In Japan, the national government issues vehicle registration plates for motor vehicles through the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Land Transportation Offices nationwide. However, the local municipality rather than the national government registers certain vehicles with small engine displacements.

The number on the top line is a vehicle class code which begins with a 0 through 9 to indicate specific vehicle classification. This is signified by the length, width and height of the vehicle as well as engine displacement. Broadly speaking, passenger automobiles with engine displacements at or smaller than 2000 cc receive 5-series plates, while passenger automobiles with engine displacements larger than 2,000 cc (120 cu in) or more receive 3-series license plates.

Regular Japanese vehicle registration plate
Foreign diplomatic plate with 外
Foreign diplomatic plate with encircled 外

Official vehicles of the Imperial household are exempt from the requirement to display such plates. Official vehicles of the Self-Defense Forces and the foreign diplomats are required to display other plates.

Night image of jikō-shiki (literally "character-glowing type", which means illuminated letters) plate, as might be issued in Osaka

The plates are installed on both the front and rear of the vehicle, with the rear plate permanently attached to the vehicle with a prefecture seal completely covering one of the attaching plate bolts. The plate is only removed when the vehicle is sold secondhand to someone from a different prefecture, has reached the end of service and has been sold for scrap, or exported. New vehicles are not delivered to the purchaser until the plates have been attached at the dealership.

Since November 1, 1970, a "jikō-shiki" (字光式) plate has been offered for private vehicles at the owner's request. The green characters on this type of plate are replaced with molded green plastic that can be illuminated from behind the plate. From May 19, 1998, specific numbers can also be requested if the numbers are not already in use. From 2010, these are also available in blue version of vehicle registration plates started in 1973.

The international vehicle registration code for Japan is J.

Appearance

Class Engine (cc displacement) Plate color Text color Plate dimensions
Private vehicle >660 White Green Medium or large
Commercial vehicle >660 Green White Medium or large
Lightweight private (kei car) <660 Yellow Black Medium
Lightweight commercial <660 Black Yellow Medium
Microcar 0–49 Sky Blue* Blue Extra small
2 wheel 0–49 White* Blue Extra small
2 wheel 50–89 Yellow* Blue Extra small
2 wheel 90–124 Pink* Blue Extra small
2 wheel 125–249 White Green Small
2 wheel ≥250 White, green border Green Small

* These plates are issued by municipal governments.

Large
44x22 cm (17.3x8.7 inch)
(for over 8 tons vehicle, or capacity of 30 people or more)
Medium
33x16.5 cm (13x6.5 inch)
Small
23x12.5 cm (9x4.9 inch)
Extra small
about 20x10 cm (7.8x3.9 inch)
(differs according to each municipality)

Until 31 December 1974, kei cars had small green and white license plates. After this date, they received medium plates, now in black and yellow to distinguish them from regular cars.

Private vehicles Commercial vehicles
Compact or Large vehicles and motorbikes (displacements <250 cm³)
Kei car
2-wheeled vehicle ≥250 cm³

Please note that, to avoid any claims of invasion of privacy, the artist of these pictures has deliberately selected an invalid combination of characters.

The illustration shows what a plate might look like. The top line contains the name of the issuing office (Tama, shown, is in Tokyo) and a vehicle class code. The bottom line contains a hiragana character and a four-digit serial number divided into two groups of two digits separated by a hyphen. Any leading zeroes are replaced by centered dots.

White plates can have the following hiragana (bold indicates rental vehicle characters):

さすせそたちつてとなにぬねのはひふほまみむめもやゆよらりるろれわ

Green plates can have the following hiragana:

あいうえかきくけこを

Some characters, including ones with a dakuten or a handakuten, cannot be used on any plates, including the yellow and black ones:

ばだがぱざびぢぎぴじぶづぐぷずべでげペぜぼどごぽぞゑゐん

A license plate in Japan thus follows this format: KK?*H##-## (e.g., 足立500き21-41), where KK is the name of the issuing office in kanji, H is a hiragana, ? is a 5 for vehicles less than 2000 cc and a 3 for vehicles greater than 2000 cc (other numbers are less common—1 for large trucks, 2 for buses, etc.[1]), * is a number from 0 to 99 (pre-1971 license plates will omit this), and # is a number from 0* to 9 (*leading zeroes are replaced by centered dots).

Special use plates

Plate of the Imperial House of Japan only attached when the Emperor himself or the Empress is in the car
U.S. forces license plate of Okinawa

Vehicles owned by personnel with the United States military in Japan under the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) have a "Y" on white plates, or an "A" on yellow plates, where the hiragana character is normally displayed. Earlier versions of the SOFA license plate displayed the letters "K", "M", "G", "H" and "E". These letters indicated the car was imported into Japan under SOFA and was left-hand drive. Today, cars with an "E" indicate that Japanese sales tax has not been paid and the vehicle will not remain in Japan when the military member departs. Since the 1980s, military commands have discouraged servicemembers assigned to Japan from shipping their vehicles from the U.S. into the country, so this is rarely seen. Military members who retire in Japan use the hiragana "よ". Many opt to purchase second-hand domestic vehicles through used car dealers off-base, and from other servicemembers departing Japan at on-base "lemon lots".[2]

The official imperial cars have a special number plate with the kanji 皇 and a one-digit number below.

Out of country plates

NHK announced in early 2009 that prefectures may now choose their own color scheme and possibly pattern. This is already being done with the motorcycle plates for Matsuyama, Ehime.

Because the Japanese writing system, particularly the kana, is unique to Japan, standard-issue Japanese license plates are considered unacceptable for international travel. If motorists wish to take their vehicles abroad with them, the Ministry of Transport will issue them with plates with the hiragana and kanji scripts replaced by Roman letters. The hiragana prefix is replaced by a Kunrei-shiki romanization of that character. The kanji prefecture/office code is replaced by a two- or three-letter abbreviation, the first two letters representing the prefecture, the third (if present) representing the office within the prefecture. All the numerical portions of the plate remain the same.

Using the example given above, the plate (足立50Kき21-41) would then read TKA 50K KI 21-41 (TKA for Tokyo Adachi).

Vehicle class code system

In addition to plate size and color, Japanese plates since 1962 have identified the vehicle type (signified by length, width and height as well as engine displacement) by use of a vehicle class code signified by a number on the top line of the plate for all vehicles with three or more wheels.[3] The vehicle class code system is not widely understood outside of Japan, and as a result, Japanese vehicles displaying "vanity" Japanese license plates at overseas shows and events are often unwittingly misrepresented.

Motorbikes and other two wheeled vehicles do not use this system.

In 1967, double digit vehicle codes were introduced for the first time, once all previous possible combinations were used. For example, 3 would become 33, and then 34, 35, etc. This began in October 1967 in the more populous prefectures initially for the most common vehicle classes such as 3 and 5. In April 1971 all vehicle codes become double digit across the country. Double digit codes finally stopped being issued in 1999.

By the early 1970s, three wheeled passenger cars were no longer in production and some prefectures began to issue the double digit codes 77, 78 and 79 as an 'overflow series' for passenger cars 2000cc and under. This practice stopped in 1999.

By May 1998, some prefectures were beginning to run out of all possible combinations of double digit vehicle codes for the most common classes (notably 599 and 799) and began issuing triple digit vehicle codes.

1962-71 1967-99 1998- Description
1 11, 1x 1xx Truck with displacement larger than 2000cc (petrol vehicles only), and/or longer than 4.7 metres, narrower than 1.7 metres, higher than 2 metres
2 22, 2x 2xx Small to medium bus
3 33, 3x 3xx Passenger car with displacement larger than 2000cc, or exceeding length and width regulations for compact cars
4 44 through 49 4xx Truck, van, or station wagon with displacement from 660cc to 2000cc (petrol vehicles only), and/or shorter than 4.7 metres, narrower than 1.7 metres, lower than 2 metres
5 55, 5x 5xx Passenger car with displacement from 660cc to 2000cc and shorter than 4.7 metres, narrower than 1.7 metres
6 66, 6x Three wheeled truck with displacement less than 360cc
7 Three wheeled passenger car
77, 7x Passenger car with displacement from 660cc to 2000cc and shorter than 4.7 metres, narrower than 1.7 metres ('overflow' series)
8 88, 8x 800 Special vehicle requiring yearly inspection with displacement greater than 660cc
9 99 900 Tractor or forklift
0 00 000 Construction equipment

Transportation offices and markings

In 2006, several new location names, known as Gotōchi (ご当地, local place) numbers, were approved by the MLIT for places that wanted to increase their recognition for purposes such as tourism. Criteria included the need for 100,000 vehicles in the area and the avoidance of an imbalance in the prefecture. The new locations began appearing in 2006 on plates for vehicles registered in certain specific cities, towns and villages in or near the places marked below in green.

Issuing office Marking Former markings
Prefecture Municipality Jpn Transliteration Intl
AichiKomaki尾張小牧Owari-KomakiACO
一宮IchinomiyaACI
春日井KasugaiACK
Nagoya名古屋NagoyaACN愛 (AC)
Toyohashi豊橋ToyohashiACT
Toyota三河MikawaACM
岡崎OkazakiACZ
豊田ToyotaACY
AkitaAkita秋田AkitaATA秋 (AT)
AomoriAomori青森AomoriAMA青 (AM)
Hachinohe八戸HachinoheAMH
ChibaChiba千葉ChibaCBC千 (CB)
成田NaritaCBT
Funabashi習志野NarashinoCBN
Noda野田NodaCBD
KashiwaCBK
Sodegaura袖ヶ浦SodegauraCBS
EhimeMatsuyama愛媛EhimeEH
FukuiFukui福井FukuiFI
FukuokaFukuoka福岡FukuokaFOF福 (FO)
Iizuka筑豊ChikuhōFOC
Kitakyushu北九州KitakyūshūFOK
Kurume久留米KurumeFOR
FukushimaFukushima福島FukushimaFS
会津AizuFSA
郡山KōriyamaFSK
IwakiいわきIwakiFSI
GifuGifu岐阜GifuGFG岐 (GF)
Takayama飛騨HidaGFH
GunmaMaebashi群馬GunmaGMG群 (GM)
前橋MaebashiGMM
高崎TakasakiGMT
HiroshimaFukuyama福山FukuyamaHSF
Hiroshima広島HiroshimaHSH広 (HS)
HokkaidōAsahikawa旭川AsahikawaAKA旭 (AK)
Hakodate函館HakodateHDH函 (HD)
Kitami北見KitamiKIK北 (KI)
Kushiro釧路KushiroKRK釧 (KR)
Muroran室蘭MuroranMRM室 (MR)
Obihiro帯広ObihiroOHO帯 (OH)
Sapporo札幌SapporoSPS札 (SP)
HyōgoHimeji姫路HimejiHGH
Kobe神戸KōbeHGK兵 (HG)
IbarakiMito水戸MitoIGM茨城 (IGI), 茨 (IG)
Tsuchiura土浦TsuchiuraIGT
つくばTsukubaIGK
IshikawaKanazawa石川IshikawaIKI石 (IK)
金沢KanazawaIKK
IwateYahaba岩手IwateITI岩 (IT)
平泉HiraizumiITH
盛岡MoriokaITM
KagawaTakamatsu香川KagawaKAK香 (KA)
KagoshimaKagoshima鹿児島KagoshimaKOK鹿 (KO)
奄美AmamiKOA
KanagawaAikawa相模SagamiKNS
Hiratsuka湘南ShōnanKNN
Kawasaki川崎KawasakiKNK
Yokohama横浜YokohamaKNY神 (KN)
KōchiKōchi高知KōchiKCK高 (KC)
KumamotoKumamoto熊本KumamotoKUK熊 (KU)
KyotoKyoto京都KyōtoKTK京 (KT)
MieTsu三重MieMEM三 (ME)
鈴鹿SuzukaMES
MiyagiSendai宮城MiyagiMGM宮 (MG)
仙台SendaiMGS
MiyazakiMiyazaki宮崎MiyazakiMZ
NaganoMatsumoto松本MatsumotoNNM
諏訪SuwaNNS
Nagano長野NaganoNNN長 (NN)
NagasakiNagasaki長崎NagasakiNS
Tsushima
Sasebo佐世保SaseboNSS
NaraYamatokōriyama奈良NaraNRN奈 (NR)
NiigataNagaoka長岡NagaokaNGO
Niigata新潟NiigataNGN新 (NG)
ŌitaŌita大分ŌitaOT
OkayamaOkayama岡山OkayamaOYO岡 (OY)
倉敷KurashikiOYK
OkinawaIshigaki沖縄OkinawaONO沖 (ON)
Miyakojima
Urasoe
OsakaIzumi和泉IzumiOSZ泉 (OSI)
SakaiOSS
Neyagawa大阪ŌsakaOSO大 (OS)
OsakaなにわNaniwaOSN
SagaSaga佐賀SagaSAS佐 (SA)
SaitamaKasukabe春日部KasukabeSTB
越谷KoshigayaSTY
Kumagaya熊谷KumagayaSTK
Saitama大宮ŌmiyaSTO埼玉 (STS), 埼 (ST)
川口KawaguchiSTW
Tokorozawa所沢TokorozawaSTT
川越KawagoeSTG
ShigaMoriyama滋賀ShigaSIS滋 (SI)
ShimaneShimane島根ShimaneSN嶋 (SM)
ShizuokaHamamatsu浜松HamamatsuSZH
Numazu沼津NumazuSZN
富士山FujisanSZF
伊豆IzuSZI
Shizuoka静岡ShizuokaSZS静 (SZ)
TochigiSano栃木TochigiTCK
Utsunomiya宇都宮UtsunomiyaTGU栃木 (TGT), 栃 (TG)
那須NasuTGN
TokushimaTokushima徳島TokushimaTST徳 (TS)
TokyoAdachi足立AdachiTKA足 (TOA)
Hachiōji八王子HachiōjiTKH
Kunitachi多摩TamaTKT多 (TOT)
Nerima練馬NerimaTKN練 (TON)
杉並SuginamiTKM
Shinagawa品川Shinagawa, OgasawaraTKS品 (TOS)
世田谷SetagayaTKG
TottoriTottori鳥取TottoriTTT鳥 (TT)
ToyamaToyama富山ToyamaTYT富 (TY)
WakayamaWakayama和歌山WakayamaWKW和 (WK)
YamagataMikawa庄内ShōnaiYAS
Yamagata山形YamagataYA
YamaguchiYamaguchi山口YamaguchiYUY山 (YU)
下関ShimonosekiYUS
YamanashiFuefuki山梨YamanashiYN
富士山FujisanYNF

See also

References

  1. Vehicle Code System since 1962 - Japanese License Plates Archived 2006-11-21 at the Wayback Machine.
  2. How to Purchase and Register a Vehicle Archived 2008-07-15 at the Wayback Machine, Web site of the USS Fitzgerald (DDG-62).
  3. "Vehicle Code System since 1962 - Japanese License Plates". 2006-11-21. Archived from the original on 2006-11-21. Retrieved 2018-04-24.
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