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.
In Ireland, commonly referred to as the Republic of Ireland, vehicle registration plates are the visual indications of motor vehicle registration – officially termed "index marks" – which it has been mandatory since 1903 to display on most motor vehicles used on public roads in Ireland. The alphanumeric marks themselves are issued by the local authority in which a vehicle is first registered.
Australian vehicle registration plates, number plates and license plates are issued by state, territory, and Commonwealth governments, and the armed forces of Australia. The plates are associated with a vehicle and are generally intended to last during the time that the vehicle remains registered in the state, though as they become unreadable they may be remade with a like for like replacement. Motor vehicle registration in Australia can be renewed monthly, quarterly, half yearly or annually depending on the state or territory where the vehicle is registered.
Vehicle registration plates are mandatory alphanumeric plates used to display the registration mark of a vehicle registered in Germany. They have existed in the country since 1906, with the current system in use since 1956. German registration plates are alphanumeric plates in a standardised format, issued officially by the district authorities.
All motorised vehicles plying on public roads in India are tagged with a registration or licence number. The vehicle registration plate is issued by a Regional Transport Office (RTO), the district-level authority on vehicular matters in the respective state or Union Territory. The number plates are mandatory on both front and rear of the vehicle and are required to be in modern Hindu-Arabic numerals with latin letters. Complete specification of registration plates are specified under the HSRP: High Security Registration Plate rules.
Austrian car number plates are mandatory vehicle registration plates displaying the registration mark of motor vehicles in Austria. They are used to verify street legality, proof of a valid liability insurance and to identify and recognise the vehicle.
Vehicle registration plates of Poland indicate the region of registration of the vehicle given the number plate.
An aircraft registration is a code unique to a single aircraft, required by international convention to be marked on the exterior of every civil aircraft. The registration indicates the aircraft's country of registration, and functions much like an automobile license plate or a ship registration. This code must also appear in its Certificate of Registration, issued by the relevant civil aviation authority (CAA). An aircraft can only have one registration, in one jurisdiction, though it is changeable over the life of the aircraft.
Vehicle registration plates in Singapore are administered and issued by the Land Transport Authority. All vehicles in Singapore are required to display front and back plates bearing its registration number. Purchasers of vehicles have the option to bid for a vehicle registration number or get a vehicle registration number automatically assigned. Vehicle registration numbers can be retained on new or old vehicles owned by the same person, with a validity of 1 year or with extensions of 6 months thereafter. Vehicle owners are also able to replace and bid for a new registration number for existing vehicles.
Vehicle registration plates in Denmark normally have two letters and five digits and are issued by authorities. Plates can be obtained at authorized car dealers, vehicle inspection stations or official registration centers. The combination is simply a serial and has no connection with a geographic location, but the digits have number series based on vehicle type. The country's official international road code is DK, excluding the Faroes. Danish plates can be issued conforming to EU registration plate standards, allowing the vehicle to be driven throughout the EU/EEA without restrictions. Without a EU standard plate, a "DK" distinguishing sign must be displayed separately on the vehicle when driving abroad.
The Portuguese vehicle registration plate system for automobiles and motorcycles is simple and sequential. The system has no link to geographical locations or similar. It is an incremental numbering system consisting of three groups of two characters, separated by dashes. This system started in 1937 with AA–10–00, which ran out on 29 February 1992. This then went on to 00–01–AA and changed to 00–AA–01 in 2005. This last sequence was exhausted early in 2020, and it was announced on 3 March that it had been replaced by the sequence AA–00–AA. Moreover, the letters W and Y, never before used, and the letter K, used only for a short-lived series for imported vehicles in 1997, are being employed in the new system, meaning that this sequence should last more than six-and-a-half times as long as the previous. At current rates that it would not need replacing at least until the end of the 21st century, but the expected lifetime of the series is stated as being forty-five years.
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.
In Macau, vehicle registration marks have been issued by the Transport Bureau since 2008. The bureau does not provide the registration plates themselves; these are made by garages and vehicle accessory shops at the owners' request.
Vehicle registration plates in Luxembourg bear a maximum of six characters. The standard series in use today uses a format of two letters followed by four digits. Before adoption of the current scheme, marks consisting only of digits and two digits and three numbers letters, were issued. The digit-only plates may only now be issued as a custom plate.
Vehicle registration began in the Isle of Man on 1 January 1906, following the Highways Act Amendment Act 1905.
The vehicle registration plates of Cyprus are composed of three letters and three digits. A simple incremental numbering system is used; numbers run from 001 to 999 per letter sequence (alphabetic), so that, for example, the plate to be issued after MAA 999 would be MAB 001. However, registrants may be allowed to choose a number from available numbers in the extant letter sequence.
Vehicle registration plates in Trinidad and Tobago are categorised using prefixes based on the type of vehicle and feature up to four succeeding digits. Registration plates in Trinidad and Tobago are supposed to be either white figures on a black background or black figures on a white background. All motor vehicles that are operating in the roads of Trinidad and Tobago are required by law to have a registration plate affixed to the front and rear of the vehicle at all times except during very specific situations. This current system has been present for over 40 years.
Vehicle registration plates are the alphanumeric plates used to display the registration mark of a vehicle, and have existed in the United Kingdom since 1904. It is compulsory for motor vehicles used on public roads to display vehicle registration plates, with the exception of vehicles of the reigning monarch used on official business.
Vehicle registration plates, commonly known as number plates, are the mandatory alphanumeric or numeric plates used to display the registration mark of a vehicle.
Vehicle registration plates, commonly referred to as number plates, are the mandatory numeric or alphanumeric plates used to display the registration mark of a vehicle. The Crown dependency of Guernsey is outside the United Kingdom and the European Union, and its islands have registration marks that are different from those used in the UK. The international vehicle registration code for Guernsey is GBG.
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