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{{dablink|This page is about number plates in the [[Republic of Ireland]]. For plates in [[Northern Ireland]], see [[Vehicle registration plates of the United Kingdom#Northern Ireland|Vehicle registration plates of the United Kingdom - Northern Ireland]]}}
{{dablink|This page is about number plates in the [[Republic of Ireland]]. For plates in [[Northern Ireland]], see [[Vehicle registration plates of the United Kingdom#Northern Ireland|Vehicle registration plates of the United Kingdom - Northern Ireland]]}}
[[Image:Louthplate.jpg‎|thumb|250px|Pontiac Sunfire Displaying County Louth Number Plate]]
[[Image:07D.jpg|thumb|250px|Graphical example of current standard Irish number plate for [[County Dublin]]]]
[[Image:780FZL.gif|thumb|250px|Graphical example of pre-1987 standard rear Irish number plate for [[County Dublin]]]]
[[Image:780FZL.gif|thumb|250px|Graphical example of pre-1987 standard rear Irish number plate for [[County Dublin]]]]
[[Image:Irish plate specification.jpg|thumb|250px|Illustration of Irish number plate specifications]]
[[Image:Irish plate specification.jpg|thumb|250px|Illustration of Irish number plate specifications]]

Revision as of 14:13, 27 January 2010

This page is about number plates in the Republic of Ireland. For plates in Northern Ireland, see Vehicle registration plates of the United Kingdom - Northern Ireland
File:07D.jpg
Graphical example of current standard Irish number plate for County Dublin
File:780FZL.gif
Graphical example of pre-1987 standard rear Irish number plate for County Dublin
File:Irish plate specification.jpg
Illustration of Irish number plate specifications

Registration marks on number plates in Ireland issued since 1987 have the format YY-CC-SSSSSS where the components are:

  • YY — a 2-digit year (e.g. 87 for 1987; 05 for 2005)
  • CC — a 1- or 2-character county identifier (e.g. D for Dublin; SO for Sligo).
  • SSSSSS — a 1- to 6-digit sequence number, starting with the first vehicle registered in the county that year.

Since 1991, the design of the standard Irish number plate has been based on European standard guidelines, with a blue band to the left of the plate containing the 12 stars of the European flag and the country identifier IRL. The rest of the plate has a white background with black characters. Unlike legal requirements in most other European countries, a standard uniform character font is not required. The rules simply require legible black sans serif characters, no more than 70 mm high and 36 mm wide, on a white reflective background. The result is that a large variety of perfectly legal font styles may be seen, on either pressed aluminium or acrylic plates, both of which are allowed.[1] Despite the rather relaxed lack of a specified font, the hyphen between the lettering must lie between the minimum dimensions of 13mm x 10mm or the maximum dimension of 22mm x 10mm. Also required is the full Irish language name of the county which must be positioned above the identifier. Vehicle owners may be fined if the plate's format does not meet the requirements and will most certainly automatically fail government vehicle testing NCT which the vehicle is required to undergo on a two-yearly basis.

A vehicle's number plate is determined when it is first registered, the county code being taken from the first owner's postal address. Registration remains fixed on the one vehicle until it is de-registered (exported, destroyed, etc), and cannot be transferred to other vehicles.

Current implementation

Currently, the Revenue Commissioners, the Irish Government agency responsible for vehicle registration, are planning to add new codes for the administrative counties currently sharing codes. These are rumoured to be CK (County Cork), GY (County Galway), DR (Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown), FL (Fingal), and SN (South Dublin) respectively;[citation needed] but have not been introduced as of yet.

Sequence numbers may be reserved on completion of form VRT15A and payment of €1,000.

  • Most registration numbers can be reserved, with the exception of the first number of each year issued in Cork, Dublin, Limerick and Waterford as these are reserved for the respective Mayor/Lord Mayor of these cities.[2]

Thus, for example, in the year 2008, Lord Mayor Cllr. Paddy Bourke , the Lord Mayor of Dublin was entitled to receive the registration plate 08-D-1 on his official vehicle.

  • Luxury cars with numeric names are often registered with a matching, usually pre-reserved sequence number: for example 06-D-911 on a Porsche 911 or 06-D-750 BMW 750 and 08-D-89 for an Aston Martin DB9.
  • Dublin radio station FM 104 tend to register their vehicles with reserved number sequences ending with "104", e.g. 05-D-38104.

Imported used cars are registered based on year of first registration in their country of original registration rather than year of import.

Vehicles registered to the Irish Defence Forces have plates with silver letters on black background. These do not feature the Irish-language county name.

There are only two pre-1987 codes still issued in the Republic of Ireland.

  • "ZZ", administered by the AA Ireland as agents for the Revenue Commissioners, is given to registrants who are based outside the state and who only intend keeping the vehicle within the republic of Ireland for a period not exceeding one month. This form of temporary registration is usually used for vehicles that are purchased within the Republic of Ireland but exported by its new owner to another country directly after purchase. The format of the code is ZZ followed by a five digit number.
  • "ZV", which can be selected as an alternative to the current scheme when registering a vehicle older than 30 years for the first time in Ireland.

Current index mark codes

Most county codes use the first and last letters of the county name, for example Sligo is SO. The exceptions are:

  • Where a conflict exists, i.e. Kerry is KY, so Kilkenny is KK; and County Waterford is WD, so Wexford is WX.
  • Tipperary is divided into Tipperary South (TS) and Tipperary North (TN)
  • Waterford City and Limerick City issue single-letter plates: W and L
  • Dublin City & County, Cork City & County and Galway City & County all use single letters: D, C and G
code county or city Irish name
C Cork Corcaigh
CE Clare An Clár
CN Cavan An Cabhán
CW Carlow Ceatharlach
D Dublin Baile Átha Cliath
DL Donegal Dún na nGall
G Galway Gaillimh
KE Kildare Cill Dara
KK Kilkenny Cill Chainnigh
KY Kerry Ciarraí
L Limerick City Cathair Luimnigh
LD Longford An Longfort
LH Louth An Lú
LK County Limerick Luimneach
LM Leitrim Liatroim
LS Laois Laois
MH Meath An Mhí
MN Monaghan Muineachán
MO Mayo Maigh Eo
OY Offaly Uíbh Fhailí
RN Roscommon Ros Comáin
SO Sligo Sligeach
TN Tipperary North Tiobraid Árann Thuaidh
TS Tipperary South Tiobraid Árann Theas
W Waterford City Cathair Phort Láirge
WD County Waterford Port Láirge
WH Westmeath An Iarmhí
WX Wexford Loch Garman
WW Wicklow Cill Mhantáin

EU standardised vehicle registration plates

Main article: European vehicle registration plates

The common EU format was introduced by Council Regulation (EC) No 2411/98 of 3 November 1998 and entered into force on the 11 Nov 1998. It was based on a model registration plate which several member states had introduced, e.g. Ireland in 1991,[3] Portugal in 1992,[4] Italy and Germany in 1994.[5] (This 'common format' is claimed to be a registered design - number 2053070 - registered at the UK Patent office by David and Nansi Mottram in 1995.[6] No successful challenge has been launched upon the registered design to date.)

History

From 1903, the system used in Ireland was part of the original British system of identifiers. This was superseded in the Republic of Ireland on 1 January 1987.

A two-letter code containing the letter I was allocated to each administrative county in alphabetical order (the full list appears below), with the initial registration format being the code followed by a sequence number from 1 to 9999, as in Great Britain. The codes allocated ran from IA to IZ, then from AI to WI, with the letters G, S, and V skipped as these were intended for Scotland.[7] In 1921, shortly before the creation of the Irish Free State, Belfast and Dublin City completed their original marks and thus took the next available codes, XI and YI respectively, with Dublin City then taking ZI in 1927. After this, most other codes with Z as the first letter (again skipping those containing G, S and V) were allocated in alphabetical order, starting with single-letter Z - the only one-letter code used in Ireland - for County Dublin. (This does not include the ZZ code for temporary imports, introduced in 1925.)

In February 1952, a joint motor taxation authority was set up for Dublin City and county, and their codes were merged. Two years later, with all possible codes (at the time) allocated, a new format was introduced with a serial letter added before the code, and the sequence number running only to 999 (thus limiting the number of characters on a number plate to six). The Dublin joint authority was the first to adopt this format when it issued ARI 1 in May 1954, and each county followed suit once all its two-letter combinations had been issued. In the case of counties with more than one code, all the three-letter marks for the first allocated code would be issued, then all such marks for the second code, and so on (see the lists of series per county below).

G, S and V were not used as serial letters at first, while Z was not used before a code starting with that letter, so as to prevent any clashing with ZZ temporary registrations. Several other three-letter marks were not issued through oversight or because they were deemed offensive, and the single-letter Z code was left out of this format as a serial letter would have created a duplicate of an existing two-letter code, particularly one used in Northern Ireland.

Initially, all number plates had been black with white or silver characters, but in 1969 the option of black-on-white at the front and black-on-red at the rear was introduced.

In February 1970, the Dublin joint authority exhausted all its three-letter combinations and thus began issuing "reversed" registrations, starting with the original two-letter codes (plus single-letter Z) in order of allocation. These were followed from July 1974 onwards by the three-letter marks (1 ARI etc), issued in the same manner as for the forward versions. Again, other counties followed this example over time. Also in 1974, Cork followed Dublin's example of setting up a joint motor taxation authority for city and county, though their codes were not merged until August 1985.

In 1982, with Dublin and several other counties having exhausted all possible combinations of their original codes, it was decided to allocate the skipped codes containing G, S and V to these counties. In the cases of these codes, the forward three-letter combinations were issued first in the same manner as before, followed by the forward two-letter combinations.

Under this system, Irish vehicle registration marks could be transferred to Britain for re-registration on other vehicles, even after Irish independence, and even though they could not be re-used within Ireland. The letter I in many combinations made these attractive for collectors, and indeed the Kilkenny issue "VIP 1" has fetched a record price at auction. Since the introduction of the current system in 1987, such exports have been impossible, even for old-format registrations, although those already exported may still be re-transferred.

The 1987 system allocated single-letter codes to the county boroughs (including those shared with counties) and two-letter codes to the other counties. Normally these are the initial and final letter of the English-language name of the county (except where duplicates would result). Initially, all plates under this system consisted solely of black characters on white, but in 1991 the blue EU identifier and the Irish-language name of the county were added, the latter as a result of the controversy arising from using English as the basis.

Vehicles first registered before 1987 are allowed to be re-registered using the current system, with a year number preceding 87 - for instance, a vehicle from 1964 re-registered in Meath would have 64-MH at the start of its registration.


Pre-1987 mark codes

Early photograph of car with a Cork registration plate "IF 644"
Mid-1950's Ford Consul with County Kildare registration plate ZW 2202 - contemporary photograph

Counties in italics are in Northern Ireland and hence still use the 1903 system.

Codes with the letters G, S and V were reserved until the 1980s, when they were taken by counties that had exhausted all the combinations for their original codes.

Note that the registrations were sorted based on an alphabetical list of counties and county boroughs (cities) based on their 1903 names. Offaly (formerly King's County) and Laois (formerly Queen's County) were re-named post-independence. Tipperary South (formerly Tipperary South Riding) and Tipperary North (formerly Tipperary North Riding) were re-named in 2001 and are not contemporaneous with this registration series. Londonderry City is most commonly known as Derry City.

letter code (Ix) County or city code(xI) County or city code (Zx) County or city
A IA Antrim AI Meath ZA Dublin City
B IB Armagh BI Monaghan ZB Cork County
C IC Carlow CI Laois (formerly Queen's County) ZC Dublin City
D ID Cavan DI Roscommon ZD Dublin City
E IE Clare EI Sligo ZE Dublin County
F IF Cork County FI Tipperary North Riding ZF Cork City
H IH Donegal HI Tipperary South Riding ZH Dublin City
J IJ Down JI Tyrone ZJ Dublin City
K IK Dublin County KI Waterford County ZK Cork County
L IL Fermanagh LI Westmeath ZL Dublin City
M IM Galway MI Wexford ZM Galway County
N IN Kerry NI Wicklow ZN Meath
O IO Kildare OI Belfast ZO Dublin City & County
P IP Kilkenny PI Cork City ZP Donegal
R IR Offaly (formerly King's County) RI Dublin City ZR Wexford
T IT Leitrim TI Limerick City ZT Cork County
U IU Limerick County UI (London)Derry City ZU Dublin City & County
W IW Londonderry WI Waterford City ZW Kildare
X IX Longford XI Belfast City ZX Kerry
Y IY Louth YI Dublin City ZY Louth
Z IZ Mayo ZI Dublin City ZZ Temporary registrations
Z Dublin County
G IG Fermanagh (from 2004) GI Tipperary South Riding (from 1985) ZG Dublin City & County (from 1983)
S IS Mayo (from 1983) SI Dublin (from 1982) ZS Dublin City & County (from 1984)
V IV Limerick (from 1982) ZV Dublin City & County (from 1985) / vehicles >30 years old

Series per county 1903-1986

Carlow CC: IC

NB A duplicate series of IC for cars and motorcycles existed prior to 1921.
IC 1 to IC 9999 (Dec 1903 - Apr 1964).
AIC 1 to YIC 994 (Apr 1964 - Dec 1986).


Cavan CC: ID

ID 1 to ID 9999 (Jan 1904 - Jul 1958).
AID 1 to ZID 999 (Jul 1958 - Dec 1976).
1 ID to 9999 ID (Dec 1976 - Feb 1981).
1 AID to 906 IID (Feb 1981 - Dec 1986).


Clare CC: IE

NB A duplicate series of IE for cars and motorcycles existed prior to 1921.
IE 1 to IE 9999 (Jan 1904 - Mar 1959).
AIE 1 to ZIE 999 (Mar 1959 - Nov 1974).
1 IE to 9999 IE (Nov 1974 - Sep 1978).
1 AIE to 107 XIE (Sep 1978 - Dec 1986).


Cork CC: (in original issuing sequence) IF ZB ZK ZT

IF 1 to IF 9999 (Dec 1903 - Apr 1935);
ZB 1 to ZB 9999 (Apr 1935 - Apr 1949);
ZK 1 to ZK 9999 (Apr 1949 - May 1953);
ZT 1 to ZT 9999 (May 1953 - Dec 1955).
AIF 1 to ZIF 999 (Dec 1955 - Apr 1963);
AZB 1 to YZB 999 (Apr 1963 - Aug 1966);
AZK 1 to YZK 999 (Aug 1966 - Aug 1970);
AZT 1 to YZT 999 (Aug 1970 - Nov 1973).
1 IF to 9999 IF (Nov 1973 - May 1975);
1 ZB to 9999 ZB (May 1975 - Jul 1976);
1 ZK to 9999 ZK (Jul 1976 - Aug 1977);
1 ZT to 9999 ZT (Aug 1977 - Jun 1978).
1 AIF to 999 ZIF (Jun 1978 - Sep 1981);
1 AZB to 999 YZB (Sep 1981 - Jun 1983);
1 AZK to 999 PZK (Jun 1983 - Aug 1985).
In June 1974 Cork County Council and Cork County Borough Council set up a joint motor taxation authority, administered by the County Council. However, separate registers continued in use for the County and the County Borough until the expiry of reverse ZPI in August 1985. See below for the sequences issued covering both areas.


Cork City: (in original issuing sequence) PI ZF

PI 1 to PI 9999 (Dec 1903 - Aug 1946);
ZF 1 to ZF 9999 (Aug 1946 - Dec 1958).
API 1 to ZPI 999 (Dec 1958 - Feb 1970);
AZF 1 to YZF 999 (Feb 1970 - Mar 1976).
1 PI to 9999 PI (Mar 1976 - Jun 1978);
1 ZF to 9999 ZF (Jun 1978 - Feb 1980).
1 API to 999 ZPI (Feb 1980 - Aug 1985);
1 AZF to 542 FZF (May - Dec 1986).
In June 1974 Cork County Council and Cork County Borough Council set up a joint motor taxation authority, administered by the County Council. However, separate registers continued in use for the County and the County Borough until the expiry of reverse ZPI in August 1985. See below for the sequences issued covering both areas.


Cork County & County Borough Joint Office: (in issuing sequence) reverse RZK-YZK, reverse AZF-FZF

1 RZK to 999 YZK (Aug 1985 - May 1986);
1 AZF to 542 FZF (May 1986 - Dec 1986).


Donegal CC: (in original issuing sequence) IH ZP

NB A duplicate series of IH for cars and motorcycles existed prior to 1921.
IH 1 to IH 9999 (Dec 1903 - Jan 1952);
ZP 1 to ZP 9999 (Jan 1952 - Nov 1961).
AIH 1 to ZIH 999 (Nov 1961 - Apr 1976);
AZP 1 to ZZP 407 (Apr 1976 - Feb 1982).
408 IH to 9999 IH (Feb 1982 - Apr 1985);
1 ZP to 4853 ZP (Apr 1985 - Dec 1986).
NB ZZP was not authorised by SR&O (Statutory Rules & Orders) and was issued in error - no retrospective SR&O was issued to legitimise its issue. When the error was discovered ZZP was terminated at 407; in consequence the next series (reverse IH) commenced at 408.


Dublin CC (until 1952): (in original issuing sequence) IK Z ZE

NB A duplicate series of IK for cars and motorcycles existed prior to 1921.
IK 1 to IK 9999 (Dec 1903 - Mar 1927);
Z 1 to Z 9999 (Mar 1927 - Sep 1938);
ZE 1 to ZE 9999 (Sep 1938 - Feb 1952).
In February 1952 Dublin County Council and Dublin County Borough Council set up a joint motor taxation authority. The joint office was administered by Dublin County Borough Council. See below for subsequent issues.


Dublin City (until 1952): (in original issuing sequence) RI YI ZI ZA ZC ZD ZH ZJ ZL

NB A duplicate series up to RI 3000 for cars and motorcycles existed prior to 1921.
RI 1 to RI 9999 (Dec 1903 - Apr 1921);
YI 1 to YI 9999 (Apr 1921 - Mar 1927);
ZI 1 to ZI 9999 (Mar 1927 - May 1933);
ZA 1 to ZA 9999 (May 1933 - Mar 1937);
ZC 1 to ZC 9999 (Mar 1937 - Jan 1940);
ZD 1 to ZD 9999 (Jan 1940 - Jan 1947);
ZH 1 to ZH 9999 (Jan 1947 - Jan 1949);
ZJ 1 to ZJ 9999 (Jan 1949 - Jul 1950);
ZL 1 to ZL 9999 (Jul 1950 - Feb 1952).
In February 1952 Dublin County Council and Dublin County Borough Council set up a joint motor taxation authority. The joint office was administered by Dublin County Borough Council. See below for subsequent issues.


Dublin County & County Borough Joint Office (from February 1952): (in original issuing sequence) forward 2-letter sequences of ZO ZU; then forward 3-letter combinations of RI IK YI ZA ZC ZD ZE ZH ZI ZJ ZL ZO ZU; then reverse 2-letter sequences of RI IK YI Z ZA ZC ZD ZE ZH ZI ZJ ZL ZO ZU; then reverse 3-letter combinations of RI IK YI ZA ZC ZD ZE ZH ZI ZJ ZL ZO ZU; then forward 3-letter combinations of SI ZG ZS ZV; then reverse 2-letter sequences of SI ZG ZS.

ZO 1 to ZO 9999 (Feb 1952 - May 1953);
ZU 1 to ZU 9999 (May 1953 - May 1954).
ARI 1 to YRI 999 (May 1954 - Sep 1955)(note GRI IRI SRI VRI and ZRI not issued);
AIK 1 to ZIK 999 (Sep 1955 - Nov 1957)(note GIK SIK and VIK not issued);
AYI 1 to YYI 999 (Nov 1957 - Oct 1959)(note ZYI not issued);
AZA 1 to YZA 999 (Oct 1959 - Jan 1961);
AZC 1 to YZC 999 (Jan 1961 - Apr 1962);
AZD 1 to YZD 999 (Apr 1962 - May 1963);
AZE 1 to YZE 999 (May 1963 - Jun 1964);
AZH 1 to YZH 999 (Jun 1964 - May 1965);
AZI 1 to YZI 999 (May 1965 - Jun 1966);
AZJ 1 to YZJ 999 (Jun 1966 - Jun 1967);
AZL 1 to YZL 999 (Jun 1967 - May 1968);
AZO 1 to YZO 999 (May 1968 - Mar 1969);
AZU 1 to YZU 999 (Mar 1969 - Feb 1970).
1 RI to 9999 RI (Feb - May 1970);
1 IK to 9999 IK (May - Sep 1970);
1 YI to 9999 YI (Sep 1970 - Feb 1971);
1 Z to 9999 Z (Feb - Jun 1971);
1 ZA to 9999 ZA (Jun - Oct 1971);
1 ZC to 9999 ZC (Oct 1971 - Mar 1972);
1 ZD to 9999 ZD (Mar - Jun 1972);
1 ZE to 9999 ZE (Jun - Oct 1972);
1 ZH to 9999 ZH (Oct 1972 - Feb 1973);
1 ZI to 9999 ZI (Feb - May 1973);
1 ZJ to 9999 ZJ (May - Aug 1973);
1 ZL to 9999 ZL (Aug - Dec 1973);
1 ZO to 9999 ZO (Dec 1973 - Apr 1974);
1 ZU to 9999 ZU (Apr - Jul 1974).
1 ARI to 999 YRI (Jul 1974 - May 1975)(note reverse GRI IRI SRI VRI and ZRI not issued);
1 AIK to 999 ZIK (May 1975 - Mar 1976)(note reverse GIK SIK and VIK not issued);
1 AYI to 999 YYI (Mar 1976 - Jan 1977)(note reverse ZYI not issued);
1 AZA to 999 YZA (Jan - Aug 1977);
1 AZC to 999 YZC (Aug 1977 - Mar 1978);
1 AZD to 999 YZD (Mar - Sep 1978);
1 AZE to 999 YZE (Sep 1978 - Apr 1979);
1 AZH to 999 YZH (Apr - Oct 1979);
1 AZI to 999 YZI (Oct 1979 - Apr 1980);
1 AZJ to 999 YZJ (Apr 1980 - Jan 1981);
1 AZL to 999 YZL (Jan - May 1981);
1 AZO to 999 YZO (May 1981 - Jan 1982);
1 AZU to 999 YZU (Jan - Aug 1982).
ASI 1 to ZSI 999 (Aug 1982 - Jun 1983);
AZG 1 to YZG 999 (Jun 1983 - May 1984);
AZS 1 to YZS 999 (May 1984 - Mar 1985);
AZV 1 to YZV 999 (Mar 1985 - Jan 1986).
SI 1 to SI 9999 (Jan - Apr 1986);
ZG 1 to ZG 9999 (Apr - Jul 1986);
ZS 1 to ZS 8709 (Jul - Dec 1986).

International circulations:

ZZ 1 to ZZ 9999 (Apr 1925 - Mar 1983);
1 ZZ to 9999 ZZ (Mar 1983 - Mar 1989);
ZZ 10000 up commenced circa Mar 1989. NB Some reserved number blocks issued out of sequence within main block.


Galway CC: (in original issuing sequence) IM ZM

IM 1 to IM 9999 (Jan 1904 - Oct 1950);
ZM 1 to ZM 9999 (Oct 1950 - Nov 1959).
AIM 1 to ZIM 999 (Nov 1959 - May 1970);
AZM 1 to YZM 999 (May 1970 - Aug 1976).
1 IM to 9999 IM (Aug 1976 - Apr 1978);
1 ZM to 9999 ZM (Apr 1978 - Oct 1979).
1 AIM to 999 ZIM (Oct 1979 - Feb 1985);
1 AZM to 797 GZM (Feb 1985 - Dec 1986).


Kerry CC: (in original issuing sequence) IN ZX

IN 1 to IN 9999 (Dec 1903 - Jan 1954);
ZX 1 to ZX 9999 (Jan 1954 - Jan 1962).
AIN 1 to ZIN 999 (Jan 1962 - Jan 1973);
AZX 1 to YZX 999 (Jan 1973 - Jun 1979).
1 IN to 9999 IN (Jun 1979 - Jan 1982);
1 ZX to 9999 ZX (Jan 1982 - Jan 1986).
1 AIN to 375 CIN (Jan - Dec 1986).


Kildare CC: (in original issuing sequence) IO ZW

IO 1 to IO 9999 (Dec 1903 - Jun 1953);
ZW 1 to ZW 9999 (Jun 1953 - Apr 1963).
AIO 1 to ZIO 999 (Apr 1963 - Mar 1976)(note IIO and OIO were not issued).
AZW 1 to YZW 999 (Mar 1976 - May 1983).
1 ZW to 9343 ZW (May 1983 - Dec 1986).


Kilkenny CC: IP

IP 1 to IP 9999 (Jan 1904 - Feb 1955).
AIP 1 to ZIP 999 (Feb 1955 - Jul 1974)(note GIP and KIP were not issued).
1 IP to 9999 IP (Jul 1974 - Oct 1978).
1 AIP to 235 UIP (Oct 1978 - Dec 1986)(note GIP KIP and RIP were not issued in reverse format).


Laoighis CC (County Council of Queens County renamed Laoighis (alternative spellings Laois and Leix) in June 1922): CI

CI 1 to CI 9999 (Dec 1903 - Jul 1960).
ACI 1 to ZCI 999 (Jul 1960 - Apr 1981).
1 CI to 7342 CI (Apr 1981 - Dec 1986).


Leitrim CC: IT

NB A duplicate series of IT for cars and motorcycles existed prior to 1921.
IT 1 to IT 9999 (Dec 1903 - May 1972).
AIT 1 to KIT 780 (May 1972 - Dec 1986).


Limerick CC: IU then IV

IU 1 to IU 9999 (Dec 1903 - Nov 1954).
AIU 1 to ZIU 999 (Nov 1954 - Sep 1971)(note GIU not issued; JIU 111 issued early in Dec 1961 - main JIU sequence commenced Apr 1962).
1 IU to 9999 IU (Sep 1971 - May 1975).
1 AIU to 999 ZIU (May 1975 - Feb 1982)(note reverse GIU not issued).
AIV 1 to OIV 520 (Feb 1982 - Dec 1986)(note IIV and MIV were not issued).


Limerick City: TI

TI 1 to TI 9999 (Jan 1904 - Oct 1959).
ATI 1 to ZTI 999 (Oct 1959 - Mar 1977).
1 TI to 9999 TI (Mar 1977 - Jan 1982).
1 ATI to 929 FTI (Jan 1982 - Dec 1986).


Longford CC: IX

IX 1 to IX 9999 (Dec 1903 - Feb 1970).
AIX 1 to PIX 710 (Feb 1970 - Dec 1986).


Louth CC: (in original issuing sequence) IY ZY

IY 1 to IY 9999 (Dec 1903 - Oct 1954);
ZY 1 to ZY 9999 (Oct 1954 - Jan 1964).
AIY 1 to ZIY 999 (Jan 1964 - Oct 1976);
AZY 1 to YZY 999 (Oct 1976 - Sep 1985).
1 ZY to 2507 ZY (Sep 1985 - Dec 1986).


Mayo CC: IZ then IS

IZ 1 to IZ 9999 (Jan 1904 - Oct 1954).
AIZ 1 to ZIZ 999 (Oct 1954 - May 1971)(note GIZ not issued).
1 IZ to 9999 IZ (May 1971 - Feb 1976).
1 AIZ to 999 ZIZ (Feb 1976 - Apr 1983)(note reverse GIZ not issued).
AIS 1 to HIS 990 (Apr 1983 - Dec 1986).


Meath CC: (in original issuing sequence) AI ZN

AI 1 to AI 9999 (Dec 1903 - Sep 1951);
ZN 1 to ZN 9999 (Sep 1951 - Feb 1962).
AAI 1 to ZAI 999 (Feb 1962 - Jun 1975);
AZN 1 to YZN 999 (Jun 1975 - Oct 1982).
1 AI to 9999 AI (Oct 1982 - Dec 1986);
1 ZN to 88 ZN (Dec 1986).


Monaghan CC: BI

BI 1 to BI 9999 (Dec 1903 - Mar 1961).
ABI 1 to ZBI 999 (Mar 1961 - Oct 1981).
1 BI to 6540 BI (Oct 1981 - Dec 1986).


Offaly CC (County Council of Kings County, renamed Offaly in June 1922): IR

IR 1 to IR 9999 (Jan 1904 - May 1960).
AIR 1 to ZIR 999 (May 1960 - Mar 1981).
1 IR to 7834 IR (Mar 1981 - Dec 1986).


Roscommon CC: DI

NB A duplicate series of DI for cars and motorcycles existed prior to 1921.
DI 1 to DI 9999 (Dec 1903 - Jan 1963).
ADI 1 to ZDI 999 (Jan 1963 - Apr 1980).
1 DI to 9999 DI (Apr 1980 - Feb 1986).
1 ADI to 292 BDI (Feb - Dec 1986).


Sligo CC: EI

EI 1 to EI 9999 (Dec 1903 - Nov 1959).
AEI 1 to ZEI 999 (Nov 1959 - Feb 1980).
1 EI to 9999 EI (Feb 1980 - Apr 1986).
1 AEI to 835 AEI (Apr - Dec 1986).


Tipperary North Riding CC: FI

NB FI 1-50 issued for cars only; then duplicate series for cars and motorcycles from FI 51 up, until 1920.
NB ZFI was not authorised by SR&O (Statutory Rules & Orders) No.128, issued 18 May 1967 and was issued in error, commencing Dec 1976. SR&O No.128 only authorised the blocks KFI-PFI and RFI-YFI. No retrospective SR&O was issued to legitimise ZFI's issue.
FI 1 to FI 9999 (Dec 1903 - Jan 1958).
AFI 1 to ZFI 999 (Jan 1958 - May 1977).
1 FI to 9999 FI (May 1977 - Jan 1980).
1 AFI to 418 JFI (Jan 1980 - Dec 1986).


Tipperary South Riding CC: HI then GI

HI 1 to HI 9999 (Dec 1903 - Sep 1954).
AHI 1 to ZHI 999 (Sep 1954 - Nov 1971)(note GHI and IHI not issued).
1 HI to 9999 HI (Nov 1971 - May 1976).
1 AHI to 999 ZHI (May 1976 - May 1985)(note reverse GHI and IHI not issued).
AGI 1 to CGI 871 (May 1985 - Dec 1986).


Waterford CC: KI

KI 1 to KI 9999 (Jan 1904 - Mar 1961).
AKI 1 to ZKI 999 (Mar 1961 - Jul 1979).
1 KI to 9999 KI (Jul 1979 - Jun 1986).
1 AKI to 586 AKI (Jun - Dec 1986).


Waterford City: WI

WI 1 to WI 9999 (Jan 1904 - Jan 1966).
AWI 1 to WWI 80 (Jan 1966 - Dec 1986).


Westmeath CC: LI

LI 1 to LI 9999 (Dec 1903 - Jun 1959).
ALI 1 to ZLI 999 (Jun 1959 - Aug 1978).
1 LI to 9999 LI (Aug 1978 - Feb 1983).
1 ALI to 869 GLI (Feb 1983 - Dec 1986).


Wexford CC: (in original issuing sequence) MI ZR

MI 1 to MI 9999 (Jan 1904 - Jan 1952)(note MI 9922-9999 were issued by the Police in 1921 as a consequence of The Road Vehicles (Defaulting Councils)(Ireland) Order, 1921);
ZR 1 to ZR 9999 (Jan 1952 - May 1961).
AMI 1 to YMI 999 (May 1961 - Jul 1973)(note ZMI not issued);
AZR 1 to YZR 999 (Jul 1973 - Jun 1980).
1 MI to 9999 MI (Jun 1980 - Oct 1983);
1 ZR to 8071 ZR (Oct 1983 - Dec 1986).


Wicklow CC: NI

NI 1 to NI 9999 (Jan 1904 - May 1957).
ANI 1 to ZNI 999 (May 1957 - May 1975).
1 NI to 9999 NI (May 1975 - Mar 1979).
1 ANI to 426 TNI (Mar 1979 - Dec 1986).

See also

References

  1. ^ http://193.178.1.79/ZZSI432Y1999.html
  2. ^ http://www.revenue.ie/index.htm?/leaflets/vrt5.htm
  3. ^ http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/ZZSI287Y1990.html
  4. ^ Portuguese car number plates
  5. ^ http://www.worldlicenseplates.com/world/EU_D6XX.html
  6. ^ http://www.intelligentinnovation.eu
  7. ^ http://www.fleetdata.co.uk/allocations.html
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