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Texas dealer license plate bonds.
From $100.
A Texas motor vehicle dealer that stores license plates and registration stickers on its premises may be required by its county tax assessor-collector to post a bond protecting against misuse of those plates and stickers. The county sets the amount; the premium is 1% of the bond amount, with a $100 minimum.
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Three steps. One sitting.
No underwriting queue for the standard plate bond — enter your amount, pay, and file with your county. Here is the whole thing:
Apply online
Your business details, your county, the bond amount your county requires, and the effective date — that is the application.
Issued on the spot
No credit check up to $100,000.
File with your county
Submit the executed bond to your county tax assessor-collector to keep issuing plates and registration stickers on premises. Wet-ink originals mailed whenever the county insists.
What it is and who needs it.
What the plate bond actually covers
Texas dealers are licensed by the TxDMV under Transportation Code Chapter 503, but a dealer that wants to store and issue license plates and registration stickers on its own premises works through the county tax assessor-collector. To do that, many counties require the dealer to post a surety bond.
The bond protects the county against a dealer who misuses the plates or stickers, or fails to pay the taxes and fees collected when issuing them. The amount is set by the county — commonly $100,000 in the larger Texas counties, though it varies by county and by your volume.
This is distinct from the statewide $50,000 motor vehicle dealer (GDN) bond filed with the TxDMV under Transportation Code § 503.033 — the plate bond is a separate, county-level requirement for dealers issuing registration in-house. Enter the amount your county names; no credit check up to $100,000, and pricing is variable by bond amount, from $100.
You need this bond if you are
Claims, renewal, filing, and what sets the price.
If a claim is made
A claim comes from the party the bond protects, the obligee named on the form, when the duty the bond guarantees is not met.
The surety investigates and pays a valid claim, up to the bond amount. You then repay the surety: a surety bond is a guarantee of your performance, not insurance for you.
Renewal and term
The premium covers a one-year term from the effective date you choose.
Renew before the expiry date to keep the bond in force: the license, permit or contract it backs expects continuous coverage.
How to file it
File with your county. Submit the executed bond to your county tax assessor-collector to keep issuing plates and registration stickers on premises. Wet-ink originals mailed whenever the county insists.
What sets the price
The premium is 1% of the bond amount, $100 minimum: the amount the obligee sets moves the price, not your business profile.
No credit check up to $100,000. Above that, the carrier may run a soft pull, which never affects your score.
Where a check runs, it decides approval; the rate is the same for everyone approved.
One short form to your exact price.
Submit the application with the bond amount your county requires — most applicants see their exact price and an instant issuance.
Start the application →Common questions.
Other Texas bonds.
Price and requirements checked on the carrier’s application, . Page updated .
Dealer plate bond, issued today.
Premiums from $100. Enter the amount your county requires and file the same day.