Gold Star Mother Plates — Mothers Only, and the Ordinary Fee Still Applies
A resident who proves she is the mother of a person who died while in good standing on active duty may be issued a distinctive gold star mother plate for each passenger vehicle, truck of 20,000 pounds or less, or motorcycle she owns or leases. Two things are commonly got wrong: the section reaches mothers and nobody else, and the plate is issued on payment of the regular licence fee — there is no fee waiver in it.
Verified August 23, 2026
What this benefit is
A resident who proves she is the mother of a person who died while in good standing on active duty may be issued a distinctive gold star mother plate for each passenger vehicle, truck of 20,000 pounds or less, or motorcycle she owns or leases. Two things are commonly got wrong: the section reaches mothers and nobody else, and the plate is issued on payment of the regular licence fee — there is no fee waiver in it.
What it's worth: A distinctive plate; the regular licence fee under K.S.A. 8-143 still applies
- No fee waiver appears anywhere in the section. Compare the prisoner of war plate, whose section heading in the chapter index carries the words "no fee or charge"; the gold star mother section does not.
- One plate per qualifying vehicle, not one per person. The section allows a plate for each passenger vehicle, truck of 20,000 pounds or less, or motorcycle owned or leased.
This record exists to correct a myth. Guides that list a "Gold Star Family plate" here are describing something the chapter does not contain. The only gold star provision is 8-177d, and it names the mother. A surviving spouse of a servicemember who died on active duty has no gold star plate to apply for in this state.
Who is entitled to it
- You are a family member, which is where this plate lives — read the eligibility note, because the section is narrower than the phrase "gold star family" suggests.
- 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
Deadline: Apply not less than 60 days before your registration renewal date- 1Diarise the 60-day rule first, because it is the hard edge of this one. Subsection (b) requires the application to be made not less than 60 days prior to the renewal of registration date. Missing it costs a year.
- 2Expect to re-file every year, not once. Subsection (d) makes renewals annual and says no renewal shall be made until the applicant has filed the form again with the director. If the form is not filed, the plates go back to the county treasurer.
- 3Budget for the ordinary fee. Subsection (a) issues the plates "upon proper registration and payment of the regular license fee as provided in K.S.A. 8-143". Nothing in the section reduces it.
- 4The plate cannot be handed on. Subsection (c) makes neither the registration nor the plates transferable to any other person.
- 5If you are a father, a spouse, a child or a sibling, this section is not yours. Ask the Office of Veterans Services which of the other distinctive plates in chapter 8 you can hold, and ask a legislator about the gap if none fits.
- Form
- Form prescribed and furnished by the director of vehicles
- File with
- Director of Vehicles, Department of Revenue, through your county treasurer
- Re-file every year
- Entitlement is retested annually. Missing a year costs that year.
Sources
- authority · statuteK.S.A. 8-177d — gold star mother license plates: eligibility limited to the mother of a person who died while in good standing on active duty, issuance on payment of the regular licence fee under K.S.A. 8-143, the 60-day application rule, the annual re-filing requirement, and the bar on transfer
- operating · statuteK.S.A. chapter 8 section index — the full list of distinctive plate sections, showing free plates for disabled veterans, prisoner of war plates with no fee or charge, purple heart and congressional medal of honor plates, and gold star MOTHER plates as the only gold star provision in the chapter
This finder provides an informational match, not a government eligibility determination. The responsible agency decides your application.