Vehicle registration plates of Lithuania

Last updated
A current-style Lithuanian registration plate Lietuvos valstybinis numeris 2023.jpg
A current-style Lithuanian registration plate
A plate of the type issued between 2004-2023 Lithuania licenseplate EU.JPG
A plate of the type issued between 2004–2023
A plate of the type issued between 1993-2004 LITHUANIA 1990'S passnger - Flickr - woody1778a.jpg
A plate of the type issued between 1993-2004

Standard vehicle registration plates in Lithuania bear three letters and three numbers (e.g. ABC 123) in black lettering on a white background. The plates are usually of the standard EU dimensions, but can also be manufactured in the American dimensions for special import vehicles. All plates issued since 2004 also bear a blue EU identification stripe on their left-hand edge. Those issued between the restoration of Lithuanian independence in 1990 and the country's accession to the European Union in 2004 bore a similar stripe with a small Lithuanian flag in place of the flag of the European Union.

Contents

Originally the license plates had a space in the middle for stickers; the stickers were discontinued after April 2018. Plates issued since October 2023 bear the coat of arms of Lithuania between the right side of the EU stripe and the number (above the EU stripe for two-line or narrow plates).

Area designations

Until 2004 the second of the three letters in each registration mark indicated the geographical administrative area in which the vehicle had originally been registered, as follows:

CodeCountyExample
A Alytus County AAA 123
J Tauragė County (but code from first letter of Jurbarkas)AJA 123
K Kaunas County AKA 123
L Klaipėda County ALA 123
M Marijampolė County AMA 123
P Panevėžys County APA 123
S Šiauliai County ASA 123
T Telšiai County ATA 123
U Utena County AUA 123
V Vilnius County AVA 123

Numbers beginning with LRS and LRV were issued to government officials. Starting in 2004, the area designation was abolished and any letter (except for Q, W and X, which are not used in Lithuanian registration numbers) became admissible as the middle letter.

Special types

Temporary

Vehicles issued temporary registration in Lithuania are noted by red alphanumeric characters on white background.

Types

Dealer plate Lithuanian dealer license plate.JPG
Dealer plate
Vehicles imported to Lithuania or vehicles exported from Lithuania

As of July 2022, these plates are valid for up to 30 days. They can be re-issued to the same vehicle only after it has been issued standard license plates in the meantime.

EU-section-with-LT.svg 24214AA 
Vehicles sold by vehicle selling companies or organizations (professional or trade number plates)
EU-section-with-LT.svg P28737 

Plates issued since April 2018 start with the letter P followed by five digits; the registration does not expire. Prior to that, numbers consisted of a letter (P or R) followed by four digits, a space and two more digits, the latter indicating the year of expiration.

Diplomatic Corps

Diplomatic plate Lithuanian diplomatic license plate.JPG
Diplomatic plate

Reserved and used by diplomatic corps. Plates have a green background and white characters; they do not have blue sidebar on the left side. The numbers are made up of six digits, grouped 01 3 123, with the first two digits denoting the embassy or other diplomatic or consular representation:

CodeCountry or Organization
01Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden
02Flag of Germany.svg Germany
03Flag of France.svg France
04Flag of Latvia.svg Latvia
05Flag of Denmark.svg Denmark
06Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Canada
07Flag of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom
08Flag of Italy.svg Italy
09Flag of Norway.svg Norway
10Flag of Finland.svg Finland
11Flag of Vatican City (2023-present).svg Holy See
12Flag of Turkey.svg Turkey
13Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic
14Flag of the United States.svg United States
15Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg China
16Flag of Poland.svg Poland
17Flag of Poland.svg Poland
18Flag of Estonia.svg Estonia
19Flag of Russia.svg Russia
20Flag of Russia.svg Russia
21Flag of Romania.svg Romania
22Flag of Ukraine.svg Ukraine
23Flag of Belarus.svg Belarus
24Flag of Kazakhstan.svg Kazakhstan
25Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia
26Flag of Japan.svg Japan
27Flag of Austria.svg Austria
28Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Belgium
29Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands
30Flag of Hungary.svg Hungary
31Flag of Spain.svg Spain
32Flag of the Order of St. John (various).svg Sovereign Military Order of Malta
33Flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.svg Democratic Republic of Congo
34Flag of Ireland.svg Ireland
35Flag of Portugal (official).svg Portugal
36Flag of Moldova.svg Moldova
37Flag of Azerbaijan.svg Azerbaijan
38Flag of Bulgaria.svg Bulgaria
39Flag of Armenia.svg Armenia
40Flag of Croatia.svg Croatia
41Flag of Israel.svg Israel
80Flag of the Nordic Council.svg Nordic Council of Ministers
81Logo-World-Bank-IBRD-IDA.svg International Bank for Reconstruction and Development
82 European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
83Flag of WHO.svg World Health Organization
84 Flag of the United Nations.svg United Nations Development Program
85 International Organization for Migration
86 Flag of Europe.svg European Commission
87Flag of the United Nations.svg United Nations
88 European Institute for Gender Equality
89 NATO Energy Security Centre of Excellence

Taxicabs

EU-section-with-LT.svg T06868 
Taxi registration plate of Lithuania, issued before April 2018 Taxi plate of LT.png
Taxi registration plate of Lithuania, issued before April 2018

Taxicabs have plates with white background and black text. The first letter is "T" (corresponds to the first letter of the word "taksi" in Lithuanian) and is followed by five numbers.

Before the 3rd of April, 2018, taxi plates had a yellow background and black text, with the same number scheme. These plates continued to be valid and registration centers issued these plates beyond April 3, 2018, until stocks were exhausted.

Military transport

Military license plate License plate of Lithuania LK006D military (2023).jpg
Military license plate

Military transportation has black background and white text registration plates. They do not have the side-field, only the flag.

Vintage cars

EU-section-with-LT.svg H02401 

Plates for vintage cars have been issued since July 1, 2014. Originally these plates had white characters on a brown background, which was changed to black on white as of April 3, 2018. They start with the letter H, followed by five digits (four for motorcycles).

Technical check sticker

Up until 2018, the registration plate had a special spot, usually between the letters and numbers but occasionally to the left of the letters, to attach a sticker certifying the compulsory periodic technical inspection to check for compliance with safety/emissions standards. Plates made after 2018 no longer have a spot for the sticker. [1] The sticker is no longer compulsory from June 2016. [2]

Confusion with Swedish plates

Swedish standard plate Swedish euro license plate.jpg
Swedish standard plate

Lithuanian standard plates are almost identical to Swedish standard plates. The Stockholm congestion tax system uses automatic number plate recognition to identify plates, and this system can not distinguish between Swedish and Lithuanian plates. Initially, non-Swedish cars did not have to pay this tax, but a Swedish owner will be charged if there is one with same number, which is likely. Even after the application of this tax to foreign cars, the problem persists; the Swedish owner of a number, not the actual Lithuanian owner, will be charged. The false tax will be cancelled after a manual check if the owner complains. Swedish taxes must be paid on time anyway and will be refunded if there is an error.

References

  1. "Po poros metų automobilių valstybiniai numeriai gali atrodyti kitaip: ką reikės daryti su senais ir kiek tai kainuos". www.lrytas.lt (in Lithuanian). Retrieved 2025-08-17.
  2. "Techninės apžiūros lipdukų ant numerių nebeklijuos - Verslo žinios". vz.lt (in Lithuanian). Retrieved 2025-08-17.