Philippine vehicle license plates
Encyclopedia
Vehicle license plates in the Philippines are issued and regulated by the Land Transportation Office, a government agency under the Department of Transportation and Communications
Department of Transportation and Communications (Philippines)
The Department of Transportation and Communications is the executive department of the Philippine government responsible for the maintenance and expansion of viable, efficient, and dependable transportation and communications systems as effective instruments for national recovery and economic...

 (DOTC).

Current specifications

In this section, "L" stands for an alphabet letter and "D" stands for a digit in defining license plate formats.

Dimensions and medium

The current series of Philippine registration plates ("plaka" in the Tagalog
Tagalog language
Tagalog is an Austronesian language spoken as a first language by a third of the population of the Philippines and as a second language by most of the rest. It is the first language of the Philippine region IV and of Metro Manila...

 vernacular) measure 390mm X 140mm. The characters are stamped on an aluminum plate then applied with reflectorised paint, with watermarks of the Land Transportation Office (LTO) logo stamped all over the plate as well as a small logo of the plate manufacturer. This was replaced with a reflectorised, printed coloured sticker featuring the statue
Rizal Monument
The Rizal Monument is a memorial monument in Rizal Park in Manila, Philippines built to commemorate the Filipino nationalist, José Rizal. The mausoleum consists of a standing bronze sculpture of the martyr, with an obelisk as his backdrop, set on a pedestal upon which his remains are interred...

 of Dr. José Rizal
José Rizal
José Protacio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda , was a Filipino polymath, patriot and the most prominent advocate for reform in the Philippines during the Spanish colonial era. He is regarded as the foremost Filipino patriot and is listed as one of the national heroes of the Philippines by...

 in 2003. At that time, it has the words "Pilipinas" at the bottom, until in 2004 it was replaced with "Matatag Na Republika" (Strong Republic). All plates issued by the LTO (as of 2008) are solely produced by a privately-funded manufacturer in Manila.

There were many variations prior to the current format, and it depends on who is the incumbent president; the trend of the slogan on the license plate first began within the Ramos administration and followed by the next two presidents. This can be seen on what is the slogan written at the bottom of the plate.
  • PILIPINAS (most common format) (1981–1995, 2001–2003)
  • PHILIPPINES 2000 (1995–2000)
  • ANGAT PINOY 2004 (2000–2001)
  • PERLAS NG SILANGAN (2001–2002)
  • MATATAG NA REPUBLIKA (2004–present)

Typeface

There were numerous typefaces for Philippine registration plates. The current typeface used for Philippine registration plates was first implemented in 1981. It is loosely based on the Australian license plate system. There have been slight variations on the font design since then.

Talks have been going around in the Land Transportation Office regarding the use of the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 Fälschungserschwerende Schrift/"FE-Schrift
FE-Schrift
' or ' has been the only typeface used on new vehicle registration plates of Germany since November 2000, except for plates issued to military-registered vehicles, which still use the former DIN 1451 typeface...

" (falsification-hindering script; similar typeface used on German vehicle license plates) on new licence plates for vehicles with regular registration, to serve as a more effective way preventing plate falsification. This typeface is already used on personalised and vanity license plates.

Protocol/High-ranking government plates

These plates are blue D or DD plates reserved for the top government officials of the Republic of the Philippines.
  • 1/PANGULO - President
    President of the Philippines
    The President of the Philippines is the head of state and head of government of the Philippines. The president leads the executive branch of the Philippine government and is the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines...

  • 2 - Vice President
    Vice President of the Philippines
    -Description:The Vice-President is the first in the Philippine line of succession, assuming the Presidency upon the death, resignation, or removal by impeachment and subsequent conviction of the incumbent. The position was abolished by Martial Law in 1972, and was not included in the original text...

  • 3 - Senate President
    President of the Senate of the Philippines
    The President of the Senate of the Philippines, or more popularly known as the Senate President, is the presiding officer and the highest ranking-official of the Senate of the Philippines. He/she is elected by the entire body to be their leader...

  • 4 - Speaker of the House of Representatives
    Speaker of the Philippine House of Representatives
    The Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Philippines is the presiding officer of the lower house of Congress, the House of Representatives....

  • 5 - Chief Justice of the Supreme Court
  • 6 - Cabinet Secretaries
    Executive Departments of the Philippines
    The Executive departments of the Philippines is the largest component of the national executive branch of the government of the Philippines. There are a total of nineteen executive departments. The departments comprise the largest part of the country's bureaucracy...

  • 7 - Senators
    Senate of the Philippines
    The Senate of the Philippines is the upper chamber of the bicameral legislature of the Philippines, the Congress of the Philippines...

  • 8 - Representatives (Congressmen)
    House of Representatives of the Philippines
    The House of Representatives of the Philippines is the lower chamber of the...

  • 9 - Associate Justices of the Supreme Court
    Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines
    An Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines is one of 15 members of the Philippine Supreme Court, the highest court in the Philippines. The Chief Justice presides over the High Court, but carries only 1 of the 15 votes in the court...

  • 10 - Presiding Justice and other Justices of the Court of Appeals, Solicitor General (President Arroyo abolished the OSG's protocol plate number '13' by virtue of Executive Order No. 400-A)
  • 11 - Chairman of the Commission on Elections
  • 12 - Cabinet Undersecretary
  • 14 - Chief of Staff, Armed Forces of the Philippines and Chief, Philippine National Police
  • 16 - Regional Trial Court Judges
  • 17 - First Level Courts (Metropolitan Trial Court, Municipal Trial Court, Municipal Trial Court in Cities and Shari'ah Circuit courts), added by Memorandum Order No. 297 signed by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on March 2, 2009

Regular government plates

Red characters on a white background, LLL DDD plates that start with the letter "P".

Diplomatic/other exempted vehicle plates

Blue characters on a white background plates reserved for diplomats, embassy and consulate officials, country ambassadors and some expatriates such as scientists and researchers at the International Rice Research Institute
International Rice Research Institute
The International Rice Research Institute is an international NGO. Its headquarters are in Los Baños, Laguna, Philippines, and it has offices in sixteen countries...

 (IRRI), in the form of DDDD or DDDDD.

Ambassadors' plates are always "1000" and have the country they represent at the bottom of the plate. These plates have a small decal on the bottom left part with a "CM".

1001 - 9999: a small decal on the bottom left part, displayed as "DC" for "diplomatic corps"

10000 - 25999: embassy vehicles - a small decal on the bottom left part displayed as "OEV" for "other exempted vehicle"


Private vehicles

For private vehicles, the plate contains green-colored symbols on a white background with the number format as "LLL DDD".

On newer vehicles, the first letter usually indicates the region where the vehicle is registered. For example, if the plate begins with the letter "N", the vehicle is registered in the National Capitol Region
Metro Manila
Metropolitan Manila , the National Capital Region , or simply Metro Manila, is the metropolitan region encompassing the City of Manila and its surrounding areas in the Philippines...

.

Department of Tourism accredited vehicles

Vehicles accredited by the Department of Tourism
Department of Tourism (Philippines)
The Department of Tourism is the executive department of the Philippine government responsible for the regulation of the Philippine tourism industry and the promotion of the Philippines as a tourist destination....

 (usually tour buses and airport taxis) are issued plates that look similar to those of private vehicles, but have yellow highlights mixed with the green color and share the same first letter of current public utility vehicle plates. These vehicles must also have special stickers placed on the rear windows indicating that they are DOT-accredited.

Public utility vehicles

Yellow plates (black characters on a yellow background) in the form LLL DDD and usually begin with either the letter "P" or "T" or "U" in NCR. Since 1999, they always have either "V", "W", "X", or "Y" in the middle of the letter block.

Trailers

Yellow or green plates that mostly have either "U" or "Z" in the middle of the letter block.

Electric vehicles

For electric vehicle
Electric vehicle
An electric vehicle , also referred to as an electric drive vehicle, uses one or more electric motors or traction motors for propulsion...

s, orange plates are used (white symbols on orange background).

Private

Green characters on a white background with the letters "MC" stamped on the upper right-hand corner next to the registration sticker. Usually in the format LL DDDD, but with the rise in the number of motorcycles on the road, the DDDD LL format has also come into use.

Public utility

Yellow characters on a Black background. Same format as in private motorcycles. This plate is very rarely seen.

Private

Green characters on a white background with the letters "MC" stamped on the upper right-hand corner next to the registration sticker. This is also rare because when a tricycle is purchased, its immediate use is to be a public transport vehicle and will be registered with black on yellow plates.

Public utility

Black characters on a yellow background with the letters "TC" stamped on the upper right-hand corner next to the registration sticker.

Geographical designation

  • "A" - Region I (Ilocos Region
    Ilocos Region
    The Ilocos region or Region I is a Region of the Philippines and is located in the northwest of Luzon. It borders to the east the regions of the Cordillera Administrative Region and Cagayan Valley and to the south the region of Central Luzon...

    ) and CAR (Cordillera Administrative Region
    Cordillera Administrative Region
    The Cordillera Administrative Region is a region in the Philippines composed of the provinces of Abra, Apayao, Benguet, Ifugao, Kalinga and Mountain Province, as well as Baguio City, the regional center. The Cordillera Administrative Region encompasses most of the areas within the Cordillera...

    )
  • "B" - Region II (Cagayan Valley Region)
  • "C", "R" - Region III (Central Luzon Region
    Central Luzon
    Central Luzon , also known as Region III , is an administrative division or region of the Republic of the Philippines, primarily serve to organize the 7 provinces of the vast central plain of the island of Luzon , for administrative convenience...

    ), "R" are overflow series since the "C" series has been exhausted
  • "D", "V" - Regions IV-A (CALABARZON
    CALABARZON
    CALABARZON is one of the regions of the Philippines. It is also designated as Region IV-A and its regional center is Calamba City in Laguna...

    ) and IV-B (MIMAROPA), "V" are overflow series
  • "E" - Region V (Bicol Region
    Bicol Region
    The Bicol Region or Bicolandia is one of the 17 regions of the Philippines. Its regional center is Legazpi City...

    )
  • "F" - Region VI (Western Visayas
    Western Visayas
    Western Visayas, one of the regions of the Philippines, is designated as Region VI. It consists of six provinces; Aklan, Antique, Negros Occidental, Capiz, Guimaras and Iloilo and 16 cities making it the region with the highest number of cities. Iloilo City is the regional center...

     Region) 2011 - FGZ, FH(A-Z)
  • "G", "Y" - Region VII (Central Visayas
    Central Visayas
    Central Visayas, designated as Region VII, is a region of the Philippines located in the central part of the Visayas island group. It consists of four provinces—Bohol, Cebu, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor— and the highly urbanized cities of Cebu City, Lapu-Lapu City, and Mandaue City....

     Region), "Y" are overflow series
  • "H" - Region VIII (Eastern Visayas
    Eastern Visayas
    Eastern Visayas is one of the two regions of the Philippines having no land border with another region, MIMAROPA being the other, and is designated as Region VIII...

     Region)
  • "J" - Region IX (Zamboanga Peninsula
    Zamboanga Peninsula
    Zamboanga Peninsula / Western Mindanao is a peninsula and an administrative region in the Philippines. Designated as Region IX, the region consists of three provinces, namely, Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur, and Zamboanga Sibugay, its component cities of Dipolog, Dapitan, Pagadian, and...

    ) and ARMM
  • "K" - Regions X and XIII (Northern Mindanao
    Northern Mindanao
    Designated as Region X of the Philippines, Northern Mindanao is composed of five provinces and two cities classified as highly-urbanized, all occupying the north-central part of Mindanao island, and the island-province of Camiguin...

     and Caraga
    Caraga
    Caraga is an administrative region of the Philippines, on the northeastern portion of the island of Mindanao. It is the newest region in the Philippines and is also called Region XIII. The Caraga Region was created through Republic Act No. 7901 on February 25, 1995...

    )
  • "L" - Region XI (Davao Region
    Davao Region
    Davao Region / Southern Mindanao, designated as Region XI, is one of the regions of the Philippines, located on the southeastern portion of Mindanao. Davao Region consists of four provinces, namely: Compostela Valley, Davao del Norte, Davao Oriental, and Davao del Sur. The region encloses the Davao...

    )
  • "M" - Region XII (SOCCSKSARGEN
    SOCCSKSARGEN
    SOCCSKSARGEN is a region of the Philippines, located in central Mindanao, and is officially designated as Region XII. The name is an acronym that stands for the region's four provinces and one of its cities: South Cotabato, Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani and General Santos City...

    )
  • "N" - National Capital Region
    Metro Manila
    Metropolitan Manila , the National Capital Region , or simply Metro Manila, is the metropolitan region encompassing the City of Manila and its surrounding areas in the Philippines...

    , 1981–1982, 2009–2010
  • "P" - National Capital Region, 1982–1991, 2010–2011
  • "T" - National Capital Region, 1991–1995, 2011–present
  • "U" - National Capital Region, 1995–1997
  • "W" - National Capital Region, 1997–2001
  • "X" - National Capital Region, 2001–2005
  • "Z" - National Capital Region, 2005–2009

Plate Numbers in National Capital Region

1981 NA, NB, NC, ND, NE, NF, NG, NH, NJ, NK, NL, NM, NN, NP, NR, NS
1982 NT, PA
1983 PB, PC, PD
1984 PE, PF
1985 PG
1986 None
1987 PH, PJ
1988 PK, PL
1989 PM, PN, PP
1990 PR, PS, PT
1991 TA, TB, TC
1992 TD, TE, TF
1993 TG, TH, TJ, TK, TL
1994 TM, TN, TP, TR, TT
1995 UA(A-B), TS, UA(C-onwards), UB, UC, UD, UE, UF
1996 UG, UH, UJ, UK, UL, UM, UN
1997 UP, UR, US, UT, UU, WA, WB
1998 WC, WD, WE, WF
1999 WG, WH, WJ, WK, WL
2000 WM, WN, WP, WR
2001 WS, WT, XA, XB
2002 XC, XD, XE, XF, XG
2003 XH, XJ, XK, XL, XM
2004 XN, XP, XR, XS
2005 XT, ZA, ZB, ZC
2006 ZD, ZE, ZF, ZG
2007 ZH, ZJ, ZK, ZL
2008 ZM, ZN, ZP, ZR, ZS
2009 ZT, N-(I), N-(O), N-(Q), NI
2010 NO, NQ, P-(I), P-(O), P-(Q), PI
2011 PO, PQ, T-(I), T-(O)

I, O and Q are previously not used to avoid confusion with the numbers "1" & "0". But with the recent exhaustion of the "Z" series, they are already used by reverting to the old "N" series. A new serial scheme is implemented using these characters, instead of the third letter coming into series (e.g. after ZAA-999 has been reached, ZAB-100) the middle letter is the one being replaced (e.g. after NAI-999 series has been exhausted, NBI-100 will follow). After all the possible combinations with I, O and Q as third letter for the same starting letter have been used, I, O and Q are used as middle letters and the third letter is being replaced (e.g. After NZQ-999 has been used, NIA-100 will follow), if the reverted letter is exhausted (e.g. After PQZ-999 has been used, TAI-100 will follow)

e.g. NIA-100, PXO-296, NQZ-544

Provincial Plate Numbers

Private:
  • "1980's"

Region I/CAR - AA, AB
Region II - BA, BB
Region III - CA, CB, CC, CD, CE, CF, CG
Region IV - DA, DB, DC, DD, DE, DF, DG, DH
Region V - EA
Region VI - FA, FB, FC
Region VII - GA, GB, GC
Region VIII - HA
Region IX/ARMM - JA
Region X/XIII - KA, KB
Region XI - LA, LB
Region XII - MA
  • "early 1990's"

Region I/CAR - AB(V-W-X-Y-Z), AC
Region II - BB(L-M-N-P-R-S-T-U-V)
Region III - CH, CJ, CK, CL
Region IV - DJ, DK, DL, DM, DN
Region V - EA(V-W-X-Y-Z), EB(A-B-C)
Region VI - FC, FD
Region VII - GC(W-X-Y-Z), GD, GE
Region VIII - HA(M-N-P-R-S-T-U-V)
Region IX/ARMM - JA(W-X-Y-Z)
Region X/XIII - KB(M-N-P-R-S-T-U-V)
Region XI - LC
Region XII -MA(X-Y-Z), MB(A-B-C-D)
  • "mid to late 1990's"

Region I/CAR - AC(R-commons), AD, AE
Region II - BB(W-commons), BC
Region III - CM, CN, CP, CR
Region IV - DN(C-commons), DP, DR, DS, DT
Region V - EB(D-commons), EC
Region VI - FD(R-commons), FE
Region VII - GE(W-commons), GF, GG, GH, GJ, GK
Region VIII - HA(W-commons), HB
Region IX/ARMM - JB
Region X/XIII - KB(W-commons), KC
Region XI - LC(R-commons), LD
Region XII - MB(E-commons)
  • "2000 - 2005"


Motorcycle plate numbers - MC(NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION)

Private:
  • "1980's" - NA, NB, NC, ND, NE, NF, NG, NH, NJ, NK, NL, NM, NN, NP
  • "early 1990's" - NR, NS, NT, NU, PA, PB, PC, PD, PE, PF, PG, PH, TA, TB, TC,
  • "mid to late 1990's" - PJ, PK, PL, PM, PN, PP, PR, PS, PT, PU, RD, TE, TF, TG, TH, TJ, TK, TL, TM, TN, TP, TR, TS, TT, TU
  • "2000 - 2005" - UA, UB, UC, UD, UE, OF, UG, UH, UI, UJ, UK, UL, UM, UN, UP, UQ, UR, US, UT, UU, WA, WB, WC, WD, WE, WF, WG, WH, WI, WJ, WK, WL, WM, WN, WO, XI, XO, XQ
  • "2006" - ZA, ZB, ZC, ZD, ZE, ZF, ZG, ZH, ZJ, ZK, ZL, ZM, ZN, ZP, ZR, ZS, ZT

INVERTED PLATES(Provincial): DA, DB, DC, DD, DE, DF, as same a "C"
Metro Manila : NA up to NH
  • "2007" - Inverted motorcycle plates - NI to NU, DG TO DI
  • "2008" - PA to PL, DJ to DR
  • "2009" - PM to PU, DS to DU, WA to WC
  • "2010" - TA to TU, UA to present, WD to present


Motor Tricycle(TC)
  • "1980's" - NV, NW, NX, NY, NZ, DV, DW, DX, DY, DZ, CV, CW, CX, CY, CZ
  • "early 1990s" - PV, PW, TV, VV, VW, VX, VY, VZ
  • "MID 1990S" - PX, TW, TY, TZ, VZ, VU
  • "late 1990's" - PY, PZ, VT, VS, VR, VP, VN, VM, VL, VK
  • "2000 - 2005" - XA, XB, XC, XD, XE, XF, XG, WP, WR, WS, UV, UW, UX
  • "2006" - WU, XH, XJ, XK, XL, XM, XN
  • "2007" - WV, WW, XP, XR, XS, XT, XU
  • "2008" - WX, WY, WZ, XV, XW, XX, XY, XZ
  • "2009" - QA to QZ (including QI, QO, QQ & QU)

Inverted Motor Tricycle licensed plates(TC)
  • "2010" - DV, CV, CW
  • "2011" - DW, CX

Special designation

  • "S" - Government
  • "Q" - Public Utility Motorized Tricycles
  • "O", "I" - Private Motorcycles
  • "P", "T", "U" - Public utility vehicles (they usually begin with these letters but not always). They always (since 1999) have "V", "W", "X", or "Y" in the middle of the letter block (LLL).

e.g. PWM 757

Personalized plates

A motorist who would like to have personalized plates can have any letter combination he fancies upon three conditions:
  1. It is unique i.e., the plate does not have a registered duplicate anywhere else in the Philippines
    Philippines
    The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

    .
  2. The plate should not have the same format as government vehicles.
  3. The motorist can afford to pay its PHP
    Philippine peso
    The peso is the currency of the Philippines. It is subdivided into 100 centavos . Before 1967, the language used on the banknotes and coins was English and so "peso" was the name used...

     25,000 ($500+) price tag.


Optional motor vehicle special plates (OMVSP)

A project of the Land Transportation Office since 2004, these plates are in the form of LLL DD.
e.g. FPJ-22
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