When you need it
When you need it
- You are applying for a permanent disabled person placard.
- You need a temporary placard for a condition expected to improve.
- You want a travel placard - for visiting California, or for taking your entitlement out of state.
- You are applying for DP plates instead of a placard, so the entitlement stays with one vehicle.
When you need a different form
When you need a different form
The commonest reason a form comes back is that it was the wrong one.
You are renewing a permanent placard.
Renewal needs no new application and no re-certification - the DMV states a permanent placard does not require re-certification once issued, and renewing is free.
You are a disabled veteran seeking DV plates.
Disabled Veteran plates are their own entitlement with their own eligibility, and they exempt the vehicle from registration and licence fees. REG 195 covers DP placards and DP plates, not DV plates.
What REG 195 asks for
What REG 195 asks for
Section by section, in plain language.
- Applicant details
- Your name, address and date of birth, plus your driver licence or ID number. The placard is issued to you, not to a vehicle, which is why the form identifies a person rather than a car.
- Type of placard or plate
- Permanent, temporary, or travel - or DP plates. The choice drives everything else: whether a fee applies, how long it lasts, and whether the medical section needs a re-certification date.
- Medical certification
- Completed and signed by a licensed medical provider, not by you. This is the section that gates most applications, and an unsigned one is the usual reason a placard application comes back. Two DMV-stated exceptions skip it: an in-person application where a lower extremity or both hands have been lost, and an applicant who already holds a permanent DP placard or DP/DV plates.
- Applicant signature and declaration
- Signed under penalty of perjury. Misuse of a placard carries its own penalties, which is why the declaration is on the form rather than assumed.
Fees that apply
Fees that apply
From the fee schedule - never typed on this page.
Not every placard is free. A permanent placard and DP plates carry no fee, and renewing a permanent placard is free - but a temporary placard does have one. Replacements follow the same split: free for permanent and travel, chargeable for temporary.
- Permanent disabled person (DP) placard No fee
- Temporary disabled person placard $6
Full table: California DMV fee schedule.