New to Alexandria? Your Car Checklist: VA Inspection, Emissions, DMV and City Registration

Moving to Virginia with your car? Get the safety inspection before you register; out-of-state plates are fine. Parking on the street? Register with the City of Alexandria and buy a permit right away. Then pass emissions, title and register with DMV within 30 days, and get a Virginia license within 60. Everyone else registers with the City within 30 days.

This is written for a car kept in the City of Alexandria. Other Northern Virginia localities have their own local steps.

The checklist at a glance

Step 1: Get the Virginia safety inspection before you register

Shop blogs disagree on timing, so here are the agencies' words. DMV's New to Virginia page says that before you operate a vehicle in Virginia, it must pass the annual safety inspection and display a valid sticker. The State Police inspection FAQ recommends getting inspected before you register in Virginia. Once the car is registered here, VSP says "There is no grace period" and the car "must be inspected immediately." The practical answer: get the inspection done before your DMV visit.

You don't need Virginia plates for it. VSP says a safety inspection can be done "regardless of what state it is registered in."

The fee is capped by the state at $20 for a car, $12 for a motorcycle. The sticker expires on the last day of the month shown on it, and no reminder is mailed. What gets checked, and what happens if something fails, is on our Virginia safety inspection page.

If your check engine light is on, read how the check engine light affects a Virginia inspection before you come in.

Step 2: Register with the City (on day one if you park on the street)

Registering with DMV doesn't register you with the City. The City's new-resident tax guide says new residents have 30 days to register with the City, and that every vehicle registered to a City address with DMV "must also be registered with the City." Out-of-state plates don't get you out of it: vehicles normally parked or garaged in the City, "including vehicles with out-of-state plates," must be registered for personal property tax.

Parking on the street? Do this first

The City created residential permit districts mainly for Old Town and the neighborhoods near Metro stations. Signs on each block limit non-permit parking to two or three hours. If you'll park on the street in one, the City says the permit "must be obtained immediately" and there's "no 30-day grace period" (City vehicle registration).

The permit comes after City registration: "You must register your vehicle(s) for personal property tax before you can obtain a parking permit" (City permit facts). You don't have to wait for DMV, because City residents "are permitted to register with the City prior to completing registration with DMV" (tax guide). So street parkers should register with the City and buy the permit on day one, alongside the inspection.

One more rule for people who walk or take Metro all week: no car may stay in the same on-street spot for more than 72 continuous hours, permit or not.

You can register with the City's online form or in person at the West End office, 4850 Mark Center Drive, Suite 2011 (City car tax page). The same page says state law requires residents to display Virginia plates within 30 days of moving to Virginia, and cars that don't comply face a local surcharge of up to $350, with some exceptions, such as active-duty military.

Step 3: Emissions, because the City of Alexandria is in the program

A car kept in the City of Alexandria has to pass an emissions inspection before DMV will register it. DMV's list covers Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, Prince William and Stafford counties and the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax, Falls Church, Manassas and Manassas Park. You have two ways to meet it.

Option 1: Pass a Virginia emissions test. The state caps the fee at $30, you don't need any paperwork, and the station sends the result to DMV electronically.

Option 2: Use a passing test from your old state. DMV's new-resident page says a car registered in Virginia for the first time can skip the Virginia test with a current valid emissions certificate from the last 12 months. The state regulation, 9VAC5-91-30, is narrower: the pass must come from another state's enhanced emissions program, DEQ's director "may" accept it, and it counts for one year. A 2022 DMV staff guide, VLIC-4.410 (revised January 25, 2022), tells counter staff to accept it only when:

• you bring the original passing report from the other state,
• the test was done in the last 12 months, and more than 9 months remain in its validity period,
• the car is registered for no more than 12 months, and
• you pay the $2 DMV emissions fee (separate from the test fee).

We didn't find those conditions on DMV's or DEQ's public pages, so confirm with DMV before you count on your old test. The guide says that if any condition isn't met, DMV will send you for a Virginia test first. Either way, plan on a Virginia test before your first renewal.

Newer car? Virginia exempts the current and three previous model years from the every-two-years test, but DEQ notes that "DMV may require an emissions inspection for newer vehicles that were originally titled in another state." Fully electric cars, motorcycles and gas vehicles over 25 model years old are exempt, per DMV.

A car that was shipped, towed or had its battery disconnected for the move may not be ready to test yet; see why cars come up "not ready" for emissions. Federal employees can be covered even if they keep out-of-state plates: DEQ cites Section 118 of the Clean Air Act for federal workers who commute into the area and drive onto a federal installation. That's explained in federal employees and Virginia emissions.

We're on DEQ's list of official Air Check emissions stations, and we do safety inspections too. We can do both in the same visit: the safety inspection takes about 10 to 15 minutes and the emissions test about 7 to 12, not counting any wait in line. More on the test itself is on our emissions inspection page.

Step 4: DMV: license, title, insurance, registration

DMV's New to Virginia page sets the clock from the day you move:

• Driver's license: within 60 days (30 days for a commercial license).
• Title: within 30 days. You title the car before you register it.
• Insurance: carry at least Virginia's minimum liability coverage before you register.
• Registration and plates: within 30 days, at a DMV customer service center.

The City lists the Alexandria DMV Customer Service Center at 2681 Mill Rd (City car tax page). If you passed a Virginia emissions test in Step 3, the station has already sent the result to DMV electronically.

Car tax: where to look

We don't give tax advice, so here is where the rules live. The City's car tax page says bills are due October 5 (or the next business day) for accounts created on or before September 5, and within 30 days for accounts created on or after September 6. The same page lists exemptions, including for some active-duty military. If you're military, our PCS guide for Fort Belvoir and the Pentagon covers inspection, emissions and car tax for military families.

Where newcomers get tripped up

1. Registering at DMV before inspecting. Once the car is registered in Virginia, VSP says there's no grace period.
2. Assuming DMV told the City. City registration is a separate step with its own 30-day clock.
3. Parking on the street before buying a permit. You need City registration first, and the permit has no grace period.
4. Counting on an old emissions test without checking with DMV. Under DMV's 2022 staff guide it needs more than 9 months of validity left and gets you a registration of 12 months at most.

We're at 501 S. Washington St at Wilkes St, at the south end of Old Town, not the Exxon on N. Washington St. For inspections, pull in along the brick wall on the left side of the lot, starting at the "Inspection Lane Starts Here" sign. Inspections are walk-in, Monday–Friday 8 AM–5 PM and Saturday 8 AM–2 PM, and cars on DC, Maryland or other out-of-state plates can get both the safety inspection and the emissions test here. You don't need to bring any paperwork, just the car. Questions? Call (703) 549-6631.

Sources

• Virginia DMV, New to Virginia
• Virginia DMV, Emissions Inspections
• Virginia DMV, Vehicle Licensing Guide VLIC-4.410: Emissions Inspection Program (revised January 25, 2022)
• Virginia State Police, Vehicle Inspection FAQs
• Virginia DEQ, How do I get an inspection?
• Virginia Administrative Code, 9VAC5-91-30
• City of Alexandria, Personal Property (Vehicle) Tax
• City of Alexandria, Tax Guide for New City Residents
• City of Alexandria, Personal Property Vehicle Registration
• City of Alexandria, Residential Parking Permit Program Facts