Montana MV5 Disability Permit and License Plate Application: Filing and Fees

Montana’s MV5 disability permit application is a two-page form you use to request a disability parking placard, disability license plates, or both from the Motor Vehicle Division (MVD). You fill out the top portion yourself, your healthcare provider completes the medical certification, and then you submit the signed form by email, mail, or in person. There is no fee for a placard.

Who Can Qualify

Eligibility is tied to specific mobility-related conditions, not to a general diagnosis. A licensed physician, chiropractor, or advanced practice registered nurse must certify that you meet at least one of the criteria in Montana Code Annotated 49-4-301:¹

You cannot walk 200 feet without stopping to rest.
Your ability to walk is severely limited by an arthritic, neurological, or orthopedic condition.
You cannot walk without a brace, cane, prosthetic device, wheelchair, or help from another person.
You rely on portable oxygen.
You have lung disease with forced expiratory volume under one liter per second, or arterial oxygen tension below 60 mm/Hg on room air at rest.
You have a cardiovascular condition classified as Class III or IV under American Heart Association standards.
You have another disease or physical condition your certifying provider documents as comparable in severity to those above.

That last catch-all gives your provider room when a condition impairs mobility to a similar degree but doesn’t fit neatly into the first six items.

You don’t need to hold a Montana driver’s license or own a vehicle to apply. The law allows anyone who meets the medical criteria to receive a placard for use in whatever vehicle transports them.²

Placard, Plates, or Both

A placard hangs from the rearview mirror and travels with you between vehicles. Disability license plates with the wheelchair symbol are bolted to one specific vehicle. You can have both, and many people with permanent conditions do: plates on the car they usually drive, and a placard for the times they ride with someone else.

Temporary conditions only qualify for a placard, not plates.¹ A temporary placard runs up to six months if your provider expects improvement within that window. If the condition persists, your provider can certify a new temporary placard for up to 24 additional months. Permanent placards are valid for five years.

Filling Out the Form

The MV5 is available as a fillable PDF from the Motor Vehicle Division website, and paper copies are at any County Treasurer’s office.³ It splits into an applicant section and a medical certification section.

Applicant Section

Enter your full legal name (first, middle, last), residential address, and your Montana driver’s license number, state ID number, or tribal ID number. If you are requesting disability license plates, you also need the vehicle identification number and current registration details for the vehicle that will carry the plates.

Make sure your name and address match your ID exactly before you sign and date the form.

Medical Certification Section

This is where most applications stall. Hand the form to your licensed physician, physician’s assistant, chiropractor, or advanced practice registered nurse. The provider checks a box indicating which qualifying criterion you meet and selects whether your condition is permanent or temporary.³

For a permanent disability, the provider checks the box for a five-year placard and disability plates. For a condition expected to improve within six months, the provider checks the six-month placard box. If the temporary condition is expected to last longer than six months but is still not permanent, the provider specifies the number of months (up to 24) on the extended temporary placard line.

The provider must print their name, provide their professional license number, and sign the form. An incomplete or unsigned medical certification is the single easiest way to have your application kicked back. Before you leave the office, confirm every field in the medical section is filled in and legible.

Where to Submit the Form

You have three ways to send the signed MV5 to the Motor Vehicle Division:³

Email a scan or photograph to mtdriverhistory@mt.gov.
Mail it to Motor Vehicle Division, PO Box 201430, Helena, MT 59620-1430.
Drop it off in person at Motor Vehicle Division, 302 N. Roberts, Helena, MT 59601.

If you are applying for disability plates for the first time, submit the MV5 through one of the three methods above and follow up with your county treasurer for registration. Plate renewals route through the County Treasurer’s office, where you pay applicable vehicle registration fees.⁴

What It Costs

A disability parking placard is free.³ Disability license plates carry a $12 production cost and no administrative fee.⁴ Standard vehicle registration fees still apply when the plates are issued or renewed through your county treasurer.

Renewing a Placard or Plates

Permanent placards expire after five years. To renew, submit a new MV5 before the expiration date, and have your provider complete the medical certification section again.³

Disability license plates follow a different rule. Medical recertification of a permanent disability is not required when you renew the plates. You still file the MV5, but the medical section does not need to be filled out again. Mail the completed form to your County Treasurer’s office and pay your vehicle registration fees.⁴

Temporary placards are not renewed in the traditional sense. If your condition persists past the original six-month window, your provider certifies a new temporary placard for up to 24 months on a fresh MV5.¹

Using the Placard

Display the placard prominently in the windshield whenever you are parked in an accessible space.² The accessible space can only be used when the person the permit was issued to is entering or exiting the vehicle, and the striped access aisle next to a disability space is never a legal parking spot even with a valid permit.⁵ Most drivers remove the placard from the mirror while driving so it doesn’t block their view.

If You Are a Disabled Veteran

Veterans with a service-connected disability may not need the MV5 at all. Montana’s separate “DV” license plate grants disability parking privileges without a placard. To qualify, a veteran must either hold the Purple Heart with a VA rating of at least 50% for a service-connected injury, or be rated or paid at the 100% disabled level for a service-connected disability. The required documentation is a VA letter stating the rating, plus a DD-214 for the Purple Heart path.⁶

If You Already Have a Permit From Another State

Montana honors disability parking permits and plates issued by other states and foreign jurisdictions, so a visitor with a valid out-of-state placard can park in Montana’s accessible spaces under the same rules that apply to Montana permit holders.⁵ You only need to apply through the MV5 once you become a Montana resident or want Montana-issued plates on a Montana-registered vehicle.

1
Montana Legislature. Montana Code Annotated 49-4-301 – Eligibility for Disability Parking Permit
2
Montana Legislature. Montana Code Annotated 49-4-304 – Disability License Plate or Placard to Be Provided
3
Motor Vehicle Division. MV5 Disability Permit License Plate Application
4
Montana Motor Vehicle Division. Physical Disability Plate
5
Montana Legislature. Montana Code Annotated 49-4-302 – Privileges of Permitholder – Privilege for Disabled Veteran
6
Montana Motor Vehicle Division. Military / Veteran License Plates