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Renewing vehicle registration

There are 3 ways to renew your vehicle registration:

When to renew your registration

You can renew registration within 3 months before the current registration expires.

Check your registration

You can check the status of your registration by searching for the numberplate.

Check a vehicle’s registration status

Renewal notice reminders

You will get a courtesy renewal notice reminder via email approximately 6 weeks before your registration expires.

If you don’t have an email address, your renewal will be posted to you.

If you provide your mobile phone number, you will get an SMS reminder 2 days before the renewal is due. If you don’t renew it, you will also get an SMS notification 2 days after it expires.

If you have an ACT driver licence, or an ACT registered vehicle you have 14 days to let us know of any change of address.

This includes if you change your:

  • residential address
  • postal address
  • garage address.

If you’ve moved from interstate, you have three months to update your details.

Make sure your contact details are correct

Inspections before renewal

The renewal notice will tell you if your vehicle needs an inspection before renewal.

Read more about vehicle inspections.

Renewing online

You can renew registration for most vehicles online if they are still registered or if it has been unregistered for less than 12 months.

Online renewals are processed immediately.

BPAY payments can take up to 3 business days to process and another 21 days for you to receive your Certificate of registration in the mail. The registration date will be backdated to the day you paid.

What you’ll need

To complete the Renew Registration form you’ll need:

You’ll receive a receipt for payment.

Once registered your Certificate of registration will be posted to you.

Renew your vehicle registration

Lapsed registrations

Once the registration on a vehicle has expired you have 12 months to renew it.

After 12 months the registration lapses and you’ll need to re-establish the registration.

To register a vehicle with a lapsed registration you must:

  1. Get a roadworthy inspection.
  2. If the vehicles passes inspection, you will get a Certificate of Inspection. On the back of the certificate is an ‘Application to establish registration’.
  3. Fill this in and take to an Access Canberra Service Centre to pay a fee and re-establish the registration.
  4. If you wish to receive new numberplates, bring the current ones to the Service Centre for surrender.

If your vehicle isn't registered, or your registration has lapsed, you'll need an unregistered vehicle permit to drive the vehicle to the roadworthy inspection. Find out how to get an unregistered vehicle permit.