Grace period for U.S. car's tags/inspection after 2 years in Canada?
May 25, 2022 12:41 PM Subscribe
COVID started and the U.S.-Canada border closed the exact same month I was slated to return to the U.S. and 1) renew my car registration, 2) get the car inspected. Because reasons, I can't yet register my car in Canada. My question: If I drive the car over the border and return to Virginia (where I still maintain a residence), to renew the tags and have the car inspected, what problems should I expect? [YANML]
***Please, I do not need a lecture about how I should have done this or that, I understand that this situation is far from ideal. Immigration and border logistics are complicated and there are other influential factors that are not necessary to mention here. If you're here to express judgment, kindly take it elsewhere***
This is the first time I have been able to return to the U.S. since the start of the pandemic. I am in the process of immigrating, and immigration proceedings have slowed considerably (also a result of the pandemic).
(Also, yes, I still carry active insurance on the car; I worked in auto insurance for a long time so I'm good on that aspect.)
For the above immigration reasons, I'm not able to import my car to Canada anytime soon, because I am not yet a permanent resident of the country. It may be several more months or a year. However, I still maintain a residence in Virginia, where I will be returning.
If I choose to drive back in this car, I will be driving through NY, PA, and MD to get to VA. I imagine that, at some point, I will get pulled over because of the dead tags and expired inspection.
I saw a (somewhat dubious) claim online that if a U.S. citizen takes their car out of the country and then returns, they may have a limited "grace period" to get the tags/inspection worked out. Does any of you have experience with this?
Since I have several questions related to this, I'll just list them:
1. What do I need to know if I'm pulled over (for the dead tags/inspection) in a different state (NY, PA, MD) that isn't Virginia?
2. What do I need to know if I'm pulled over while I'm in Virginia?
3. Should I just assume I'm going to get pulled over, constantly, until I reach Virginia? It seems pretty realistic to assume this.
4. Are there any other hoops, red tape, or risks I need to be aware of?
5. Should I just avoid this situation altogether (by returning to Virginia via other means than my car) because the con's will outweigh the pro's? (If so I will just store the car with family in Canada, so no need to inquire about what I'd do with the car if I don't take it back to the U.S.)
6. If you have any resources I should review, please feel free to include links.
***Note: I have a Canadian immigration attorney, but he is a Canadian lawyer and has already confirmed that he cannot advise me on matters of U.S. vehicle registration.
Thank you in advance for any help you can provide!
***Please, I do not need a lecture about how I should have done this or that, I understand that this situation is far from ideal. Immigration and border logistics are complicated and there are other influential factors that are not necessary to mention here. If you're here to express judgment, kindly take it elsewhere***
This is the first time I have been able to return to the U.S. since the start of the pandemic. I am in the process of immigrating, and immigration proceedings have slowed considerably (also a result of the pandemic).
(Also, yes, I still carry active insurance on the car; I worked in auto insurance for a long time so I'm good on that aspect.)
For the above immigration reasons, I'm not able to import my car to Canada anytime soon, because I am not yet a permanent resident of the country. It may be several more months or a year. However, I still maintain a residence in Virginia, where I will be returning.
If I choose to drive back in this car, I will be driving through NY, PA, and MD to get to VA. I imagine that, at some point, I will get pulled over because of the dead tags and expired inspection.
I saw a (somewhat dubious) claim online that if a U.S. citizen takes their car out of the country and then returns, they may have a limited "grace period" to get the tags/inspection worked out. Does any of you have experience with this?
Since I have several questions related to this, I'll just list them:
1. What do I need to know if I'm pulled over (for the dead tags/inspection) in a different state (NY, PA, MD) that isn't Virginia?
2. What do I need to know if I'm pulled over while I'm in Virginia?
3. Should I just assume I'm going to get pulled over, constantly, until I reach Virginia? It seems pretty realistic to assume this.
4. Are there any other hoops, red tape, or risks I need to be aware of?
5. Should I just avoid this situation altogether (by returning to Virginia via other means than my car) because the con's will outweigh the pro's? (If so I will just store the car with family in Canada, so no need to inquire about what I'd do with the car if I don't take it back to the U.S.)
6. If you have any resources I should review, please feel free to include links.
***Note: I have a Canadian immigration attorney, but he is a Canadian lawyer and has already confirmed that he cannot advise me on matters of U.S. vehicle registration.
Thank you in advance for any help you can provide!
Can you apply for a trip permit online? You might need one for each state you pass through, since Virginia's DMV website says its trip permits are only valid in Virginia.
posted by jacquilynne at 1:44 PM on May 25, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by jacquilynne at 1:44 PM on May 25, 2022 [1 favorite]
3. Should I just assume I'm going to get pulled over, constantly, until I reach Virginia? It seems pretty realistic to assume this.
In my experience, this is wildly unlikely.
In my misspent youth I drove a vehicle with expired Virginia tags in Massachusetts (and other New England states) for like three years and got a single warning for parking it on the street (I parked on the street for YEARS). I accidentally let my registration lapse in 2021 and, again, went months and traveled back and forth between Massachusetts and New Hampshire multiple times without anyone noticing. (On the other hand I have gotten parking tickets for parking on the street with an expired inspection, but these were just simple parking tickets. I recognize that this all makes me sound like a disaster but I promise I am in fact an upstanding member of society.)
So basically I think it's unnecessarily pessimistic to assume you will be pulled over even once for dead tags on a single road trip. YMMV if you are a visible minority and/or your car is disreputable-looking in any way.
I can't speak to what you should do if you are pulled over, beyond just looking as innocent as possible and pleading pandemic border problems. But I think it's pretty unlikely you will get pulled over at all.
posted by mskyle at 2:12 PM on May 25, 2022
In my experience, this is wildly unlikely.
In my misspent youth I drove a vehicle with expired Virginia tags in Massachusetts (and other New England states) for like three years and got a single warning for parking it on the street (I parked on the street for YEARS). I accidentally let my registration lapse in 2021 and, again, went months and traveled back and forth between Massachusetts and New Hampshire multiple times without anyone noticing. (On the other hand I have gotten parking tickets for parking on the street with an expired inspection, but these were just simple parking tickets. I recognize that this all makes me sound like a disaster but I promise I am in fact an upstanding member of society.)
So basically I think it's unnecessarily pessimistic to assume you will be pulled over even once for dead tags on a single road trip. YMMV if you are a visible minority and/or your car is disreputable-looking in any way.
I can't speak to what you should do if you are pulled over, beyond just looking as innocent as possible and pleading pandemic border problems. But I think it's pretty unlikely you will get pulled over at all.
posted by mskyle at 2:12 PM on May 25, 2022
Embarrassingly, I have never been able to register my car on time or get it inspected on time. I've never been pulled over for this even with registration over a year out of date. I drive between states in the Northeast a lot and it's never been an issue. I am white so ymmv.
posted by twelve cent archie at 3:48 PM on May 25, 2022
posted by twelve cent archie at 3:48 PM on May 25, 2022
You should be able to register and get an inspection waiver because the car is out of state. We did that with my wife's californian registered car for several years when in Canada, because we were either going to take it back to the US to sell or import later.
Like I say, we registered it while it was in Canada and got waivers for Smog etc and registered it no problem. Some paperwork, that's all. Have you looked into this option? This may not be an option if you have let it lapse but we had no issues.
posted by Brockles at 3:59 PM on May 25, 2022 [2 favorites]
Like I say, we registered it while it was in Canada and got waivers for Smog etc and registered it no problem. Some paperwork, that's all. Have you looked into this option? This may not be an option if you have let it lapse but we had no issues.
posted by Brockles at 3:59 PM on May 25, 2022 [2 favorites]
Is your residence address in Virginia in one of the NoVa counties that require an emissions test? If not, you can renew your registration and license plate decals online: https://www.dmv.virginia.gov/apps/webtrans/Vehicle_Registration/intro.aspx
The VA license plate decals, inspection sticker, and county/city personal property tax sticker are ALL independent of each other. Other states will only care about the registration/license plate stickers, if they care about those at all. If you get pulled over for something else, the expired registration/tags will very likely exacerbate your problems, so... drive gently. (A wise person once told me to never break more than one law at a time, and this would fall into that category)
Driving a VA-plated car in Virginia with an expired inspection sticker can get you pulled over, especially at the beginning of a month, when the cops are looking for ones that expired last month. Once you enter the state, get your inspection. If you fail, you'll get a new sticker saying so, but that is enough to make your car (temporarily) legal.
If I were in your shoes and did require an emissions test, I'd probably drive the car to Virginia anyway, and deal with it all there. If I did get pulled over, I'd very politely explain the situation (and keep your passport with entry/exit stamps to back up your timeline), and hope for the best.
Also of note: Vermont allows non-residents to register cars in their state, which is closer to where you are then Virginia is. I might consider getting the car legalized there instead.
posted by toxic at 5:49 PM on May 25, 2022 [3 favorites]
The VA license plate decals, inspection sticker, and county/city personal property tax sticker are ALL independent of each other. Other states will only care about the registration/license plate stickers, if they care about those at all. If you get pulled over for something else, the expired registration/tags will very likely exacerbate your problems, so... drive gently. (A wise person once told me to never break more than one law at a time, and this would fall into that category)
Driving a VA-plated car in Virginia with an expired inspection sticker can get you pulled over, especially at the beginning of a month, when the cops are looking for ones that expired last month. Once you enter the state, get your inspection. If you fail, you'll get a new sticker saying so, but that is enough to make your car (temporarily) legal.
If I were in your shoes and did require an emissions test, I'd probably drive the car to Virginia anyway, and deal with it all there. If I did get pulled over, I'd very politely explain the situation (and keep your passport with entry/exit stamps to back up your timeline), and hope for the best.
Also of note: Vermont allows non-residents to register cars in their state, which is closer to where you are then Virginia is. I might consider getting the car legalized there instead.
posted by toxic at 5:49 PM on May 25, 2022 [3 favorites]
Tell virginia your car was stored in Canada. You brought it to Virginia towed behind the moving truck. Say as little as possible. I had a Cal clerk tell me, information is your enemy. So I shut up and gave the simplest answers possible, only when asked, and my vehicle got licensed. It has to be the Virginia car has been stored in a foreign country, and your car is stored off public roads until you get your temporary permit. Try licensing it without driving to the bureau, until you have your temporary permit. This is how the game is played.
posted by Oyéah at 7:47 PM on May 25, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by Oyéah at 7:47 PM on May 25, 2022 [1 favorite]
I can't speak for the Mid-Atlantic states, but I've traveled to and within New Hampshire and Massachusetts with embarrassingly out-of-date Maine tags and have never been pulled over. I think that state troopers are mainly focused on writing speeding tickets, leading me to reiterate the advice cited by toxic to "never break more than one law at a time." (As a middle-aged white woman in a boring Hyundai Elantra, I don't tend to attract negative law enforcement attention. YMMV.)
posted by virago at 8:42 PM on May 25, 2022 [2 favorites]
posted by virago at 8:42 PM on May 25, 2022 [2 favorites]
A few years ago, I lived in California and had expired tags on my cars for a few months. I never got pulled over, but I did get a couple tickets for it while street parked (I was in a high-enforcement parking area that was patrolled by the parking ticket people multiple times per day).
If you end up driving back to Virginia, I would be careful to obey all speed limits and traffic laws, to minimize the chance of being pulled over. I’d also avoid street parking in high enforcement areas, and instead park in private lots when available.
posted by maleficent at 10:31 AM on May 26, 2022
If you end up driving back to Virginia, I would be careful to obey all speed limits and traffic laws, to minimize the chance of being pulled over. I’d also avoid street parking in high enforcement areas, and instead park in private lots when available.
posted by maleficent at 10:31 AM on May 26, 2022
If you can, put some money away for fines just in case. Pull overs happen (source: let my car registration lapse out of pure stubbornness during COVID). When you get to VA, you'll need to do the safety check and possibly the emissions check, then go to the DMV and speak with a person about your situation. Have not had good luck with their phone service.
I would say to do it just to avoid having to deal with even more red tape, but I've never had a really terrible interaction with a traffic cop. My wallet has, but I haven't.
posted by kingdead at 10:35 AM on May 26, 2022
I would say to do it just to avoid having to deal with even more red tape, but I've never had a really terrible interaction with a traffic cop. My wallet has, but I haven't.
posted by kingdead at 10:35 AM on May 26, 2022
This thread is closed to new comments.
I don't know why you think you might be pulled over for out of date tags in states other than Virginia. I am not sure they would even know. I might be concerned in Maryland if they have a reciprocal agreement with Virginia and they use tag readers, but that would be really petty. I know as far as inspection, NY gives you 24 or 48 hours to correct it before the ticket is enforceable.
Why not reregister via mail and then drive to Virginia to get it inspected?
The issue I was concerned about which I talked them out of was that my license could have been suspended for driving an unregistered car and uninspected car. Since this was in 2020, I mumbled covid and voila, no issue. I think your excuse is totally legit in that you were unable to cross the boarder to get the car inspected. Registration could have been done via mail as they pointed out to me. Whatever. I think Virginia just wants the fees for when you were delinquent and current. I have no sites for this. My experience with Virginia was easy. They were pleasant. I do not see what the issue can be.
Maybe I am under thinking it, but if I got pulled over, I would just explain the situation to the po-po and be nice. Explain that you are in fact driving to Virginia to remedy the situation. First chance you had bc of covid and the border blah blah blah. I have a maybe unrealistic faith in the policeperson doing the right thing. I do disclaim that I am an older white male. YMMV.
posted by JohnnyGunn at 1:10 PM on May 25, 2022