Pennsylvania Free Vehicle Registration for Disabled Veterans and Decorated Veterans

Pennsylvania has eliminated the registration and title fees on one passenger vehicle, or one truck weighing 9,000 pounds or less, for several categories of veteran. The disability category is condition-based rather than rating-based. It covers a veteran who lost a limb or an eye, or who became partially paralyzed, while serving in the armed forces of the United States. A veteran with a high combined rating from other conditions does not qualify, and a veteran with a comparatively modest rating who lost an eye does. Three decoration and captivity categories qualify without regard to disability: a person who was captured by the enemy in any armed conflict for which the Department of Defense authorizes a campaign medal, a Medal of Honor recipient, and a Purple Heart recipient. The exemption is one vehicle, so a household with two cars pays the ordinary fee on the second. Apply to PennDOT, using form MV-145V for the disabled veteran and severely disabled veteran categories. Certification from a VA Regional Office administrator is generally required for the disability categories. This is a separate thing from the plate itself. A veteran can hold a plate without the fee exemption and can hold the fee exemption while displaying an ordinary plate, so ask for both explicitly rather than assuming one implies the other.