Number plates

Since 2004, Ukraine has used a license plate format defined by the national standard DSTU 4278:2004 “Vehicle License Plates.” The format includes eight characters: two letters for the region code, four digits for the registration number, and two additional letters for the serial code. Only Ukrainian letters that visually match their Latin counterparts are allowed: A, B, C, E, H, I, K, M, O, P, T, and X.

In 2013, changes were made to the regional coding system to expand the number of available combinations. The first letters of the region codes were supplemented with the letters K, H, and I. As a result, new regional codes include combinations such as KA, KB, KS, and so on.

The structure of a license plate consists of the following elements:

• The first two letters — represent the region where the vehicle is registered.
• Four digits — a unique registration number.
• The last two letters — a serial code formed using the permitted Ukrainian letters.

What do the last 2 letters on a Ukrainian license plate mean?

Different types of vehicles follow specific rules for forming these serial codes:

• For cars, the series starts from the beginning of the alphabet: AA, AB, AC, AI, and so on.
• For trailers and semi-trailers, the series is formed from the end of the alphabet: XX, XT, XR, etc.

Since 2020, in connection with the registration of electric vehicles, new license plates have been introduced that contain Latin letters Z and Y in the right part of the combination: ZA, ZB, ZC, ZD, ZE, ZF, ZG, ZH, ZI, ZJ, ZK, ZL, ZV, ZN, ZO, ZP, ZR, ZS, ZT, ZU, ZV, ZW, ZY, ZZ, as well as YA, YB, YC, YD, YE, YF, YG, YH, YI, YJ, YK, YL, YV, YN, YO, YP, YR, YS, YT, YU, YV, YW, YY, YZ.

• License plates were stolen - you need to report to the police and order duplicate numbers
• The license plate was damaged as a result of an accident
• Black paint peeling off, license plate unreadable. As a rule, this happens from frequent car washing
• A white film will peel off on license plates - restoration is possible only by making a duplicate of the license plate