Moving to Texas checklist: driver license, vehicle registration, voting, homestead and utilities

Summary

Moving to Texas involves a handful of state and county tasks, each handled by a different office with its own deadline. The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles registers vehicles, the Texas Department of Public Safety issues driver licenses, the county voter registrar handles voter registration, the county appraisal district decides homestead exemptions, and the electric, medical and legal pieces sit with still other agencies and private companies. This guide puts those tasks in a practical order, using the deadlines each agency states on its own pages.

It is a general checklist and not legal advice. Agencies change forms, fees and deadlines, and some rules differ for military members, students, non-U.S. citizens and people with foreign licenses, so confirm the current requirement with the agency before acting. Where a task could involve legal questions, such as wills or powers of attorney, the right step is to consult a Texas attorney. The guide links to related Texas pages on property taxes, the homestead exemption, retirement taxes and healthcare and Medicare.

Key takeaways

• TxDMV says new residents have 30 days from the time they move to register a vehicle, and both DPS and TxDMV say a Texas driver license is needed within 90 days of moving.
• The order matters: DPS asks that all vehicles be registered with TxDMV before applying for a Texas driver license, and TxDMV lists insurance, inspection where required, county tax office registration and then the license.
• The residence homestead exemption is filed with the county appraisal district, generally before May 1, and the Texas application requires a statement that no other residence homestead exemption is claimed in or outside Texas.
• Not every Texan can choose an electric provider. Municipal utilities and cooperatives decide whether to join retail competition, so confirm the options for the address using Power to Choose or the utility.
• Medicare plan networks are local. Check your doctors and hospitals against each plan's directory, especially during the October 15 to December 7 Open Enrollment Period.
• This guide is not legal advice. For wills, powers of attorney and similar documents, consult a Texas attorney, for example through the State Bar of Texas Lawyer Referral & Information Service.

The order that works: vehicle first, then license

The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles tells new residents they have 30 days from the time they move to register a vehicle in Texas, and its January 2025 checklist says penalty fees may apply if registration is late. The Department of Public Safety page for new residents says a valid, unexpired driver license from another U.S. state, U.S. territory, Canadian province or qualifying country lets you drive legally for up to 90 days after moving to Texas, and the TxDMV page says new residents are required to obtain a Texas driver license within 90 days of moving.

Those two deadlines are linked. DPS instructs applicants to make sure all of their vehicles are registered with TxDMV before applying for a Texas driver license, and the TxDMV checklist lists the driver license as the fourth and last step. In practice the sequence is insurance, inspection where required, vehicle registration at the county tax office, and then the driver license. Voter registration, the homestead application and utility setup can run alongside those steps once you have a Texas address.

Registering your vehicle with TxDMV and the county tax office

TxDMV describes four steps that must be followed in order. First, obtain Texas vehicle insurance; the checklist notes that some out-of-state policies may be acceptable and refers you to your insurance agent. The TxDMV page states that Texas requires coverage of at least $30,000 per injured person, up to a total of $60,000 for everyone injured in an accident, and $25,000 for property damage.

Second, obtain an inspection where one applies. Effective January 1, 2025, House Bill 3297 eliminated the safety inspection program for non-commercial vehicles, and commercial vehicles still need a passing safety inspection. If you live in one of 17 counties, a passing emissions inspection is still required before registration: Brazoria, Collin, Dallas, Denton, El Paso, Ellis, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Johnson, Kaufman, Montgomery, Parker, Rockwall, Tarrant, Travis and Williamson. Proof of insurance is required at the time of inspection.

Third, apply for title and registration in person at your county tax office. County tax assessor-collectors process initial registration for people relocating to Texas, and some offices require appointments, so check the county office's page before going. Bring the title or out-of-state registration receipt, a completed Application for Texas Title and/or Registration (Form 130-U), your current driver license or government-issued photo identification, and proof of current insurance. TxDMV says you are not required to title the vehicle in Texas; if you are not surrendering the out-of-state title, check the Registration Purposes Only box on Form 130-U. If you are not required to obtain an emissions inspection, you self-certify the vehicle identification number on the form.

On fees, TxDMV states that the base registration fee is $50.75 plus $1 for TexasSure, the electronic insurance verification program, for a total state registration of $51.75, and that counties may add other fees. As a new resident you also pay sales tax-related fees required by the Comptroller of Public Accounts; TxDMV says these can be $90 or the difference between your previous state's sales tax and the Texas sales tax. Fully electric vehicles with a gross weight of 10,000 pounds or less are assessed an annual $200 fee at registration renewal, and TxDMV says active duty members of the U.S. Armed Forces and non-resident, full-time students attending a Texas college or university are not required to register or title their vehicles in Texas. Ask the county office for the exact total and accepted payment methods, because county fees vary.

Driver license with the Department of Public Safety

For a driver license from another U.S. state, U.S. territory or Canada, the DPS new-resident page says you must surrender the out-of-state license and are not required to take the knowledge or skills exams. For applicants age 18 and older, DPS also says a valid out-of-state license, or one not expired over two years, exempts the applicant from the knowledge and skills exams and the adult driver education requirements. Texas has license reciprocity with France, Germany, South Korea, the United Arab Emirates and Taiwan, and foreign licenses not in English or Spanish must be translated by a translation service or the consulate before arriving in Texas.

DPS also describes exemptions for active duty military personnel and people discharged within the last 90 days, and for members of a NATO force or civilian component with validating orders. For a Texas identification card, DPS says new residents must meet all requirements, including proof of Texas residency and identification. Because requirements for documents, appointments and fees change, use the DPS driver license pages to confirm the current list before visiting an office.

A Texas driver license also changes the address that other records use. TxDMV tells motorists to use county tax offices for changes of address on motor vehicle records, so update the vehicle record after moving as well.

Voter registration

VoteTexas.gov, the Texas Secretary of State's voter information site, says that so long as you are eligible, you can register to vote in your county of residence for local, state and federal elections. Texas law requires eligible voters to register by the 30th day before Election Day; the registration deadline for the November 3, 2026 Uniform Election has passed, so a newcomer arriving now registers for the next election and should check that election's deadline with the county voter registrar or VoteTexas.gov. The site explains that voter registration in Texas is county-based and encourages you to contact your county voter registrar with questions about the status of your registration.

Texans who have recently changed their name or moved can update their voter registration online through Texas.gov, according to VoteTexas.gov, and an Am I Registered portal lets you look up your record in the statewide voter registration database. Eligibility rules, including citizenship and residence, are on VoteTexas.gov, so check them there before applying.

Homestead exemption and property tax paperwork

If you buy a home and make it your principal residence, the residence homestead exemption is filed with the county appraisal district. The Comptroller says applications for property tax exemptions are filed with the appraisal district in the county where the property is located, that the general deadline is before May 1, and that chief appraisers alone decide whether property qualifies. To qualify for the general residence homestead exemption, an individual must have an ownership interest in the property and use it as a principal residence, and the applicant must state that no exemption is claimed on another residence homestead in or outside Texas. If you acquire the property after January 1, the Comptroller says you may receive the exemption for the applicable portion of the tax year immediately on qualification if the previous owner did not receive the same exemption for that year. Ask the appraisal district about eligibility for your situation.

School districts must provide a $140,000 residence homestead exemption, and owners age 65 or older or disabled receive an additional $60,000 school district exemption, according to the Comptroller. Local units may add their own exemptions. These exemptions reduce taxable value; they are not cash payments, and they do not freeze all taxes at 65. The homestead guide explains the age 65 exemption and the school tax ceiling, and the property tax guide explains how appraisal districts and taxing units work.

The Comptroller's Texas Property Tax Basics also says chief appraisers must send the notice of appraised value by April 1, or as soon thereafter as practicable, for a residence homestead, and that appraisal review boards begin hearing protests around May 15. Because the exemption application asks you to certify that you claim no other homestead, deal with the exemption on a former home first. Your former state's property tax office can explain how to end it.

Electricity, water and other utilities

Electricity is the utility with the biggest Texas-specific wrinkle. A 1999 deregulation law made it possible for consumers in most parts of Texas to choose their own electric company, called a Retail Electric Provider, but Power to Choose says not all Texans can: some communities are served by municipalities, cooperatives or investor-owned utilities where electric choice is not available. The Public Utility Commission adds that municipally owned utilities and cooperatives may choose whether to participate in retail competition, and that state law has delayed competition for certain investor-owned utilities. ERCOT says it administers retail switching for 8 million premises in competitive choice areas.

So the first utility task is to find out who serves the address and whether you have a choice. Power to Choose, run by the Public Utility Commission, offers a Plans page and a toll-free number for checking whether choice exists at an address, and your utility's customer service line can also confirm. Where you do have a choice, the same wires company continues to deliver electricity, read meters and respond to outages whichever company sells you power. Power to Choose also warns that many plans charge a minimum usage fee if you use less than a set amount each month, with typical cut-off points of less than 500 or 1,000 kWh, so read the Electricity Facts Label for any plan, especially for a second home or a small household.

The Public Utility Commission regulates electric, telecommunication, and water and sewer utilities and takes complaints, and Power to Choose points unresolved billing disputes to the Commission's customer hotline. Water and sewer service often comes from a city or a special district, so ask the seller, the city and the appraisal district which units serve the property. The MUD and PID guide explains special district charges, and the hail, wildfire, drought, heat and outage guide covers power outages.

Medicare and health care

Medicare moves with you, but plan networks are local. The Medicare publication on Advantage provider networks explains that in many Medicare Advantage Plans you can only use doctors and other providers in the plan's network and service area for non-emergency care, that plans can add or remove providers, and that during the Open Enrollment Period, October 15 to December 7, you should check whether your providers are in the plans you are considering. You can find a plan's provider directory on its website or by asking the plan.

Before choosing a plan in a new Texas town, list your doctors, specialists and preferred hospital and check each against the plan's current directory, then ask the provider directly when you schedule an appointment. The Texas healthcare geography and Medicare guide explains freestanding emergency rooms, critical access hospitals and VA facilities, which matter more in some Texas towns than others.

Estate planning: consult a Texas attorney

Wills, trusts, powers of attorney, health care directives and beneficiary designations are legal documents, and nothing here is legal advice about them. A person who has moved to Texas can ask a Texas attorney whether documents prepared in another state still fit their situation. The State Bar of Texas runs a Lawyer Referral & Information Service, described on its public pages as a public service designed to help match people with an attorney or other legal resource. The bar says an initial consultation of up to 30 minutes with a participating lawyer will cost no more than $20, and after that the client and lawyer negotiate a payment agreement.

The bar also says the service is not intended to provide reduced fee or free legal services, and it points people looking for free or reduced fee help to TexasLawHelp.org. This is not legal advice, and it does not endorse any lawyer or firm.

A working timeline

Before the move, identify the electric provider options for the new address, confirm the plan networks for any Medicare plan you will use, and note the county tax office, appraisal district and voter registrar for the new county. In the first 30 days, buy Texas vehicle insurance, complete any required emissions inspection, and register the vehicle at the county tax office. Within 90 days, apply for the Texas driver license at DPS, surrendering the out-of-state license if it is a U.S. or Canadian one. As soon as you have an address, register to vote with the county. After buying a home, file the homestead application with the appraisal district before May 1, and keep your appraisal notice. During the Medicare Open Enrollment Period, October 15 to December 7, review plans against your providers. When it suits you, book a consultation with a Texas attorney.

Treat the agency pages as the final word on deadlines and fees, since they are updated by the agencies. This guide is a general checklist and not legal advice.

Related guides

• Texas homestead exemption, the age-65 exemption and the school tax ceiling
• Texas property taxes and appraisal districts: how to compare actual total tax bills
• Texas healthcare geography and Medicare network considerations
• Texas versus Florida for retirees: taxes, homestead rules, insurance and hurricanes compared