The department inspects vehicles prior to road testing to determine if such vehicle meets the requirements of law and is safe to operate on a public street or highway.

1. (1) Registration of vehicles.

   1. (A) Texas law does not require the license of the driver and the registration of the vehicle to be from the same state. Hence, residents of Texas may legally operate vehicles registered properly in other states; and nonresidents properly licensed in their home states may legally operate a Texas registered vehicle. Many states do require driver license and registration to be issued by the same state.
   2. (B) Farm registered vehicles may be legally used for authorized farm and ranch purposes and family transportation to church, to school, to a doctor, or to obtain family necessities, but not for gainful employment.

2. (2) Registration plates.

   1. (A) Out-of-state registration plates. Military personnel stationed within Texas may display on their vehicles current license plates from their state of legal residence or current plates from the state of their last duty station.

      1. (i) Upon the expiration of such plates, a member of the United States armed forces must either obtain his license plates from his state of legal residence or from the State of Texas.
      2. (ii) Current license plates issued from the state of last duty station to passenger cars and light trucks (one ton or less carrying capacity) will be honored only until such plates expire, at which time Texas or home state registration must be secured.
      3. (iii) The same privileges and restrictions as outlined in this paragraph apply to the service member's spouse and dependent children while the service person is serving overseas as a member of the United States armed forces.
      4. (iv) Nonmilitary personnel may operate on valid out-of-state plates while nonresidents or for 30 days after establishing residence or becoming gainfully employed.
      5. (v) Nonresident, full-time students attending accredited colleges and universities are granted full reciprocity. Part-time jobs are considered incidental to the student's education and full reciprocity is still granted.

   2. (B) Military or foreign registration plates.

      1. (i) United States military personnel returning from foreign service will be permitted to operate vehicles in Texas displaying license plates issued by the United States armed forces for a period of 45 days from date of arrival in the United States or for a period of 10 days following the first duty assignment, whichever first occurs.
      2. (ii) United States military personnel returning to Texas for separation from military service must obtain Texas registration within 10 days following the effective date of such separation.
      3. (iii) United States military personnel stationed in Texas and displaying license plates issued by a foreign country are subject to immediate Texas registration.
      4. (iv) United States citizens operating vehicles in Texas displaying foreign license plates must obtain Texas license plates immediately.
      5. (v) United States citizens, other than United States military personnel operating vehicles in Texas displaying "USA Military License Plates" must obtain Texas license plates immediately.

   3. (C) Citizens of other countries. Foreign nationals as visitors in the United States, including students and military personnel from foreign countries, may operate their vehicles in Texas under the terms of the Geneva International Agreement of 1949. The minimum requirements of this agreement are as follows:

      1. (i) current foreign license plate or plates properly displayed;
      2. (ii) in addition, each vehicle must display an international plate or marker showing the initial or initials of the issuing country in black letters on a white background. This plate or marker shall be not less than three inches wide and 10 inches long and must be of oval design;
      3. (iii) such vehicles may operate for a period of one year from the date of issuance of the international plate or marker; provided the basic plate remains valid for that length of time; and provided further that the foreign national does not establish residence or become gainfully employed in this state.
   4. (D) Nationals of Canada or Mexico. Nationals of Canada or Mexico may operate their passenger vehicles displaying current registration plates issued by their respective countries, provided such nationals are tourists. Nationals of Mexico who are employed in Texas and return to Mexico may operate their passenger vehicles with current Mexico registration plates.
   5. (E) Violation. A vehicle operating in violation of these regulations is deemed to be operating unregistered and requires immediate Texas registration.
   6. (F) Registration. A vehicle must have current registration or valid metal dealer plates or buyer tags (dealer in-transit tags are not acceptable). State law only requires that the plates be displayed to the front and rear; there is no requirement for the plates to be attached.

3. (3) Vehicle inspection.

   1. (A) Inspection certificate. The inspection certificate must be:

      1. (i) a current Texas vehicle inspection certificate properly affixed for all motor vehicles registered in Texas;
      2. (ii) for valid out-of-state vehicle inspection certificates that are acceptable, refer to §4.37 of this title (relating to Acceptance of Out-of-State Vehicle Inspection Certificate);
      3. (iii) no inspection certificate is required for a Texas-registered vehicle which was out of the state of Texas during an inspection period during the first trip to the home station or destination in Texas and for three days thereafter.

   2. (B) Vehicle inspection for road tests in Class C vehicles and Class A and B vehicles under 80 inches wide. The following will be inspected:

      1. (i) two headlights--inspect when use of headlights is required;
      2. (ii) two tail lamps--one for 1959 model or earlier passenger car or truck--inspect when use of tail lamps is required;
      3. (iii) two stop lamps--one for 1959 model or earlier passenger car;
      4. (iv) horn;
      5. (v) rearview mirror;
      6. (vi) turn signal lamps--1960 or later models;
      7. (vii) windshield wiper--inspect when use of windshield wiper is required;
      8. (viii) seat belts--required for front seat in passenger cars and light trucks to 1,500 pounds gross vehicle weight where the vehicle was originally equipped with seat belt anchors;
      9. (ix) vehicle inspection certificates;
      10. (x) registration;
      11. (xi) registration receipts if used for commercial driver license (CDL) test.

   3. (C) Vehicle inspection for road tests in Class A or B vehicles 80 inches or over in width. In addition to items inspected in subparagraph (B) of this paragraph, the following will be inspected:

      1. (i) clearance lamps;
      2. (ii) side marker lamps;
      3. (iii) side reflectors;
      4. (iv) turn signal lamps;
      5. (v) mud flaps;
      6. (vi) fire extinguisher--required on buses, taxis, and vehicles which carry hazardous material;
      7. (vii) registration receipts if used for CDL test;
      8. (viii) emergency flares, fuses, or reflectors;
      9. (ix) four-way emergency flashers.

   4. (D) School bus inspection. In addition to equipment inspected in subparagraphs (B) and (C) of this paragraph, school bus inspection includes the following:

      1. (i) red warning lamps (two front and two rear alternately flashing);
      2. (ii) "School Bus" signs eight inches in height on front and rear of school bus;
      3. (iii) exterior crossover mirror.
   5. (E) Truck tractor inspection. In addition to equipment inspected in subparagraphs (B) and (C) of this paragraph, truck tractor inspection includes cab clearance lamps.

   6. (F) Trailers and semitrailers. Trailers and semitrailers 80 or more inches in width shall be inspected for the following:

      1. (i) registration receipts if used for CDL test;
      2. (ii) clearance lamps;
      3. (iii) side marker lamps;
      4. (iv) four-way emergency flashers;
      5. (v) mud flaps--required when there are four or more tires on the rearmost axle.

   7. (G) Motor-driven cycles and motorcycles. Equipment inspected on motor-driven cycles and motorcycles includes the following:

      1. (i) horn;
      2. (ii) rearview mirror;
      3. (iii) one tail lamp;
      4. (iv) one stop lamp;
      5. (v) one rear red reflector;
      6. (vi) head lamp--multiple beam for motorcycle and single or multiple beam for motor-driven cycle;
      7. (vii) exhaust system;
      8. (viii) vehicle inspection certificate;
      9. (ix) registration.

   8. (H) Mopeds. Equipment inspected on mopeds includes the following:

      1. (i) brakes;
      2. (ii) head lamp;
      3. (iii) reflectors;
      4. (iv) rear lamp.

4. (4) General.

   1. (A) No driving test will be performed in any vehicle where there is no seat for the examiner to ride on.
   2. (B) No driving test will be performed in any vehicle in which the door next to the examiner's seat cannot be safely opened from the inside and the outside.
   3. (C) Only the applicant and Department of Public Safety personnel are allowed to be in the vehicle during the driving test. Exceptions may be made when an interpreter is actually needed by the applicant and the examiner, or in the case of a motorcycle examination when the applicant is required to furnish a vehicle and accompanying driver.

Source Note:The provisions of this §15.54 adopted to be effective January 1, 1976; amended to be effective May 23, 1980, 5 TexReg 1795; amended to be effective March 31, 1982, 7 TexReg 1180; amended to be effective January 29, 1985, 10 TexReg 173; amended to be effective July 27, 1990, 15 TexReg 4028; amended to be effective September 1, 1992, 17 TexReg 5673; amended to be effective December 13, 2009, 34 TexReg 8786.