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A Car the Government Bought You Registers Free — Plus One Free Set of Plates

A seriously disabled veteran provided with an automobile or other vehicle by the United States government under the federal automobile grant pays no annual registration fee for that vehicle, and receives one set of plates — ordinary or military — without fee.

Verified August 23, 2026

What this benefit is

A seriously disabled veteran provided with an automobile or other vehicle by the United States government under the federal automobile grant pays no annual registration fee for that vehicle, and receives one set of plates — ordinary or military — without fee.

What it's worth: Annual registration fee waived on the granted vehicle, plus one free plate set

  • Iowa registration fees are weight-and-value based and differ by vehicle, so no single figure applies. The waiver repeats every year the vehicle is registered.
  • The free plate set is one set, not one per vehicle. Swapping to a non-military special or personalised plate means paying that plate’s additional fees.

Who is entitled to it

  • You served.
  • A compensable service-connected disability is the starting point for the federal automobile grant.
  • You are in this state.

Not sure whether that describes you?

Answer a few questions about this benefit specifically — we only ask what this one actually depends on, and we stop as soon as we know.

How to claim it

  1. 1The gate is the federal automobile grant, not a percentage. The section reaches a veteran "provided with an automobile or other vehicle by the United States government" under 38 U.S.C. §§3901–3904.
  2. 2Bring the VA award for the automobile or adaptive equipment grant. A rating letter alone does not show the vehicle came from the grant.
  3. 3You must be an Iowa resident to claim it — the residency requirement is written into the same subsection.
  4. 4Choose the plate before you pay. One set of regular plates, or one set of any armed-forces special plate you are eligible for under §321.34, comes without fee.
  5. 5If you would rather have a non-military special plate or a personalised plate, you may — but then you pay the additional fees that go with those plates, and the free set is given up.
  6. 6The exemption attaches to THAT vehicle. It does not travel to a second car in the household.
Form
Registration application at the county treasurer, with the VA automobile grant award
File with
County treasurer
Documents you will need
va benefit summary letter
At each renewal
Claimed again whenever the underlying licence or registration renews.
CorrectionIowa is often listed as having no disabled-veteran registration exemption at all. It has one, but it is narrower than most: it follows the federal automobile GRANT rather than a disability percentage, so a 100% rated veteran who bought their own car is outside it while a lower-rated veteran who received a granted vehicle is inside it.
Worth knowingThe military plates themselves are not free of everything. §35A.11 routes the annual validation fee on national guard, Pearl Harbor, purple heart, armed forces retired, silver and bronze star, distinguished service cross, soldier’s medal, combat badge, gold star and United States veteran plates into the veterans license fee fund, which the commission then spends on veterans.
Known gapWhether a county treasurer requires the VA grant award itself or accepts a benefit summary letter was not verified; §321.105 sets no documentary standard and the department of transportation’s own form was not read this session.

Sources

This finder provides an informational match, not a government eligibility determination. The responsible agency decides your application.