The country in which a motor vehicle's vehicle registration plate was issued may be indicated by an international vehicle registration code, also called Vehicle Registration Identification code or VRI code, formerly known as an International Registration Letter[1] or International Circulation Mark.[2] It is referred to as the Distinguishing sign of the State of registration in the Geneva Convention on Road Traffic of 1949 and the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic of 1968.
The allocation of codes is maintained by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe as the Distinguishing Signs Used on Vehicles in International Traffic (sometimes abbreviated to DSIT), authorised by the UN's Geneva Convention on Road Traffic[3] and the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic.[4] Many vehicle codes created since the adoption of ISO 3166 coincide with ISO two- or three-letter codes. The 2004 South-East Asian Agreement ... for the Facilitation of Cross-Border Transport of Goods and People uses a mixture of ISO and DSIT codes: Myanmar uses MYA, China CHN, and Cambodia KH (ISO codes), Thailand uses T (DSIT code), Laos LAO, and Vietnam VN (coincident ISO and DSIT codes).[5]
The Geneva Convention on Road Traffic entered into force on 26 March 1952. One of the main benefits of the convention for motorists is the obligation on signatory countries to recognize the legality of vehicles from other signatory countries. When driving in other signatory countries, the distinguishing sign of the country of registration must be displayed on the rear of the vehicle. This sign must be placed separately from the registration plate and may not be incorporated into the vehicle registration plate.
The display of a national distinctive mark on a white oval plate, with black letters was first introduced by the 1909 International Convention with respect to the Circulation of Motor Vehicles signed in Paris. The plate was required to be affixed to the rear of the vehicle, separate from the number plate displaying the vehicle's national registration mark. The 1909 convention only allowed distinctive marks to be of one or two Latin letters.[6]
| State | Mark | |
|---|---|---|
| D | ||
| A | ||
| B | ||
| E | ||
| US | ||
| F | ||
| GB | ||
| GR | ||
| H | ||
| I | ||
| MN | ||
| MC | ||
| NL | ||
 Portugal | P | |
| R | ||
| RO | ||
| SB | ||
| S | ||
| CH | ||
| BG |
The term distinguishing mark was adopted by the 1924 International Convention Relative to Motor Traffic signed in Paris, which extended the maximum length of mark from two to three Latin letters, and permitted not just distinguishing marks for states, but also for non-sovereign territories which operated their own vehicle registration systems.[7]
| State or territory | Mark | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D | For the original German name German: [[Deutschland]] | ||
| US | |||
| A | |||
| B | |||
| BR | |||
| GB | |||
| GBA | |||
| GBZ | |||
| GBG | |||
| GBJ | |||
| GBY | |||
| BI | |||
| BG | |||
| RCH | |||
| RC | |||
| CO | |||
| C | |||
| DK | |||
| DA | |||
| ET | Current code is EG. | ||
| EQ | |||
| E | Spanish; Castilian: [[España]] | ||
| EST | |||
| SF | From Finnish Finnish: Suomi, Swedish Swedish: Finland. | ||
 France, Algeria and Tunis | F | ||
| F | |||
| G | |||
| GR | |||
| RH | |||
| H | |||
| SE | Part of the United Kingdom at the time of the 1909 convention. Initials stand for Irish Irish: Saorstát Éireann. | ||
| I | |||
| LV | |||
| FL | |||
| LT | |||
| L | |||
| F | |||
| MEX | |||
| MC | |||
| PY | current code is PA | ||
| PA | current code is PY | ||
| NL | |||
| IN | |||
| PE | |||
| PR | |||
| PL | |||
| P | |||
 Romania | R | ||
| SA | League of Nations mandate | ||
| SHS | |||
| SM | |||
| S | |||
| CH | |||
| LSA | French League of Nations mandate | ||
| CS | |||
| TR | |||
| SU | Russia had been a party to the 1909 convention. | ||
| U | Current code is ROU (?). |
Since the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic entered into force on 21 May 1977, in signatory countries it replaces previous road traffic conventions, including the Geneva Convention on Road Traffic, in accordance with its Article 48. According to the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic, the distinguishing sign of the country of registration must be displayed on the rear of the vehicle. The sign may either be placed separately from the registration plate as a white oval plate or sticker, or be incorporated in the vehicle registration plate. When the distinguishing sign is incorporated in the registration plate, it must also appear on the front registration plate of the vehicle.
The requirement to display a separate distinguishing sign is not necessary within the European Economic Area, for vehicles with license plates in the common EU format, which satisfy the requirements of the Vienna Convention, and so are also valid in non-EU countries signatory to that convention.[8] Separate signs are also not needed for Canada, Mexico and the United States, where the province, state or district of registration is usually embossed or surface-printed on the vehicle registration plate.
| Code | Country | From | Previous code(s) | class=unsortable | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 1911 | Austria in English or French: Autriche in French | |||
| AFG | 1971 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | |||
| AL | 1934 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| AND | 1957 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | |||
| AM | 1992 | SU | Formerly part of the Soviet Union. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| AUS | 1954 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | |||
| AZ | 1993 | SU | Formerly part of the Soviet Union. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| B | 1910 | ||||
| BD | 1978 | PAK | Formerly East Pakistan | ||
| BDS | 1956 | ||||
| BF | 1990 | RHV / HV | Until August 2003, 1984; French: (République de) Haute Volta (Upper Volta) | ||
| BG | 1910 | (BUL) | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| BH | 1938 | Formerly British Honduras. Still officially registered as BH as of June 2024. New driving licenses appear to have 'BZ' instead of 'BH' as Belize's code.[9] | |||
| BIH | 1992 | SHS 1919–29 Y 1929–53 YU 1953–92 | Bosnian: Bosna i Hercegovina / . Formerly part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, then part of Yugoslavia. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | ||
| BOL | 1967 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | |||
| BR | 1930 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| BRN | 1954 | ||||
| BRU | 1956 | ||||
| BS | 1950 | ||||
| BUR | 1956 | BA, BUR | Previously known as Burma. Coincides with the former ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| BVI | 1910 | ||||
| BW[10] | 2003 | BP | Officially used by Botswana since 2003. Formerly RB (Republic of Botswana) until 2004; Bechuanaland Protectorate before 1966. | ||
| BY | 1992 (2004) | SU | Belarus; formerly part of the Soviet Union. The UN was officially notified of the change from SU to BY only in 2004. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| CAM | 1952 | F & WAN | Formerly a territory of France, plus a strip of territory from eastern Nigeria (WAN). Unofficially using CMR on their plates. | ||
| CDN | 1956 | CA | CDN for "Canada Dominion" | ||
| CGO | 1997 | CB, RCL, ZRE | French: [[Belgian Congo|Congo Belge]], French: [[Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville)|République de Congo Léopoldville]], Congo (Kinshasa), French: [[Zaïre]], | ||
| CH | 1911 | . Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| CI | (French: Côte d'Ivoire) | 1961 | F | Formerly a territory of France. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |
| CL | 1961 | Formerly Ceylon. However, "SL" is being used on current driver licenses. | |||
| CO | 1952 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| CR | 1956 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| CU | 1930 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| CY | 1932 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| CZ | 1993 | CS | Formerly Czech: Československo (Czechoslovakia). Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| D | 1910 |
| |||
| DK | 1914 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| DOM | 1952 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | |||
| DY | 1910 | Part of AOF (French: Afrique occidentale<br /> française) − 1960 | Dahomey (name until 1975). Uses RB unofficially (French: République du Bénin) | ||
| DZ | 1962 | F − 1911 | Djazayer (جزائر); formerly part of France. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| E | 1910 | ||||
| EAK | 1938 | East Africa Kenya | |||
| EAT | 1938 | EAT & EAZ | East Africa Tanzania; formerly East Africa Tanganyika and East Africa Zanzibar | ||
| EAU | 1938 | East Africa Uganda | |||
| EAZ | 1964 | East Africa Zanzibar | |||
| EC | 1962 | EQ | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| EG[11] | 2024 | ET 1927-2024 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| ER | 1993 | AOI | . Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| ES | 1978 | ||||
| EST | 1993 | EW 1919–1940 & 1991–1993 SU 1940–1991 | Estonian: Eesti Vabariik (Estonian; old style Estonian: Eesti Wabariik). Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | ||
| ETH | 1964 | AOI − 1941 | . Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | ||
| F | 1910 | ||||
| FIN | 1993 | SF | Finnish: Suomi / Swedish: Finland (Finnish/Swedish). Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | ||
| FJI | 1971 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | |||
| FL | 1923 | German: Fürstentum Liechtenstein (German: 'Principality of Liechtenstein') | |||
| FO | 1996 | FR | Faroese: Føroyar. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| G | 1974 | ALEF − 1960 | French: Afrique Équatoriale Française. Unofficially using RG on their license plates. | ||
| GBA | 1924 | GB 1923-1924 | (United Kingdom of) Great Britain & Northern Ireland – Alderney | ||
| GBG | 1924 | GB 1914-1924 | (United Kingdom of) Great Britain & Northern Ireland – Guernsey | ||
| GBJ | 1924 | GB 1914-1924 | (United Kingdom of) Great Britain & Northern Ireland – Jersey | ||
| GBM | 1932 | (United Kingdom of) Great Britain & Northern Ireland – Isle of Man | |||
| GBZ | 1924 | GB 1911-1924 | (United Kingdom of) Great Britain & Northern Ireland – Gibraltar (Z was assigned because G was already used for Guernsey) | ||
| GCA | 1956 | G | Guatemala, Central America | ||
| GE | 1992 | SU | Formerly part of the Soviet Union. Older licence plates use "GEO" instead of "GE". Also used unofficially and illegally by Equatorial-Guinea (Spanish; Castilian: Guinea Ecuatorial). Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| GH | 1959 | WAC − 1957 | West Africa Gold Coast − 1957. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| GR | 1913 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| GUY | 1972 | BRG | Formerly British Guiana − 1966. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | ||
| H | 1910 | ||||
| HK | 1961 | Hong Kong remains in the United Nations list of country road codes. Reattached to the People's Republic of China in 1997 with a strong autonomy.[12] | |||
| HKJ | 1966 | JOR | Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan | ||
| HN | 2018 | Unofficial: no other code found for Honduras. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| HR | 1992 | SHS 1919–29 Y 1929–53 YU 1953–92 | . Formerly part of Yugoslavia. Immediately after Croatia's declaration of independence in 1991, it was common to see unofficial oval stickers with the letters "CRO". Despite the initial anticipation that Croatia's international vehicle registration code would be "CRO", Croatia opted for "HR" (Croatian: Hrvatska) instead. SHS was for the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (Kraljevina Srba, Hrvata i Slovenaca). Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| I | 1910 | ||||
| IL | 1952 | "Israel" is also written on the plate in Hebrew (Hebrew: ישראל) and Arabic (Arabic: إسرائيل). Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| IND | 1947 | BI | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | ||
| IR | 1936 | PR | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| IRL | 1992 | GB − 1910–24 SE − 1924–38 EIR − 1938–62 EIR/IRL − 1962–92 | Formerly a part of the United Kingdom, Irish: [[Irish Free State|Saorstát Éireann]], Irish: [[Éire]]. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | ||
| IRQ | 1930 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | |||
| IRQ KR | 1991 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 | |||
| IS | 1936 | . Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| J | 1964 | ||||
| JA | 1932 | ||||
| KH[13] | 1956 (KHM) | K | Known as Kampuchea 1976–89. Formerly a territory of France. KH currently being used (Khmer) on driving licenses, which coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. Change ratified from 'K' (previously KHM) to 'KH' in 2009 to the United Nations.[14] | ||
| KG | 1992 | SU − 1991 | Formerly part of the Soviet Union. The Kyrgyz government notified the change from "KS" to "KG", which featured on the new car registration plates from March 2016, in August that year to the UN Secretary-General.[15] Additionally, most vehicles use "KGZ" oval stickers instead of "KS". Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| KSA | 1973 | SA | Kingdom of Saudi Arabia | ||
| KWT | 1954 | ||||
| KZ | 1992 | SU − 1991 | Formerly part of the Soviet Union. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| L | 1911 | ||||
| LAO | 1959 | F – 1949 | Formerly a territory of France (French Indochina). Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | ||
| LAR | 1972 | I − 1949, LT | Libyan Arab Republic, unused, unofficial LY used instead. | ||
| LB | 1967 | ||||
| LS | 1967 | BL | Basutoland − 1966. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| LT | 1992 | SU 1940–1991 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| LV | 1992 | LR 1927–1940 SU 1940–1991 | . Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| M | 1966 | GBY 1924–66 | |||
| MA | 1924 | . Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| MAL | 1967 | PRK – 1957 FM 1954–57 PTM 1957–67 | Formerly Perak, then Federated Malay States, then | ||
| MC | 1910 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| MD | 1992 | SU − 1991 | Formerly part of the Soviet Union. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| MEX | 1952 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | |||
| MNE | 2006 | MN 1913–1919 SHS 1919–29 Y 1929–53 YU 1953–2003 SCG 2003–2006 | Independent nation until 1918. After that, part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (Kraljevina Srba, Hrvata i Slovenaca – Serbo-Croatian), then part of Yugoslavia and then Serbia and Montenegro (Serbian: Srbija i Crna Gora – Serbian). Independence restored in 2006. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | ||
| MGL | 2002 | MNG displayed on current plates. Nevertheless, the new format includes MGL once again.[16] Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | |||
| MOC | 1975 | MOC: 1932–56 P: 1957–75 | Formerly part of Portugal. . Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | ||
| MS | 1938 | ||||
| MV | 1965 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| MW | 1965 | EA 1932–38 NP – 1938–70 RNY option 1960–65 | Formerly the Nyasaland Protectorate. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| N | 1922 | ||||
| NAM | 1990 | SWA | Formerly South West Africa. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | ||
| NAU | 1968 | ||||
| NEP | 1970 | ||||
| NIC | 1952 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | |||
| NL | 1910 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| NMK | 2019 | YU − 1992 MK 1992–2019 | Formerly part of Yugoslavia. Known as Republic of Macedonia until 2019. Mix of English North and Macedonian Macedonian: Makedonija. | ||
| NZ | 1958 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| OM | ? | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| P | 1910 | Unofficially used for Palestine in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.[17] | |||
| PA | 1952 | PY 1924–1952 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| PE | 1937 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| PK | 1947 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| PL | 1921 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| PNG | 1978 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | |||
| PY | 1952 | PA 1924–1952 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| Q | 1972 | ||||
| RA | 1927 | ||||
| RC | 1932 | Unofficially also used by car license plates in the Republic of Congo (French: République du Congo). | |||
| RCA | 1962 | ||||
| RCB | 1962 | . Unofficially using RC on current plates. | |||
| RCH | 1930 | ||||
| RG | 1972 | . Also used unofficially by Gabon. | |||
| RH | 1952 | ||||
| RI | 1955 | ||||
| RIM | 1964 | ||||
| RKS | Kosovo | 2010 | SHS 1919–29 Y 1929–53 YU 1953–2003 SCG 2003–2006 SRB 2006–2010 | Republic of Kosovo | |
| RL | 1952 | ||||
| RM | 1962 | ||||
| RMM | 1962 | AOF − 1960 | . Formerly part of French West Africa (French: Afrique Occidentale Française) | ||
| RN | 1977 | AOF − 1960; 1960-1977 - NIG (?) | . Formerly part of French West Africa (French: Afrique Occidentale Française). Still listed as NIG under the UN list. | ||
| RO | 1981 | R - 1981 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| ROK | 1971 | Republic of Korea. Unofficially using KOR on their plates. | |||
| ROU[18] | 1981 | U 1926-1981 | Stands for República Oriental del Uruguay. | ||
| RP | 1975 | Filipino; Pilipino: Republika ng Pilipinas (Republic of the Philippines) | |||
| RSM | 1932 | ||||
| RU | 1960 | Belgian territory of Ruanda-Urundi. Unofficially using BU on their plates. | |||
| RUS | 1992 | Formerly part of the Soviet Union. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | |||
| RWA | 1964 | RU − 1962 | Formerly part of Ruanda-Urundi − 1962. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | ||
| S | 1911 | ||||
| SD | 1935 | Formerly Swaziland | |||
| SGP | 1952 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | |||
| SK | 1993 | CS 1919–39,1945–92 SQ 1939–45 | Formerly Czech: Československo (Czechoslovakia). Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| SLO[19] | 1992 | SHS 1919–29 Y 1929–53 YU 1953–92 | Formerly part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, then part of Yugoslavia. | ||
| SME | 1936 | Now displaying 'SUR' on current driving licenses. | |||
| SN | 1962 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| SO | 1974 | SP | Formerly Somaliland Protectorate. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| SRB | 2006 | SB – 1919 SHS 1919–29 Y 1929–53 YU 1953–2003 SCG 2003–2006 | Formerly part of Kingdom of Serbia (Serbian: Kraljevina Srbija – Serbian), Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (Kraljevina Srba, Hrvata i Slovenaca – Serbo-Croatian), Yugoslavia (Jugoslavija – Serbo-Croatian), and Serbia and Montenegro (Serbian: Srbija i Crna Gora – Serbian). Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | ||
| SUD | 1963 | ||||
| SY | 1938 | ||||
| SYR | 1952 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | |||
| T | 1955 | SM | |||
| TCH | 1973 | ||||
| TG | 1973 | RT | Formerly . Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| TJ | 1992 | SU − 1991 | Formerly part of the Soviet Union, used code "PT" for Russian: Республика Таджикистанon plates from 1993 to 2003. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| TM | 1992 | SU − 1991 | Formerly part of the Soviet Union. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| TN | 1957 | F − 1956 | Formerly a territory of France. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. Unofficial code TU is common. | ||
| TO | 1995 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| TR | 1923 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| TT | 1964 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| UA | 1992 | SU | Formerly part of the Soviet Union. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| UAE | 1971 | ||||
| UK | 2021 | GB (1910–2021) | Before 1922, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Until 2021, "GB" was used, but from 28 September 2021 the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland changed its international vehicle registration code from "GB" to "UK". (This does not affect territories for which the United Kingdom controls international relations outside Great Britain and Northern Ireland.)[20] [21] | ||
| USA | 1952 | US | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code, used on registration plates for US Forces in Germany from 1962 until 2020, US now used by US Forces Germany since 2020. 'U' is currently used for registration plates for US Forces in Portugal (Lajes, Azores). | ||
| UZ | 1992 | SU | Formerly part of the Soviet Union. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| V | 1931 | CV (Italian: Città del Vaticano) is used as a prefix on the licence plate number itself. The prefix used on official and government vehicles is SCV (Latin: Status Civitatis Vaticanae) | |||
| VN | 1953 | Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| WAG | 1932 | West Africa Gambia | |||
| WAL | 1937 | West Africa Sierra Leone; on local licence plates SLE is used | |||
| WAN | 1937 | West Africa Nigeria | |||
| WD | 1954 | Windward Islands Dominica | |||
| WG | 1932 | Windward Islands Grenada | |||
| WL | 1932 | Windward Islands Saint Lucia | |||
| WS | 1962 | Formerly Western Samoa. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| WV | 1932 | Windward Islands Saint Vincent | |||
| YAR | 1960 | North Yemen formerly known as the Yemen Arab Republic. | |||
| YV | 1955 | ||||
| Z | 1964 | RNR | Formerly Northern Rhodesia. However, "ZM" is used on current driving licences. | ||
| ZA | 1936 | Dutch; Flemish: Zuid-Afrika (from Dutch; in Afrikaans it is Afrikaans: Suid-Afrika). Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| ZW | 1980 | SR, RSR | Formerly Southern Rhodesia until 1965, Rhodesia unrecognised until 1980. Coincides with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||
| Code | width=190pt | Country | Used until | width=110pt | Replaced by | width=450pt | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ADN | Aden | 1980 | Y | From 1938, also known as South Yemen, People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (1967) | |||
| BA | Burma | 1956 | BUR | From 1937 | |||
| BP | Bechuanaland Protectorate | 1966 | Now Botswana | ||||
| CA | 1956 | CDN | |||||
| CS | Czechoslovakia | 1992 | CZ / SK | Split into Czech Republic and Slovakia. Coincided with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| DA | , Free City of | 1939 | D (1939–1945) PL (since 1945) | Danzig (German for Gdańsk) | |||
| DDR | German Democratic Republic | 1990 | D | From 1974 (used D until 1974), Deutsche Demokratische Republik. Coincided with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | |||
| EIR | Éire | 1992 | IRL | Now | |||
| ET | 2024 | EG | Ratified to the United Nations in 2024. | ||||
| EW | 1993 | EST | Eesti Vabariik (Estonian) | ||||
| FR | Faroe Islands | 1996 | FO | Føroyar (Faroese) | |||
| GB | United Kingdom | 2021 | UK | Changed to UK to be inclusive of Northern Ireland (which is not part of Great Britain), though the previous GB did also apply to Northern Ireland. Coincided with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| GBY | 1966 | M | Changed after independence from UK | ||||
| GRO | Greenland | 1910 | KN | Grønland (Danish language) / Kalaallit Nunaat (Greenlandic language). Unofficial. The official code is DK. | |||
| HV | Upper Volta (French: Haute-Volta), now Burkina Faso | 1984 | BF | Upper Volta. Coincided with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| K |  Cambodia | 2009 | KH | Ratified by the United Nations as KH on 18 November 2009.[22] | |||
| KS |  Kyrgyzstan | 1992–2016 | KG | Ratified by the United Nations as KG in March 2016. | |||
| LR | 1927–1940 | SU, LV | Latvijas Republika (Latvian) | ||||
| MK |  Republic of Macedonia | 1992–2019 | NMK | Became North Macedonia in 2019. Coincided with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| NA | 1957 | The Netherlands Antilles were dissolved in 2010. | |||||
| NIG | RN | Still listed as NIG under the UN list.[23] | |||||
| PANG | Angola | 1956 | P (1957-1975) | From 1932. Formerly part of Portugal | |||
| PI | 1973? | RP | Still listed as PI under the UN list.[24] | ||||
| R | Romania | 1981 | RO | ||||
| RNY | Rhodesia-Nyasaland Fed. | 1953–1963 | NP, NR, SR | Now Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe | |||
| RNR | Z? ZM? | Formerly Rhodesia, although still listed as RNR under the UN list (as of May 2024). | |||||
| ROU | 1979–2012 | UY | República Oriental del Uruguay (Spanish) | ||||
| RSR | Southern Rhodesia | 1965–1979 | SR | Now Zimbabwe | |||
| RT | 1973 | TG | République togolaise (French). Formerly French Togoland − 1960 | ||||
| SA | Saar Territory (League of Nations mandate) | 1926–1935 | D | SA is again Germany's Saarland | |||
| SA | Protectorate | 1947–1956 | D | SA is again Germany's Saarland | |||
| SA |  Saudi Arabia | KSA | The date of the change is unknown. Coincided with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | ||||
| SB | Serbia | 1919 | SHS | Serbia became part of Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes | |||
| SCG | Serbia and Montenegro | 2006 | MNE, SRB | From Serbian name "Srbija i Crna Gora". Now Montenegro, Serbia. Coincided with ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code. | |||
| SE | Saorstát Éireann | 1938 | EIR (IRL from 1962) | Under GB until 1924. Name changed to Éire, now | |||
| SF | 1993 | FIN | SF from "Suomi – Finland" (the names of the country in its official languages, Finnish and Swedish) | ||||
| SHS | Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes | 1929 | Y | Kraljevina Srba, Hrvata i Slovenaca – Serbo-Croatian. Kingdom changed its name to Yugoslavia | |||
| SP[25] | 1960 | SO (de jure), unknown/none (de facto) | Initialism of Somaliland Protectorate. | ||||
| SU | Soviet Union | 1991 | EST, LT, LV, BY, MD, UA, TJ, TM, GE, KZ, UZ, KS, AZ, AM, RUS | Coincided with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| SWA | South West Africa | 1990 | Now Namibia | ||||
| TS | Free Territory of Trieste | 1947–1954 | Territory Zone A (controlled by the United Kingdom and United States from 1947 to 1954 before given to Italy). Now in Italy, Croatia and Slovenia. | ||||
| Y | Yugoslavia | 1953 | YU | Yemen started using Y afterwards | |||
| YU | / Yugoslavia | 1992 | BIH, HR, NMK, MNE, RKS, SRB, SLO | Now Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Serbia, and Slovenia. MK for Macedonia was in use from 1993 until 2019. Coincided with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. | |||
| ZRE | Zaire | 1997 | CGO | Now the Democratic Republic of the Congo |
There are unofficial codes in common use, such as "AS" for Asturias, "CAT" for Catalonia, "SCO" for Scotland, "CYM" for Wales (Welsh Cymru), "ENG" for England, "BZH" for Brittany (Breizh), "FRL" for Friesland, "NB" for North Brabant, "VL" for Flanders (Vlaanderen), "V" for Vojvodina/Vajdaság, "TS" for Transylvania, "P" for Palestine, "PR" for Puerto Rico, "CSB" for Kashubia (Cassubia) and "SIC" for Székely Land (from Latin Terra Siculorum). Some of these, such as "VL" which is used by Flemish separatists, are used despite being specifically illegal under local laws.
In addition, in some areas, vehicle-style stickers have been used to denote and promote other entities, such as towns, islands, businesses, and even associations. These irregular stickers almost always bear an explanation of the code in small print near the edge of the sticker, as the codes used may be unfamiliar.
A separate system is used for vehicles belonging to the diplomats of foreign countries with license plates from the host country. That system is host country-specific and varies largely from country to country. For example, TR on a diplomatic car in the USA indicates Italian, not Turkish. Such markings in other countries (e.g. Norway) are indicated with numbers only, again different from international standards (e.g. 90 means Slovakia in Norway).