Vehicle registration plates of Iraq

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The Iraqi vehicle registration plate is a license plate used for official identification purposes for motor vehicles in Iraq.

Design and format[]

Iraq has two official license plate formats. There's one format followed in the Kurdistan Region, and there's another format followed in the rest of Iraq.

Kurdistan Region[]

The current format used in the Kurdistan Region was adopted in 1988 by all of Iraq. However, since from the year 1992, the Kurdistan Region has had de facto, and from the year 2005, also constitutionally-recognized autonomy, the license format changes that affected the rest of Iraq, were not enforced in the Kurdistan Region. This region still uses the format from 1988.

The license plate is divided in half with a horizontal line. On the bottom right quarter, the name of the country "Al-Iraq" in Arabic is written. On the bottom left quarter, the name of the province in Arabic. On the top of the license plate, there's the registration number. Currently, the provinces of Erbil and Sulaymaniyah use 6-digit numbers, whereas the province of Dohuk uses 5-digit numbers. No information exists as of yet on the province of Halabja

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  Dohuk Governorate

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  Erbil Governorate

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  Sulaymaniyah Governorate

The different classes of the license plates are differentiated by the colour of their background. Besides that, there are no texts or different number or letter on each different class of each plate to differentiate them.

Colour	Image	Type
Black on White		Private vehicle
White on Red		Vehicle for hire, bus, taxi
Black on Yellow		Trade, e.g. trucks, tractors, cranes
White on Blue		Law Enforcement
Golden on Dark Green		Military
Red on White		Temporary

Rest of Iraq[]

1988-2001[]

The other 15 provinces of Iraq had the same format as the Kurdistan Region until the year 2001.

2001-2008[]

In 2001, the shape and dimensions of the license plates changed, while the general format remained the same. The length of the plate was increased, while its width was reduced. The font of the plate was also changed. The name of the country "Al-Iraq", and the name of the province were moved to the left hand side of the license plate, with the country name above the province name. The colouring and classifications of the new license plates remained unchanged.

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  2001-2008 Format Private Vehicle Plate

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  2001-2008 Format with 335x155mm Dimensions

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  2001-2008 Format Commercial Truck Plate

2008-[]

The new license plate format was adopted on 2008. The license plate is rectangular in shape and made of aluminum, with a dimension of 335x155 mm. On the left side, the word "Iraq" appears in English, written vertically. There is a horizontal line that divides the license plate into two sections. In the narrower bottom section, the name of the Province is written, plus the classification of the license plate in Arabic. In the top, the registration code is written, large font in Arabic, and underneath it, smaller font in Latin. The license plate now consists of a letter, and a 5-digit numbers.

Colour	Image	Type	Type in Arabic
White		Private vehicle	خصوصي
		Motorcycle	دراجة
Red		Vehicle for hire, bus, taxi	اجرة
Blue		Governmental No Province name	حكومية
Yellow		Trade, e.g. trucks, tractors, cranes	حمل
Orange		Temporary awaiting Customs Clearance No Province Name	ادخال كمرکي مؤقت
Green		Agricultural	زراعي
		Construction	إنشائية
Black		ICTS	جهاز مكافحة الارهاب

Gallery[]

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  Iraqi private vehicle registration plate. (Erbil Province)

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  vehicle for hire. (Al Anbar Province)

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  A yellow truck's plate. (Erbil Province)

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  License plate for motorcycles(Erbil Province)

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  License plate used by police in Iraqi Kurdistan

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  Temporary plates. (Erbil Province)