(A) An owner of a motor vehicle that is thirty years old or older, may apply to the department to use a license plate issued by this State in the year corresponding to the model year of the vehicle, if the license plate is legible and serviceable, as determined by the department. If the department determines that the plate is legible and serviceable, the applicant must submit the regular vehicle registration fee contained in Article 5, Chapter 3 of this title, and the special license plate fee required by § 56-3-2020. The biennial renewal fee for these plates shall be the regular vehicle registration fee contained in Article 5, Chapter 3 of this title, and the special license plate fee required by § 56-3-2020.

(B) Once the department approves use of the plate and the applicant submits the required fees, the department shall register the plate to the applicant. The department may not register a license plate that has a sequence of numbers, letters, or other characters identical to any other license plate already issued by the department. The applicant may only use the special license plate on the vehicle with which the license plate registration corresponds.

(C) License plates registered pursuant to this section may only be transferred to vehicles of the same model year as the year the license plate was originally issued.