Two Plates, And Nothing Over Them
RCW 46.16A.200 — front and rear when two are issued, clean and uncovered, and a frame only if the plate can still be read
Two plates, front and rear. In Washington, the director furnishes two identical license plates for a vehicle, or one for a trailer, semitrailer, camper, moped, collector vehicle, horseless carriage or motorcycle. Where two are issued, they are attached conspicuously at the front and rear of the vehicle; where one is issued, at the rear.
Clean, uncovered, readable. Plates are kept clean and uncovered and able to be plainly seen and read at all times, and are attached in a horizontal position not more than four feet from the ground.
Frames and covers. It is unlawful to use license plate holders, frames, covers or other materials that conceal, obstruct, distort, change, alter or make a plate illegible. A frame may be used only if it does not obscure the tabs or the identifying letters or numbers, and the plate can be plainly seen and read at all times.
Racks and hitches. On a vehicle with both plates properly attached, one of them may be temporarily obstructed by a trailer hitch, a wheelchair lift or carrier, a trailer being towed, or a bicycle, ski or luggage rack, if the device is installed to the manufacturer's specifications or generally accepted practice and does not keep the plate from being read from one or more accessible viewing angles when the vehicle is parked.
Other unlawful acts. The section also makes it unlawful to display a plate that was not issued for the vehicle, or one that has been changed, altered or disfigured or has become illegible, and to operate a vehicle without valid plates attached as it requires. Moving plates between vehicles without first applying to transfer them is a traffic infraction with a fine of not more than $500.
The section read here is in force until January 1, 2027, when a new version takes its place. Registration itself, temporary permits and specialty plates are governed by other sections that are not on this page. What a particular ticket means is a question for a licensed Washington attorney.
Sources for this section (1)
- RCW 46.16A.200 — License plates
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of September 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Washington attorney.