Texas Porch

Off-roading / The basics

The basics, and the one decal you need.

First, what counts as an off-highway vehicle (OHV). Then the small decal that lets you ride public land, and the title-vs-registration question that trips people up.

What counts as an OHV

If it's built to ride off-road and isn't set up to drive legally on the street, it's an off-highway vehicle.

ATV (all-terrain vehicle)

A straddle-seat machine with 3 or more tires, 50 inches wide or less, built for off-road. The classic 'four-wheeler.'

ROV (recreational off-highway vehicle)

A side-by-side (non-straddle) seat machine with 4 or more tires, built for off-road recreation. No width limit in the law.

UTV (utility vehicle)

A side-by-side built mainly for work, with 4 or more tires (think Polaris Ranger, Can-Am Defender, Kawasaki Mule). Texas law sets no weight limit for it.

Off-highway motorcycle

A dirt bike not made for the street. Titled as a motorcycle at the county tax office.

Sand rail

A tube-frame buggy with a roll cage, usually 700 to 2,000 pounds. Other off-road 4x4s not registered for the highway count as OHVs too.

Where it's required: Required to ride an OHV on PUBLIC land - and at a private park that was built or improved with TPWD grant money. Not required on purely private land (but call a private park to be sure).
Where to buy: Buy it through TPWD online, by phone at the TPWD service center, or at one of 100+ authorized dealers. TPWD mails it to you.
If you skip it: Riding public land without a decal is a Class C misdemeanor, with fines that can run from about $25 to $500.
The law: Parks & Wildlife Code, Chapter 29.

Title vs. registration

Title it

You must TITLE your OHV at your county tax assessor-collector's office. A title proves you own it (and helps if it's ever stolen).

Don't register it like a car

You do NOT register it like a car. Texas ended off-road ATV registration years ago - there's no yearly car-style plate or registration for off-road use. The OHV decal is what you need for public land.

The OHV license plate

Texas also offers a special Off-Highway Vehicle license plate from your county tax office. It looks like a normal plate, but it does NOT make your machine fully street legal. It only allows the narrow road uses in the road-rules section. You don't need it to ride trails.

Next steps

Where you can ride

Public venues, private parks, forests.

Find a place ->

Riding on roads

Usually no - here are the exceptions.

Road rules ->

Safety & gear

Helmet, course, spark arrester, kids.

Ride safe ->

Off-road hub

Back to the main guide.

Open the hub ->

Official sources

The decal comes from TPWD; titling and the OHV plate come from TxDMV and your county tax office.

Data vintage:
Built on the 2025-2026 decal year
Last reviewed:
June 15, 2026

Caution: Fees and forms can change. The official TPWD and TxDMV pages are the final word.

Spot something that needs a Texas check? This first pass is built to be polished over time. Send the page name, county, parcel context if relevant, and the official source you are looking at. Email Texas Porch.