Vehicle registration plates of the Netherlands
Dutch vehicle registrations are done by the Rijksdienst voor het Wegverkeer, short RDW. The accompanying license plates are assigned to the car's identity papers. If a car changes owner then the registration number stays with the car, not the owner. However, the number changes when the car undergoes technical changes that require its renewed validation.
License numbers are ordered only in time. The number bears no relation to the geography of its registration.
The Dutch do not have vanity plates - numbers that are desired specifically by the car's owner.
Numbering schemes
The current Dutch license plate system uses black letters on a light-reflecting yellow background. The previous series used white reflecting letters on a dark-blue background. Their numbering schemes however are the same.
Dutch car license plates can be formatted as follows (L=letter, D=digit)
- 1951 and on: LL-DD-DD
- 1965 and on: DD-DD-LL
- 1973 and on: DD-LL-DD
- 1978 and on: LL-DD-LL
- 1991 and on: LL-LL-DD
- 1999 and on: DD-LL-LL
Letters do not include A,E,I,O,U to avoid profane or obscene language. Furthermore, the letters W and M are avoided for reasons of legibility, as are C and Q to avoid confusion with the zero. Letters and numbers are given out in strict alphabetical/numeric order. Hence, a Dutch license plate says all about the date of registration of a car, but nothing about where the car comes from or whom it belongs to.
Special-use license plates
The following exceptions are used to mark special use cases of a vehicle.
- The B in the first letter position used to refer to a "Bedrijfswagen" (commercial vehicle): a special status for cars that are exclusively used for commercial purposes. Commercial license registrations have a separate taxation class, though some 10% of the carpark is registered as commercial. A commercial license is often called "grijs kenteken" (gray registration), referring to the colour of the car's registration papers.
- The B was followed by the V to mark commercial registrations
- A single M is used for motorcycles, followed by numbers/letters pairs as appropriate.
- AA is used for vehicles registered to the Dutch royal family.
- CD stands for Corps Diplomatique and is used for diplomats
- DE and AE are used for oldtimers.
- HA is used for car merchants, e.g. for test-rides with unregistered cars.
- GN and BN are used for vehicles whose owner is not liable to taxation
- GV is used for agricultural vehicles that may cross national borders (grensverkeer)
- ZZ is used for vehicles with a special exemption to enter public roads.
This list is not finite. The Dutch wikipedia on the keyword kenteken contains more exceptions.
Recent changes
The license plates have subtly changed shape in 2002, when not only the letter type (or font) changed, but also a few other changes were made.
- Combatting fraudulent reports of stolen license plates (giving one three weeks to break speed limits with an alibi), licenses plate are replaced immediately but using the same number. The new license plate is tagged with a small number 1 over the first dash, that is increased with each new plate.
- A blue blackground is used for taxis.
- White letters on a blue background are used for oldtimers older than 25 years
- Black letters on a white background are used for trailers that hide the car's actual license plate.
- Trailers, caravans etc. have now got their own black/white license plate.
- The W has been introduced.
The RDW (the government service that a.o. handles the registrations) will soon be through with all the combinations of license numbers. Starting 2005, the RDW will start requiring regular license plates for mopeds, replacing the old insurance license plates. When the old series of license plates have ended, other vehicles will start using the same license plates, that is formatted as DD-LLL-D.
See Also
Useful links: