A vehicle registration plate, also known as a number plate or license plate or licence plate, is a metal or plastic plate attached to a motor vehicle or trailer for official identification purposes. All countries require registration plates for commercial road vehicles such as cars, trucks, and motorcycles, for hire. Whether they are required for other vehicles, such as bicycles, boats, or tractors, may vary by jurisdiction. The registration identifier is a numeric or alphanumeric ID that uniquely identifies the vehicle or vehicle owner within the issuing region's vehicle register. In some countries, the identifier is unique within the entire country, while in others it is unique within a state or province. Whether the identifier is associated with a vehicle or a person also varies by issuing agency. There are also electronic license plates.
The most common format for vehicle registration plates in Romania consists of black letters on white background in the format CC 12 ABC, where CC is a two letter county code, 12 is a two digit group, and ABC is a three letter group. For Bucharest, the format is B 12 ABC or B 123 ABC, where B is code for Bucharest city, 12 and 123 is a two or three digit group, and ABC is a three letter group. The left side of the plate bears a blue vertical strip displaying the 12 stars of the European Union and the country code of Romania (RO). Between 1992 and 2007 the band featured the Romanian flag instead of the 12 stars. All lettering comes from the Latin alphabet.
The Italian vehicle registration plates are the compulsory alphanumeric plates used to display the registration mark of motor vehicles registered in Italy. They have existed in the country since 1897.
Vehicle registration plates of Poland indicate the region of registration of the vehicle given the number plate.
Standard Bulgarian vehicle registration plates display black glyphs on a white background, together with – on the left-hand side of the plate – a blue vertical "EU strip" showing the flag of Europe and, below it, the country code for Bulgaria: BG.
Vehicle registration plates of Serbia display black alphanumeric characters on a white background with blue field placed along the left side edge.
Shughni or Khughni is one of the Pamir languages of the Southeastern Iranian language group. Its distribution is in the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region in Tajikistan, Badakhshan Province in Afghanistan, Chitral district in Pakistan and Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County in China.
North Macedonia's vehicle registration plates consist of a two-letter region code, followed by a 4-digit numeric and a 2-letter alpha code . Issuance of the new plates started on 20 February 2012, and they introduced a fourth digit and the blue field on the left side. The standard registration plates dimensions are 520 by 110 millimetres. The international country code NMK is applied on the blue field on the left side of the plate. NMK is only used in the car plates, while MK is still used for all other purposes. In February 2019, the country code was changed from MK to NMK, in accordance with the Prespa agreement which changed the country's name to Republic of North Macedonia. The new code is a mixture of English (North) and Macedonian (Македонија).
Since Ukraine's independence in 1991, the country has used four main systems of vehicle registration plates.
Thailand's vehicle registration plates are issued by the Department of Land Transport (DLT) of the Ministry of Transport. They must be displayed on all motorized road vehicles, as required by the Motor Vehicle Act, B.E. 2522 and the Land Transport Act, B.E. 2522. The plates vary in design, colors and dimensions according to the type of vehicle, but usually display a registration number and the vehicle's province of registration. Specifications are given in Ministry of Transport regulations. Current style started in 1975 for most vehicle types, but with small changes in 1997, and 1997 for motorcycles.
The Palestinian National Authority requires their residents register their motor vehicles and display vehicle registration plates. There are two different registration systems in use: one for West Bank and one in the Gaza Strip.
Iranian license plates have had European standard dimensions since 2005. Each province in Iran has multiple unique, two-digit codes that are included at the right end of the license plates in a distinguished square outline, above which the word ایران or "Iran" has been written. A province's license plates will not be issued with a new code unless all possible combinations with the old code have been issued. In Tehran, the first code to be issued for the province was code 11, and subsequent codes all increased by 11 as well Ever since code 99 was fully issued, the new codes for Tehran have started from 10 and subsequently increased by 10. Most province codes increased by 10 based on the first code issued for their province. Khuzestan Province, for example, has been allocated codes 24 and 14, and code 24 will not be used before code 14 is fully issued. However, as codes started getting exhausted, numbers and letters have been assigned more liberally and without following this rule of thumb anymore
Egyptian vehicle registration number plates are used for official identification purposes for motor vehicles in Egypt. The international vehicle registration code for Egypt is EG.
The Iraqi vehicle registration plate is a license plate used for official identification purposes for motor vehicles in Iraq.
Vehicle registration plates of Armenia have black characters on a rectangular white background. They are composed of two or three numbers, two letters in the middle, and two other numbers. At the left side is located the international code "AM" with an oval car plaque and, sometimes, the national flag. Starting from 6 August 2014 a new design of license plates was implemented. The license plates have a national flag on the left side, a security hologram and a machinery readable Data Matrix Code.
The curse of 39, also referred to as triakontenneaphobia, is the fear of the number 39. In some parts of Afghanistan, the number is considered to be cursed or a badge of shame as it is purportedly linked with prostitution.
Syria requires its residents to register their motor vehicles and display vehicle registration plates. Since the start of the Syrian civil war in 2011 and the fragmentation of control and governance in the Syrian territory, there has been parallel license plate formats introduced in various regions of Syria by the de facto rulers.
Kyrgyz registration plates were first issued in 1980, when the country was still a republic of the Soviet Union. Despite having gained its independence in 1991, it continued to use the old Soviet plates until the introduction of the current format in 1994.
Tajik vehicle registration plates are registration plates for vehicles registered in the country.
Libya requires its residents to register their motor vehicles and display vehicle registration plates. Current plates are European standard 520 mm × 110 mm.
