The Texas DMV Board will vote on a proposed policy on Feb. 12 that would require stricter photo ID requirements to register vehicles, blocking undocumented immigrants from completing this process.

The proposed rule, issued as a guideline to businesses and tax offices in November 2025, requires anyone registering a vehicle to provide a form of REAL ID, such as a U.S. passport or Texas driver’s license. However, in order for a person to have this form of identification, they would need proof of U.S. citizenship or lawful presence, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety. This means millions of undocumented immigrants in the state of Texas would be unable to register their cars.

“The proposed rule amendments are intended to ensure that an applicant for vehicle registration provides personal identification documents that are valid and that prove the applicant is eligible,” wrote Adam Shaivitz, a TxDMV media and communications officer, in an email. 

At a public hearing last month, tax assessors from multiple counties opposed the proposal. Celia Israel, the Travis County Tax Assessor-Collector, said she would not enforce the guideline until it went through the proper voting procedure because the ID requirement is not part of state law. 

“I was in the legislature for nine years, and I know full well that (the) legislature has to pass a bill, the agency has to write rules and regulations around that bill, have a hearing and then adopt those rules and regulations,” Israel said. “None of that has happened in this situation.” 

The move comes after State Rep. Brian Harrison, R-Midlothian, sent a letter to Charles Bacarisse, the TxDMV board chair, asking how the department verifies that only citizens and those with lawful presence register vehicles. If verification is not taking place, Harrison wrote he would like the department to create new steps to ensure undocumented immigrants cannot register vehicles. 

“If DMV fails to take prompt and efficacious action to solve this problem, I will file legislation to require DMV verify lawful status before issuing registrations,” Harrison wrote in the letter. 

Maria Valenzuela, co-leader of Rooted, an organization advocating for immigrant students at the University, said the proposed policy is another “obstacle” for undocumented immigrants in Texas.

“I’m wondering how many people are gonna have to … give up their cars,” said Valenzuela, a neuroscience sophomore. “A lot of parents that are undocumented (and) have kids that are (lawfully present) trying to go to school, but now, maybe even being able to get those kids to school would be a huge issue.” 

If the board passes the proposal, Israel said it would harm undocumented immigrants because many rely on their vehicles to go to work and could find illegal ways to skirt around the requirement, like purchasing fraudulent documents. This could lead to safety concerns, as these vehicles would no longer be able to get insurance, she said.

“It’s a matter of critical importance to (undocumented immigrants) that (their car) be appropriately stickered and have the appearance of being legal, and they will go to extremes to make sure that that happens,” Israel said. “That’s not (something) the proponents of this regulation have completely thought through.”