Car registration years chart: every UK plate year

The two numbers on a UK number plate tell you when the car was first registered. From 1 March to 31 August they are the year itself, so a 24 plate was registered between March and August 2024. From 1 September to the end of February they are the year plus 50, so a 74 plate was registered between September 2024 and February 2025. That makes a 64 plate September 2014 to February 2015, and a 15 plate March to August 2015.

That rule has been in place since the current plate format arrived on 1 September 2001, and DVLA has already published the codes for years that haven't happened yet. Type your reg below, or find your two numbers in the chart.

What year is my plate?

The plates being issued today carry 76: new cars registered from 1 September 2026 to 28 February 2027.

UK car registration years chart

Each year has two codes: one for cars first registered from 1 March, one for cars first registered from 1 September. Every code links to its own row, so you can share it (this page's #64, for example).

UK age identifiers by year: the March code and the September code
Year	From 1 March	From 1 September	Source
2001	none	51 Sep 2001 to Feb 2002	DVLA
2002	02 Mar to Aug 2002	52 Sep 2002 to Feb 2003	DVLA
2003	03 Mar to Aug 2003	53 Sep 2003 to Feb 2004	DVLA
2004	04 Mar to Aug 2004	54 Sep 2004 to Feb 2005	DVLA
2005	05 Mar to Aug 2005	55 Sep 2005 to Feb 2006	DVLA
2006	06 Mar to Aug 2006	56 Sep 2006 to Feb 2007	DVLA
2007	07 Mar to Aug 2007	57 Sep 2007 to Feb 2008	DVLA
2008	08 Mar to Aug 2008	58 Sep 2008 to Feb 2009	DVLA
2009	09 Mar to Aug 2009	59 Sep 2009 to Feb 2010	DVLA
2010	10 Mar to Aug 2010	60 Sep 2010 to Feb 2011	DVLA
2011	11 Mar to Aug 2011	61 Sep 2011 to Feb 2012	DVLA
2012	12 Mar to Aug 2012	62 Sep 2012 to Feb 2013	DVLA
2013	13 Mar to Aug 2013	63 Sep 2013 to Feb 2014	DVLA
2014	14 Mar to Aug 2014	64 Sep 2014 to Feb 2015	DVLA
2015	15 Mar to Aug 2015	65 Sep 2015 to Feb 2016	DVLA
2016	16 Mar to Aug 2016	66 Sep 2016 to Feb 2017	DVLA
2017	17 Mar to Aug 2017	67 Sep 2017 to Feb 2018	DVLA
2018	18 Mar to Aug 2018	68 Sep 2018 to Feb 2019	DVLA
2019	19 Mar to Aug 2019	69 Sep 2019 to Feb 2020	DVLA
2020	20 Mar to Aug 2020	70 Sep 2020 to Feb 2021	DVLA
2021	21 Mar to Aug 2021	71 Sep 2021 to Feb 2022	DVLA
2022	22 Mar to Aug 2022	72 Sep 2022 to Feb 2023	DVLA
2023	23 Mar to Aug 2023	73 Sep 2023 to Feb 2024	DVLA
2024	24 Mar to Aug 2024	74 Sep 2024 to Feb 2025	DVLA
2025	25 Mar to Aug 2025	75 Sep 2025 to Feb 2026	DVLA
2026	26 Mar to Aug 2026	76 Sep 2026 to Feb 2027 issued now	DVLA
2027	27 Mar to Aug 2027	77 Sep 2027 to Feb 2028	DVLA
2028	28 Mar to Aug 2028	78 Sep 2028 to Feb 2029	DVLA
2029	29 Mar to Aug 2029	79 Sep 2029 to Feb 2030	DVLA
2030	30 Mar to Aug 2030	80 Sep 2030 to Feb 2031	HMRC
2031	31 Mar to Aug 2031	81 Sep 2031 to Feb 2032	HMRC
2032	32 Mar to Aug 2032	82 Sep 2032 to Feb 2033	HMRC
2033	33 Mar to Aug 2033	83 Sep 2033 to Feb 2034	HMRC
2034	34 Mar to Aug 2034	84 Sep 2034 to Feb 2035	HMRC
2035	35 Mar to Aug 2035	85 Sep 2035 to Feb 2036	HMRC
2036	36 Mar to Aug 2036	86 Sep 2036 to Feb 2037	HMRC
2037	37 Mar to Aug 2037	87 Sep 2037 to Feb 2038	HMRC
2038	38 Mar to Aug 2038	88 Sep 2038 to Feb 2039	HMRC
2039	39 Mar to Aug 2039	89 Sep 2039 to Feb 2040	HMRC
2040	40 Mar to Aug 2040	90 Sep 2040 to Feb 2041	HMRC
2041	41 Mar to Aug 2041	91 Sep 2041 to Feb 2042	HMRC
2042	42 Mar to Aug 2042	92 Sep 2042 to Feb 2043	HMRC
2043	43 Mar to Aug 2043	93 Sep 2043 to Feb 2044	HMRC
2044	44 Mar to Aug 2044	94 Sep 2044 to Feb 2045	HMRC
2045	45 Mar to Aug 2045	95 Sep 2045 to Feb 2046	HMRC
2046	46 Mar to Aug 2046	96 Sep 2046 to Feb 2047	HMRC
2047	47 Mar to Aug 2047	97 Sep 2047 to Feb 2048	HMRC
2048	48 Mar to Aug 2048	98 Sep 2048 to Feb 2049	HMRC
2049	49 Mar to Aug 2049	99 Sep 2049 to Feb 2050	HMRC

Where these come from: the codes up to 79 (September 2029 to February 2030) are printed in DVLA's leaflet INF104, which ends with "This pattern will continue until all possible variations have been used." HMRC's manual on tax-free export plates (VATNINMT3500) uses the same codes and carries its table on to 99, for September 2049 to February 2050. Nobody has published what comes after 99, so we don't guess.

Three two-digit codes never appear on a plate: 00 and 50 can't come out of the rule, and 01 would have been March 2001, before the format began.

How to read a UK number plate

A current UK plate has three parts. Here is the example the law itself uses, DE51 ABC, drawn the way it looks on the front and the back of a car:

UK front number plate DE51 ABC: black characters on a white plate — Front plate: black on white

UK rear number plate DE51 ABC: black characters on a yellow plate — Rear plate: black on yellow

DE: Memory tag. Where the car was first registered. D is Deeside to Shrewsbury, and DE is the Chester office.
51: Age identifier. When it was first registered: 51 means September 2001 to February 2002.
ABC: Random letters. Three letters that make the number unique. They mean nothing.

The front plate is black on white and the rear plate is black on yellow; that's set by the Road Vehicles (Display of Registration Marks) Regulations 2001. The characters, the font and the spacing are fixed by the same regulations. If you're after the size of the plate itself, that's in our plate dimensions guide.

The first two letters: the memory tag

The memory tag says where the car was first registered, not where it lives now or who owns it. The first letter is the area, and the second picks the DVLA office within it. DVLA closed its local offices in 2013, so the office names are where the tags were allocated, not counters you can visit. DVLA never uses I, Q or Z in a memory tag, and Z only ever appears among the three random letters.

UK memory tags: first letter, area and DVLA offices
First letter	Area	Office and memory tags
A	Anglia	Peterborough AA to AN; Norwich AO to AU; Ipswich AV to AY
B	Birmingham	Birmingham BA to BY
C	Cymru	Cardiff CA to CO; Swansea CP to CV; Bangor CW to CY
D	Deeside to Shrewsbury	Chester DA to DK; Shrewsbury DL to DY
E	Essex	Chelmsford EA to EY
F	Forest & Fens	Nottingham FA to FP; Lincoln FR to FY
G	Garden of England	Maidstone GA to GO; Brighton GP to GY
H	Hampshire & Dorset	Bournemouth HA to HJ; Portsmouth HK to HY
K	No area name in DVLA's table	Borehamwood KA to KL; Northampton KM to KY
L	London	Wimbledon LA to LJ; Borehamwood LK to LT; Sidcup LU to LY
M	Manchester & Merseyside	Manchester MA to MY
N	North	Newcastle NA to NO; Stockton NP to NY
O	Oxford	Oxford OA to OY
P	Preston	Preston PA to PT; Carlisle PU to PY
R	Reading	Theale RA to RY
S	Scotland	Glasgow SA to SJ; Edinburgh SK to SO; Dundee SP to ST; Aberdeen SU to SW; Inverness SX to SY
V	Severn Valley	Worcester VA to VY
W	West of England	Exeter WA to WJ; Truro WK to WL; Bristol WM to WY
Y	Yorkshire	Leeds YA to YL; Sheffield YM to YV; Beverley YU to YY

Each office's run of tags is printed in INF104 (DVLA leaves out a few pairs, such as MN, which is kept for the Isle of Man). Every UK plate design, past and present, is on our UK number plates page.

What year is a ... plate?

The same answers as the chart, one per code, newest first:

What year is a 76 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2026 to 28 February 2027
What year is a 26 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2026 to 31 August 2026
What year is a 75 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2025 to 28 February 2026
What year is a 25 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2025 to 31 August 2025
What year is a 74 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2024 to 28 February 2025
What year is a 24 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2024 to 31 August 2024
What year is a 73 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2023 to 29 February 2024
What year is a 23 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2023 to 31 August 2023
What year is a 72 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2022 to 28 February 2023
What year is a 22 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2022 to 31 August 2022
What year is a 71 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2021 to 28 February 2022
What year is a 21 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2021 to 31 August 2021
What year is a 70 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2020 to 28 February 2021
What year is a 20 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2020 to 31 August 2020
What year is a 69 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2019 to 29 February 2020
What year is a 19 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2019 to 31 August 2019
What year is a 68 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2018 to 28 February 2019
What year is a 18 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2018 to 31 August 2018
What year is a 67 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2017 to 28 February 2018
What year is a 17 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2017 to 31 August 2017
What year is a 66 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2016 to 28 February 2017
What year is a 16 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2016 to 31 August 2016
What year is a 65 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2015 to 29 February 2016
What year is a 15 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2015 to 31 August 2015
What year is a 64 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2014 to 28 February 2015
What year is a 14 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2014 to 31 August 2014
What year is a 63 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2013 to 28 February 2014
What year is a 13 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2013 to 31 August 2013
What year is a 62 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2012 to 28 February 2013
What year is a 12 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2012 to 31 August 2012
What year is a 61 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2011 to 29 February 2012
What year is a 11 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2011 to 31 August 2011
What year is a 60 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2010 to 28 February 2011
What year is a 10 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2010 to 31 August 2010
What year is a 59 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2009 to 28 February 2010
What year is a 09 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2009 to 31 August 2009
What year is a 58 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2008 to 28 February 2009
What year is a 08 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2008 to 31 August 2008
What year is a 57 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2007 to 29 February 2008
What year is a 07 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2007 to 31 August 2007
What year is a 56 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2006 to 28 February 2007
What year is a 06 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2006 to 31 August 2006
What year is a 55 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2005 to 28 February 2006
What year is a 05 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2005 to 31 August 2005
What year is a 54 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2004 to 28 February 2005
What year is a 04 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2004 to 31 August 2004
What year is a 53 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2003 to 29 February 2004
What year is a 03 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2003 to 31 August 2003
What year is a 52 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2002 to 28 February 2003
What year is a 02 plate?: Registered from 1 March 2002 to 31 August 2002
What year is a 51 plate?: Registered from 1 September 2001 to 28 February 2002

What the year code doesn't tell you

The two numbers are a good guide, but they don't always give you the car's real age:

Private plates. A registration can be moved from one car to another, so a car with a private plate can carry any code. The one rule, in DVLA's words: "You can't use a registration number to make your vehicle appear younger than it actually is." So a 64 plate can sit on a car registered after February 2015, never on one registered before September 2014.
Registration, not manufacture. DVLA's leaflet says the two numbers "tell you when it was issued": they date the registration, not the day the car was built.
Q plates. A plate starting with Q (like Q123 ABC) is issued when a vehicle's age or identity is in doubt. It carries no year.
Northern Ireland. Northern Irish plates (three letters and four numbers, like ABZ 1234) have no year code at all.
Older plates. Before September 2001, cars had prefix plates (like A123 ABC), where the first letter stood for the year. We don't print a letter-to-year chart for those: DVLA's current leaflet only covers the current format, and we haven't found an official DVLA or government source for the old letters yet. Many of the charts you'll find online come from plate dealers. If you need the exact date for a particular car, DVLA's vehicle enquiry service lists the date it was first registered and its year of manufacture.

Sources

The chart, the lookup, the memory tags and the example plates on this page are rendered from the open VehiclesDB plates dataset, which records each fact with the document it comes from:

DVLA, INF104: Vehicle registration numbers and number plates: the format, the age identifiers to 79, and the memory tags.
HMRC, VATNINMT3500: the same codes, with the table to 99.
The Road Vehicles (Display of Registration Marks) Regulations 2001: the layouts, colours and characters.

All three are Crown copyright, published under the Open Government Licence v3.0, and the plates dataset is CC BY 4.0. For every UK plate design, past and present, see UK number plates, or browse license plates by country and state.

Car registration years: what year is my number plate?