Germany license plate: Short-term

Format, years and the law

Format

LL-03999, for example SA-03974 (L is any letter, 9 any digit)

After the district code the number opens with 03 or 04, the short-term block, and the yellow field at the edge carries the expiry date. A plate born to die within five days.

03

Kurzzeitkennzeichen (five-day short-term block)

04

Kurzzeitkennzeichen (five-day short-term block)

The format above follows the issuing rules: a registration that fits it is one this series could have issued.

Years issued

1998 to today. Still issued.

Vehicle class

Temporary: short-validity plates (transit, awaiting registration). Issued for car, van, truck, bus, motorcycle, and trailer.

Colours

Characters #000000 Background #FFFFFF

Size

520 × 110 mm · every country's size

About this plate

KURZZEITKENNZEICHEN, created by the 27. ÄndVstVR of 9.3.1998 (Art. 1, in force 14 March 1998) as the black-script short-term plate that replaced private use of red plates, the same instrument's remaining articles, in force 1.5.1998, closed the red-plate route for private transfer runs. Five days, a yellow expiry field, and a blue seal instead of the usual Land-arms Stempelplakette. Unlike the 06 dealer plate it is tied to ONE vehicle (§ 42 Abs. 3 Nr. 2) and, unlike an ordinary plate, it need not be firmly attached.

How long it is valid

days: 5. note: § 42 Abs. 4: the expiry date is set 'bis zum Ablauf des fünften auf die Zuteilung folgenden Tages'; after it the vehicle may not be operated on public roads

Legal basis and sources

1. § 42 Abs. 1: conditions (type-approved or individually approved, valid HU/SP, insurance); Abs. 4: 'einer nur aus Ziffern bestehenden und mit "03" oder "04" beginnenden Erkennungsnummer' plus the five-day expiry date;... https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/fzv_2023/__42.html
2. Anlage 4 Abschnitt 6: the three Kurzzeitkennzeichen forms, the yellow/black date field, the 35 mm blue seal https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/fzv_2023/anlage_4.html
3. 27. ÄndVstVR vom 9.3.1998, BGBl. I S. 441, Art. 1 creates the Kurzzeitkennzeichen in § 28 StVZO ('Kurzzeitkennzeichen sind in schwarzer [Schrift] ... herzustellen') + Anlage Vd; Art. 5: Art. 1 in force 14.3.1998,... https://media.offenegesetze.de/bgbl1/1998/bgbl1_1998_14.pdf
4. FZV vom 25.4.2006, BGBl. I S. 988, '... nur aus Ziffern und beginnt mit "03" oder "04". Das Kurzzeitkennzeichen enthält außerdem ein Ablaufdatum, das längstens auf fünf Tage ab der Zuteilung zu bemessen [ist]', in... https://media.offenegesetze.de/bgbl1/2006/bgbl1_2006_21.pdf