In California your car registration comes due on your birthday, every year. Not the end of the month, not the anniversary of when you bought the car — your birthday. The exact day is printed on your registration card. The sticker on your plate only shows the month and year, which is why so many people get caught out: they know it is a March sticker and assume they have until the end of March, when their birthday was on the 12th.
Estimate only — the exact date is printed on your registration card, and the California DMV decides. RegoDue is an independent guide, not the DMV.
When is registration due in California?
Your California registration expires on your birthday each year. The renewal cycle is annual — one year, every year, from birthday to birthday. The day you first register a car sets the pattern only in the sense that the DMV anchors your expiry to your birthday from then on; after that, the date never moves. If your birthday is 12 March, your registration is due on 12 March, this year and every year after.
You can start renewing 60 days before your birthday. The DMV usually mails a renewal notice about 60 days out, and the online system opens at the same time. There is no advantage in waiting — renewing early does not shorten your next year, and the new registration simply runs from your birthday again. If you have moved house, update your address with the DMV before you renew, or the sticker will go to the old address and you will be chasing it through the mail.
If you do not know your exact day — say you only remember the month — the calculator above gives you the last day of that month and labels it a month-end estimate. Treat that as a rough guide only. Your registration card, the one that came with your sticker, has the exact day. If you have lost the card, the DMV’s online lookup has it.
What happens if you’re late?
California has no grace period for paying. The fees are due by midnight on your expiration date, and the penalty clock starts the next day. There is one small mercy in the law: under AB 256, the police cannot cite you solely for an expired tag until two months after the expiration month. That is not a grace period for the fees — the money is still due, and the penalties still pile up — it only means you will not get a ticket for the tag alone in those first two months. Do not confuse the two.
The penalties are set by statute (California Vehicle Code sections 9550 to 9565) and they grow fast, because they are a percentage of your licence and weight fees on top of fixed amounts:
- 1 to 10 days late: 10% of your licence and weight fees, plus $10, plus $10.
- 11 to 30 days late: 20% of the fees, plus $15, plus $15.
- 31 days to 1 year late: 60% of the fees, plus $30, plus $30.
- 1 to 2 years late: 80% of the fees, plus $50, plus $50.
- Over 2 years late: 160% of the fees, plus $100, plus $100.
On a car with $300 of licence and weight fees, being a month late costs $60 plus $30 — $90 on top of the renewal itself. Being a year late costs $180 plus $60. The numbers get ugly quickly, which is the point: California wants the money on time. If your registration is more than a year overdue, you may also need a new smog check and, in some cases, a vehicle verification before the DMV will renew you at all.
You can still renew online up to one year after expiry. Beyond a year, you will usually need to go in person or by mail, and the DMV may ask for the car to be verified. Either way, do not drive the car while the registration is expired — the AB 256 protection only covers a citation for the tag alone, and it ends two months after the expiration month.
Do you need an inspection first?
California’s inspection is the smog check, and it applies to most cars. You need one every two years (biennially) once your car is eight model years old, and it applies in 41 of California’s 58 counties — basically everywhere except the most rural ones. Your renewal notice will tell you whether a smog check is due this cycle; if it is, you must pass it before the DMV will complete the renewal, and the test result goes to the DMV electronically, so there is nothing to mail in.
New cars are exempt for the first eight years (you pay a smog transfer fee instead), and there are a handful of other exemptions — electric vehicles, motorcycles, trailers, and cars older than 1975, among others. If your car fails, you have options: the Consumer Assistance Program can cover $1,200 to $1,450 of emissions-related repairs for qualifying owners, and there is a repair-cost waiver if you spend a set amount trying to fix it and still cannot pass. Get the test done early in your 60-day window so a failure leaves you time to fix it.
How to renew in California
Online is the easiest route for most people: go to dmv.ca.gov, use the registration renewal service, and have your renewal notice (or your plate and the last five digits of your VIN) and a payment method ready. You will need a smog certificate on file if one is due. The sticker usually arrives in about two weeks; keep the receipt and the printout in the car until it does.
By mail works too: send the bottom part of your renewal notice with a cheque or money order to the address on the notice. In person, any DMV field office can do it, though an appointment saves a long wait. You can also use a DMV kiosk in many grocery stores and a licensed registration service if you would rather not deal with the DMV at all.
What to bring either way: your renewal notice (or your plate details), proof of insurance, and your smog certificate if one was required. The fee itself is value-based, so it varies a lot — typically somewhere around $180 to $400 or more depending on what the car is worth, plus the weight fee. The exact amount is on your renewal notice.
Worked example
Maria’s birthday is 12 March. Her California registration expires on her birthday, so her next due date is 12 March. She can start renewing 60 days before, from 11 January. California has no grace period for payment, so if she pays on 13 March she already owes a penalty — 10% of her licence and weight fees plus $10 and $10. Her car is a 2019 model, so a smog check is due this cycle and she must pass it before the DMV will renew. If she renews online in January, the new sticker arrives in the post and the whole thing is done before her birthday.
Frequently asked questions
When is my California registration due?
On your birthday, every year. The exact day is on your registration card; the plate sticker only shows the month and year.
Is there a grace period in California?
Not for payment — fees are due by midnight on your expiration date, and penalties start the next day. AB 256 only stops police citing you solely for an expired tag until two months after the expiration month. The fees still grow in that time.
How much is the late fee in California?
It is a percentage of your licence and weight fees: 10% if 1–10 days late, 20% if 11–30 days, 60% if 31 days to a year, 80% if 1–2 years, and 160% if over 2 years — each plus fixed amounts ($10, $15, $30, $50 or $100). The exact figure depends on your car’s fees.
Do I need a smog check to renew?
Usually, yes, every two years once the car is eight model years old, in 41 of 58 counties. Your renewal notice says whether one is due this time. New cars are exempt for the first eight years.
Can I renew online if my registration already expired?
Yes, up to one year after expiry. Beyond a year you will usually need to renew by mail or in person, and the DMV may require a vehicle verification. Do not drive the car while it is expired.
Official link: California DMV — dmv.ca.gov
RegoDue is an independent guide. We are not affiliated with the California DMV or any government agency. Dates and fees on this page are estimates based on California’s published rules — the exact date is printed on your registration card, and the California DMV decides. Rule last checked November 15, 2026 — confirm on your registration card or the California DMV site.