FAQs

Every Tennessee Buckeye can buy the plate. You do not have to be an Ohio State Alumni.
The plate adds $35 per year to your annual registration fee, and $15.38 of that goes directly to Ohio State as scholarship money that is available to all Tennessee high school graduates.
If you get more than one tag they will be sequentially numbered and you can register any tag on any vehicle – but it has to stay there. Ohio State plates are not available for motorcycles
Yes, you can give the Ohio State license plate as a gift. When you Sign-Up for the plates, just indicate that some of the Ohio State plates you are ordering will be gifts. Later, when you pay, we will know to contact you for your gifting details.
No, you don’t have to wait for your current tag to expire to order or to pick-up your new Ohio State license plate.
For those with Handicapped Driver plates – when you pick up your Ohio State plate, ask for the free Handicapped Driver sticker so that your Ohio State plate works just the same as a Handicapped Driver plate
In future years, you can renew your Ohio State plate by mail or online just like you do now.

General Information:

You cannot order or pay for a personalized plate (SHOE, OSU45,OHST8, etc) during the first 1,000 plates campaign. Once the Ohio State plate is in production, you can then order a personalized plate directly from Tennessee Titles and Registration.

If you don’t use email, or if you don’t make payments on the web, ask a Buckeye friend to register you and to make the payment for you when that time comes. That will save us many volunteer hours.

The time-stamp on your actual payment will establish your place in line for your license plate number(s). The sooner you pay, the lower your plate number. If you pay for two or more plates, they will be sequentially numbered.

In most Tennessee counties, your annual vehicle registration renewal is roughly $50 or a bit more. The Ohio State plate will add $35 per year to that.

Timeline and FYI’s

After we submit the list, the check and the plate design, Tennessee Titles and Registration estimates that it will require four to six months to produce the plate, to do live field tests, to process the payments to your individual accounts, and to mail your plate(s) out to your County Clerk’s office.

Once the Ohio State plate is in production and available:

1) If you are in the list of 1,000 pre-paid plates – you will receive a postal letter directly from Tennessee Titles and Registration that lists your new plate number with instructions to pick it up at your County office. Take the letter with you and T&R will have your assigned license plate there waiting for you to bring in your old plate for exchange.

2) Even if you were not part of the first 1,000, you can still take your current plate to your county office and exchange it for the Ohio State Championship license plate (you will get next sequential number at that office). They will only stock a few extra Ohio State plates for walk-ins, so you might want to call before you go.

3) This is also the time when you can order a personalized plate (SHOE, OSU45,OHST8, URBAN, etc) directly from Titles and Registration.

Pick Up Your License Plate

You will need a current Certificate of Compliance if your county requires Vehicle Emissions Testing. Your previous certificate is valid for 90 days.

You do not have to wait until your current tag expires to order or to pick-up your new Ohio State license plate.

Then when the time comes, take your current, recently renewed plate to your county office for exchange. You will pay your regular one-year registration fee and get full credit for all unused months on your current tag. The $35 specialty fee will have already been paid during this Campaign, of course. Your new Ohio State plate is then good for a full year. It’s that simple.

FYI – Some counties also charge an extra $1 Specialty Plate fee when you pick up your plate.

For questions, please contact The Ohio State University Alumni Association at 800-762-5646.