(A) (1) No person who is the owner or operator of a motor vehicle shall fail to display in plain view on the rear of the motor vehicle a license plate that displays the distinctive number and registration mark assigned to the motor vehicle by the Ohio Director of Public Safety, including any county identification sticker and any validation sticker when required by and issued under R.C. §§ 4503.19 and 4503.191. However, a commercial tractor shall display the license plate on the front of the commercial tractor.
(2) The license plate shall be securely fastened so as not to swing, and shall not be covered by any material that obstructs its visibility.
(3) No person to whom a temporary motor vehicle license registration has been issued for the use of a motor vehicle under R.C. § 4503.182, and no operator of that motor vehicle, shall fail to display the temporary motor vehicle license registration in plain view from the rear of the vehicle either in the rear window or on an external rear surface of the motor vehicle.
(4) No person shall cover a temporary motor vehicle license registration by any material that obstructs its visibility.
(R.C. § 4503.21(A)) (Rev. 2022)
(B) Except as otherwise provided by R.C. §§ 4503.103, 4503.107, 4503.173, 4503.41, 4503.43, and 4503.46, no person who is the owner or chauffeur of a motor vehicle operated or driven upon the public roads or highways shall fail to file annually the application for registration or to pay the tax therefor.
(R.C. § 4503.11(A)) (Rev. 2024)
(C) (1) Within 30 days of becoming a resident of this state, any person who owns a motor vehicle operated or driven upon the public roads or highways shall register the vehicle in this state. If such a person fails to register a vehicle owned by the person, the person shall not operate any motor vehicle in this state under a license issued by another state.
(2) For purposes of division (C)(1) of this section, RESIDENT means any person to whom any of the following applies:
(a) The person maintains their principal residence in this state and does not reside in this state as a result of the person’s active service in the United States armed forces.
(b) The person is determined by the Registrar of Motor Vehicles to be a resident in accordance with standards adopted by the Registrar under R.C. § 4507.01.
(R.C. § 4503.111(A), (C)) (Rev. 2016)
(D) Upon the transfer of ownership of a motor vehicle, the registration of the motor vehicle expires, and the original owner immediately shall remove the license plates from the motor vehicle, except as otherwise provided in R.C. § 4503.12.
(R.C. § 4503.12(A)) (Rev. 2020)
(E) No person shall operate or drive upon the highways of this municipality a motor vehicle acquired from a former owner who has registered the motor vehicle, while the motor vehicle displays the distinctive number or identification mark assigned to it upon its original registration.
(R.C. § 4549.11(A)) (Rev. 2004)
(F) No person who is the owner of a motor vehicle and a resident of this state shall operate or drive the motor vehicle upon the highways of this municipality while it displays a distinctive number or identification mark issued by or under the authority of another state, without complying with the laws of this state relating to the registration and identification of motor vehicles.
(R.C. § 4549.12(A)) (Rev. 2004)
(G) (1) (a) Whoever violates division (A) of this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor.
(b) The offenses established under division (A) of this section are strict liability offenses and R.C. § 2901.20 does not apply. The designation of these offenses as strict liability offenses shall not be construed to imply that any other offense, for which there is no specified degree of culpability, is not a strict liability offense.
(R.C. § 4503.21(B), (C)) (Rev. 2022)
(2) Whoever violates division (B) of this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor.
(R.C. § 4503.11(D)) (Rev. 2016)
(3) (a) Whoever violates division (C) of this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor.
(b) The offense established under division (G)(3)(a) of this section is a strict liability offense and strict liability is a culpable mental state for purposes of R.C. § 2901.20. The designation of this offense as a strict liability offense shall not be construed to imply that any other offense, for which there is no specified degree of culpability, is not a strict liability offense.
(R.C. § 4503.111(B)) (Rev. 2016)
(4) Whoever violates division (D) of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the fourth degree.
(R.C. § 4503.12(D)) (Rev. 2020)
(5) Whoever violates division (E) of this section is guilty of operation of a motor vehicle bearing license plates or an identification mark issued to another, a minor misdemeanor on a first offense and a misdemeanor of the fourth degree on each subsequent offense.
(R.C. § 4549.11(B)) (Rev. 2004)
(6) Whoever violates division (F) of this section is guilty of illegal operation by a resident of this state of a motor vehicle bearing the distinctive number or identification mark issued by a foreign jurisdiction, a minor misdemeanor.
(R.C. § 4549.12(B)) (Rev. 2010)
(A) No person shall use a motor vehicle registered as a noncommercial motor vehicle for other than the purposes set forth in R.C. § 4501.01.
(B) Whoever violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the fourth degree.
(R.C. § 4503.05) (Rev. 2004)
(A) No person shall operate a motor vehicle or permit the operation of a motor vehicle upon any public or private property used by the public for vehicular travel or parking knowing or having reasonable cause to believe that the motor vehicle has been ordered immobilized pursuant to an immobilization order issued under R.C. § 4503.233.
(B) A motor vehicle that is operated by a person during a violation of division (A) of this section shall be criminally forfeited to the state in accordance with the procedures contained in R.C. § 4503.234.
(C) Whoever violates division (A) of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree.
(R.C. § 4503.236) (Rev. 2004)
(A) No person shall do any of the following:
(1) Operate in this municipality a motor vehicle for which a certificate of title is required without having that certificate in accordance with R.C. Chapter 4505 or, if a physical certificate of title has not been issued for a motor vehicle, operate the motor vehicle in this state knowing that the ownership information relating to the vehicle has not been entered into the automated title processing system by a Clerk of a Court of Common Pleas;
(2) Display or display for sale or sell as a dealer or acting on behalf of a dealer, a motor vehicle without having obtained a manufacturer’s or importer’s certificate, a certificate of title, or an assignment of a certificate of title for it as provided in R.C. Chapter 4505;
(3) Fail to surrender any certificate of title or any certificate of registration or license plates upon cancellation of the same by the Registrar of Motor Vehicles and notice of the cancellation as prescribed in R.C. Chapter 4505;
(4) Fail to surrender the certificate of title to a Clerk of a Court of Common Pleas as provided in R.C. Chapter 4505 in case of the destruction or dismantling or change of a motor vehicle in such respect that it is not the motor vehicle described in the certificate of title;
(5) Violate any rules adopted pursuant to R.C. Chapter 4505;
(6) Except as otherwise provided in R.C. Chapters 4505 and 4517, sell at wholesale a motor vehicle ownership of which is not evidenced by an Ohio certificate of title, or the current certificate of title issued for the motor vehicle, or the manufacturer’s certificate of origin, and all title assignments that evidence the seller’s ownership of the motor vehicle, and an odometer disclosure statement that complies with R.C. § 4505.06 and subchapter IV of the “Motor Vehicle Information and Cost Savings Act”, 86 Stat. 961 (1972), 15 U.S.C. § 1981;
(7) Operate in this state a motor vehicle knowing that the certificate of title to the vehicle or ownership of the vehicle as otherwise reflected in the automated title processing system has been canceled.
(B) This section does not apply to persons engaged in the business of warehousing or transporting motor vehicles for the purpose of salvage disposition.
(C) Whoever violates this section shall be fined not more than $200, imprisoned not more than 90 days, or both.
(R.C. § 4505.18) (Rev. 2004)
(A) (1) The operator of a “commercial car”, as defined in R.C. § 4501.01, when the commercial car is required to be registered under state law, shall, when operating the commercial car, trailer or semitrailer on the streets, roads, or highways of this municipality display inside or on the vehicle the certificate of registration for the commercial car, trailer or semitrailer provided for in R.C. § 4503.19, or shall carry the certificate on the operator’s person and display it upon the demand of any peace officer.
(2) Every person operating a commercial car, trailer or semitrailer required to be registered under state law shall permit the inspection of the certificate of registration upon demand of any peace officer.
(B) Whoever violates division (A) of this section is guilty of a commercial car certificate of registration violation, a minor misdemeanor.
(R.C. § 4549.18) (Rev. 2004)
(A) No person shall operate or drive a motor vehicle upon the public roads and highways in this municipality if it displays a license plate or a distinctive number or identification mark that meets any of the following criteria:
(1) It is fictitious;
(2) It is a counterfeit or an unlawfully made copy of any distinctive number or identification mark;
(3) It belongs to another motor vehicle, provided that this section does not apply to a motor vehicle that is operated on the public roads and highways in this municipality when the motor vehicle displays license plates that originally were issued for a motor vehicle that previously was owned by the same person who owns the motor vehicle that is operated on the public roads and highways in this municipality during the 30-day period described in R.C. § 4503.12(A)(4).
(B) A person who fails to comply with the transfer of registration provisions of R.C. § 4503.12 and is charged with a violation of that section shall not be charged with a violation of this section.
(C) Whoever violates division (A)(1), (A)(2), or (A)(3) of this section is guilty of operating a motor vehicle bearing an invalid license plate or identification mark, a misdemeanor of the fourth degree on a first offense and a misdemeanor of the third degree on each subsequent offense.
(R.C. § 4549.08) (Rev. 2004)
(A) No person shall operate or cause to be operated upon a public road or highway a motor vehicle of a manufacturer or dealer unless the vehicle carries and displays a placard, except as provided in R.C. § 4503.21, issued by the Director of Public Safety that displays the registration number of its manufacturer or dealer.
(B) Whoever violates division (A) of this section is guilty of illegal operation of a manufacturer’s or dealer’s motor vehicle, a minor misdemeanor.
(R.C. § 4549.10) (Rev. 2021)