What Your Number Plate's Area Code Means

The first two letters of a current-style UK registration, such as the BD in BD51 SMR, are its memory tag. They show where in the country the vehicle was first registered. This guide explains how to read a memory tag and lists every one, taken from the DVLA's own leaflet INF104. It also explains how area codes worked on older registrations.

How do you read a current-style registration?

Registrations issued since 1 September 2001 have three parts:

Part	Example in BD51 SMR	What it tells you
Memory tag	BD	The first letter is the region and the second letter the DVLA office area where the vehicle was first registered
Age identifier	51	When the vehicle was first registered, in six-month periods
Random letters	SMR	Three letters chosen at random to make the registration unique

So BD51 SMR is a Birmingham registration issued between September 2001 and February 2002. To decode the age identifier, see what year is my registration?

What does each memory tag mean?

The list below is the DVLA's, as published in leaflet INF104. Where a range is shown, such as BA–BY, it covers every second letter from A to Y except I and Q.

First letter	Region	DVLA office area	Memory tags
A	Anglia	Peterborough	AA AB AC AD AE AF AG AH AJ AK AL AM AN
		Norwich	AO AP AR AS AT AU
		Ipswich	AV AW AX AY
B	Birmingham	Birmingham	BA–BY
C	Cymru (Wales)	Cardiff	CA CB CC CD CE CF CG CH CJ CK CL CM CN CO
		Swansea	CP CR CS CT CU CV
		Bangor	CW CX CY
D	Deeside to Shrewsbury	Chester	DA DB DC DD DE DF DG DH DJ DK
		Shrewsbury	DL DM DN DO DP DR DS DT DU DV DW DX DY
E	Essex	Chelmsford	EA–EY
F	Forest and Fens	Nottingham	FA FB FC FD FE FF FG FH FJ FK FL FM FN FP
		Lincoln	FR FS FT FV FW FX FY
G	Garden of England	Maidstone	GA GB GC GD GE GF GG GH GJ GK GL GM GN GO
		Brighton	GP GR GS GT GU GV GW GX GY
H	Hampshire and Dorset	Bournemouth	HA HB HC HD HE HF HG HH HJ
		Portsmouth	HK HL HM HN HO HP HR HS HT HU HV HW HX HY (HW is used only for Isle of Wight residents)
K	No regional name	Borehamwood	KA KB KC KD KE KF KG KH KJ KK KL
		Northampton	KM KN KO KP KR KS KT KU KV KW KX KY
L	London	Wimbledon	LA LB LC LD LE LF LG LH LJ
		Borehamwood	LK LL LM LN LO LP LR LS LT
		Sidcup	LU LV LW LX LY
M	Manchester and Merseyside	Manchester	MA–MY (MN and MAN are reserved for the Isle of Man)
N	North	Newcastle	NA NB NC ND NE NG NH NJ NK NL NM NN NO
		Stockton	NP NR NS NT NU NV NW NX NY
O	Oxford	Oxford	OA–OY
P	Preston	Preston	PA PB PC PD PE PF PG PH PJ PK PL PM PN PO PP PR PS PT
		Carlisle	PU PV PW PX PY
R	Reading	Theale	RA–RY
S	Scotland	Glasgow	SA SB SC SD SE SF SG SH SJ
		Edinburgh	SK SL SM SN SO
		Dundee	SP SR SS ST
		Aberdeen	SU SV SW
		Inverness	SX SY
V	Severn Valley	Worcester	VA–VY
W	West of England	Exeter	WA WB WC WD WE WF WG WH WJ
		Truro	WK WL
		Bristol	WM WN WO WP WR WS WT WU WV WW WX WY
Y	Yorkshire	Leeds	YA YB YC YD YE YF YG YH YJ YK YL
		Sheffield	YM YN YO YP YR YS YT YV
		Beverley	YU YW YX YY

Source: DVLA leaflet INF104, "Vehicle registration numbers and number plates".

Why are some letters never used?

The DVLA states that it does not use I, Q or Z in memory tags. Z is used only among the three random letters, and existing Q registrations are still issued separately. Seven letters are also not used as a region's first letter: I, J, Q, T, U, X and Z.

Does the memory tag show where the owner lives?

No. It shows where the vehicle was first registered. The DVLA explains that a registration is given to the vehicle, not the keeper, and stays with it unless it is changed, so a car with a London memory tag can spend its whole life in Scotland. The memory tag tells you nothing about the current owner.

How did area codes work before 2001?

Older registrations also contain an area code, but it was issued by local councils rather than DVLA regions:

• Dateless registrations from 1903 onwards used a one- or two-letter code for each council, followed by a number. Gloucestershire, for example, used AD, DD, DF and DG, and the city of Gloucester used FH.
• When a council needed more registrations, a third letter was added in front, as in AAD 123. In a three-letter group, it is the last two letters that identify the area.
• Suffix and prefix registrations kept the same council codes in their three-letter group, alongside the year letter.

Some codes were reallocated between councils over the decades, so the area can depend on the year a registration was issued. Search any registration on its Timeline to see its documented history.

Can a private plate use any memory tag?

Yes. A current-style private registration can go on a vehicle registered anywhere in the UK, whatever its memory tag says. The age rule still applies to the age identifier.

Frequently asked questions

What does a Northern Irish registration's area code mean?

Northern Irish registrations use their own codes containing I or Z. See Northern Irish number plates.

Why does my car have a memory tag from an area I've never lived in?

Because the tag shows where the vehicle was first registered, not where any of its keepers lived.

Are some memory tags worth more?

Value depends on the whole registration. A memory tag matters most when it helps the registration read as initials, a name or a word.