.
- Your Pennsylvania driver’s license number or photo ID number. Use a business ID number if the vehicle is being registered to a business.
- The vehicle’s 17-character VIN, taken from the vehicle itself.
- An insurance identification card for the specific vehicle.
- For a collectible vehicle: two color photographs, one of the engine compartment showing the qualifying modifications and one of the modified or new exhaust system. If the modifications are not engine-related, submit a color photo of the full vehicle instead.
- For a collectible vehicle whose title is not already branded collectible: a completed Form MV-426B, which establishes the collectible brand, submitted before or alongside the MV-11.
Filling Out the Form Section by Section
Download the current MV-11 from PennDOT’s Driver and Vehicle Services website. The version in circulation was last revised in March 2025. Print it and complete it in ink; illegible entries get bounced.
Section A: Owner Information
Enter your full legal name or full business name, street address, city, state, zip code, and daytime phone number. Add your Pennsylvania driver’s license number, photo ID number, or business ID number. Then enter the vehicle’s VIN and the title number from your current Pennsylvania Certificate of Title.
Section B: Vehicle and Plate Information
Check the box for antique, classic, or collectible. Fill in the vehicle’s make, model year, and body type. If you want a personalized plate, mark that here as well; the extra cost is covered below.
Section C: Collectible Vehicle Modifications
Skip this section unless you’re applying for a collectible plate. If you are, describe every modification that takes the vehicle away from manufacturer specifications, with attention to the engine and exhaust systems. If the changes are cosmetic or structural instead of mechanical, spell out what was done. Attach the photographs listed above.
Signature
Sign and date the form. Your signature certifies that the information is true. Submitting false information falls under 18 Pa.C.S. Section 4904, unsworn falsification to authorities, a misdemeanor that carries a minimum $1,000 fine on top of any other penalties.4Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 18 – 4904 – Unsworn Falsification to Authorities
What It Costs and How to Pay
The one-time registration plate fee is $102.00. On top of that, the certificate of title fee is $72.00, bringing the minimum to $174.00.5Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Bureau of Motor Vehicles Schedule of Fees Personalization adds $136.00 to the registration side, making that portion $238.00.6Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Payments and Fees A local-use fee may apply depending on your municipality; the form points you to PennDOT’s Fee for Local Use fact sheet to check.
Make your check or money order payable to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Don’t mail cash. If you file in person at PennDOT’s Riverfront Office Center in Harrisburg, debit and credit cards are accepted.6Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Payments and Fees
Where to Send It
The mailing address depends on which plate you’re applying for. Both are printed at the bottom of the form.
- Antique and classic plates: Bureau of Motor Vehicles, Special Tag Unit, P.O. Box 68293, Harrisburg, PA 17106-8293.
- Collectible plates: Bureau of Motor Vehicles, Special Services Unit, P.O. Box 69007, Harrisburg, PA 17106-9007.
Because you are mailing your original title with the application, certified mail with a return receipt is a reasonable precaution. Authorized messenger services can also submit for you for a convenience fee. In-person submissions go to the Riverfront Office Center at 1101 South Front Street, Harrisburg.7Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Contact Driver and Vehicle Services After approval, PennDOT mails the permanent registration card and plate to the address on your application. Display the plate on the rear of the vehicle.
What Changes After You Get the Plate
A permanent plate is not a license to drive whenever you want. Under 75 Pa.C.S. Section 1340, using a vehicle with an antique, classic, or collectible plate for general daily transportation is illegal.8Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code Title 75 – 1340 – Antique, Classic and Collectible Plates Permitted uses are limited to club activities, exhibits, tours, parades, occasional transportation, and similar purposes. The statute defines occasional transportation as no more than one day per week. If you plan to drive the vehicle to work or use it to haul cargo, this is the wrong plate.
Inspection obligations also change, and they differ by plate type:
- Antique plates are exempt from both annual safety inspections and emissions inspections.3Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Antique, Classic Vehicles and Vintage Registration Plates
- Classic plates are exempt from emissions but still subject to an annual safety inspection.
- Collectible plates are not specifically addressed in PennDOT’s antique and classic fact sheet. Confirm your obligations with your local inspection station or PennDOT directly.
The antique safety-inspection exemption is codified in PennDOT’s vehicle inspection regulations, which exclude antique vehicles from the list of registered vehicles that must display a valid inspection certificate.9Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Vehicle Equipment and Inspection Regulations
If You Also Want a Vintage Plate
If you own a period-issued Pennsylvania plate from 1906 through 1976 that matches your vehicle’s model year, you can display it in place of the standard antique or classic plate by filing Form MV-11V, “Application to Display a Vintage Registration Plate,” with its own fees.10Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Application to Display a Vintage Registration Plate Collectible vehicles are not eligible for vintage plates. The Section 1340 driving limits apply to vintage plates too.
If Your Plate Is Lost or Illegible
If the permanent plate is lost, stolen, or physically damaged, file Form MV-44 with a photograph or tracing of the plate for identification. A replacement fee applies.11Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Registration Plate FAQs If the plate has simply become unreadable from age or wear, take Form MV-46 to an official Pennsylvania inspection station or a law enforcement officer to verify the plate is illegible, sign the completed form, and mail it to PennDOT. That replacement is free.