UK Number Plate Age Identifier
The current UK number plate format encodes the vehicle's registration period. Here is how to decode the age from any standard plate.
The Current UK Plate Format
Since September 2001, UK plates follow the format: LL NN LLL(two letters, two digits, three letters — e.g. AB14 XYZ). The format breaks down as:
- LL — local memory tag (region + DVLA office)
- NN — age identifier (two-digit number)
- LLL — random letters (unique sequence)
Reading the Age Identifier
Plates are issued twice per year. The age identifier works as follows:
- March–August plates: the two digits are the last two digits of the year. So 24 = March 2024, 25 = March 2025, 26 = March 2026.
- September–February plates: add 50 to the year digits. So 74 = September 2024, 75 = September 2025, 76 = September 2026.
Recent Age Identifiers at a Glance
- 22 plate — March 2022 | 72 plate — September 2022
- 23 plate — March 2023 | 73 plate — September 2023
- 24 plate — March 2024 | 74 plate — September 2024
- 25 plate — March 2025 | 75 plate — September 2025
- 26 plate — March 2026 | 76 plate — September 2026
Local Memory Tags (Regional Identifiers)
The first two letters indicate where the vehicle was originally registered:
- A — Anglia (East of England)
- B — Birmingham area
- C — Cymru (Wales)
- L — London
- M — Manchester and Merseyside
- N — North (Newcastle, North Yorkshire)
- S — Scotland
- Y — Yorkshire
Older Plate Formats
Prefix plates (e.g. P123 ABC, used 1983–2001) use a letter prefix where the letter indicates the year. Suffix plates (e.g. ABC 123P, used 1963–1983) use a trailing letter. For these older vehicles, the DVLA check returns the exact registration date.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I tell the age of a car from its number plate?
On current-format UK plates (e.g. AB63 XYZ), the two-digit number is the age identifier. Plates issued March–August carry the year as-is (e.g. 63 = 2013). Plates issued September–February add 50 to the year (e.g. 13 = 2013 March plate; 63 = 2013 September plate). So 63 = September 2013, 14 = March 2014, 64 = September 2014, and so on.
What do the letters at the start of a number plate mean?
The first two letters are the DVLA local memory tag. The first letter identifies the region (e.g. L = London, M = Manchester area, Y = Yorkshire). The second letter identifies the specific DVLA office within that region. For example, LN = London North, LS = London South.
What are the current number plate age identifiers for 2025 and 2026?
25 plate: issued from March 2025. 75 plate: issued from September 2025. 26 plate: issued from March 2026. 76 plate: issued from September 2026. The pattern continues: March plates use the last two digits of the year; September plates add 50.
Can I use the number plate alone to determine the exact registration date?
The plate identifies a six-month window (March–August or September–February of a given year) but not the exact date. For the precise registration date, run a DVLA check — the "date of first registration" is returned as a full date.
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