Spanish license plates explained: how to read them and tell a car's year
A Spanish number plate is not random: it tells you roughly when the car was first registered in Spain, and, on older cars, where. Here is how to read one, the table of letters by year, the special plates you will see on the road and what a plate cannot tell you.
The current format
Every car registered in Spain since 18 September 2000 has a plate with four numbers followed by three letters, for example 1234 BCD. On the left there is the blue European Union band with the circle of stars and the letter E for España.
- Issued in order, nationwide. There is no regional code: a car from Madrid and one from Cádiz registered on the same day get consecutive plates.
- Only 20 letters. The vowels (A, E, I, O, U), Ñ and Q are left out, so the letters never spell words or look like numbers.
- The numbers run first. Within each set of three letters, the numbers go from 0000 to 9999; then the last letter moves on (BBB, BBC, BBD…).
A plate stays with the car for its whole life in Spain, through every change of owner. It only changes in rare cases, such as a car that was deregistered and is later registered again.
How to tell a car's year from its plate
Because plates are issued in strict order, the first letter places the car in a period. This table gives the dates each first letter was in use, from our own records of the plates issued in Spain:
| Plates starting with | From | To |
|---|---|---|
| E 0000 B·· | September 2000 | October 2002 |
| E 0000 C·· | October 2002 | September 2004 |
| E 0000 D·· | September 2004 | May 2006 |
| E 0000 F·· | May 2006 | February 2008 |
| E 0000 G·· | February 2008 | December 2010 |
| E 0000 H·· | December 2010 | November 2014 |
| E 0000 J·· | November 2014 | June 2017 |
| E 0000 K·· | June 2017 | September 2019 |
| E 0000 L·· | September 2019 | August 2022 |
| E 0000 M·· | September 2022 | April 2025 |
| E 0000 N·· | April 2025 | today |
Two things to keep in mind:
- It is the date of the first registration in Spain, not the year the car was built. A car can sit at a dealer for months, and an imported car gets a new Spanish plate when it is registered here, years after it was first sold abroad.
- The pace changes with the market. In good years the letters move faster, so a first letter does not always cover the same number of years.
For a closer estimate from the full plate, use our free registration date tool (in Spanish), or see the latest plate issued in Spain.
Old provincial plates (before 2000)
Until September 2000, a plate began with the letters of the province where the car was registered, followed by numbers and a series of letters: for example M-1234-AB. These are the codes of the 52 provinces:
A few codes changed over the years: Girona went from GE to GI, Ourense from OR to OU and the Balearic Islands from PM to IB, so older cars from those provinces can carry the earlier code.
These plates are still valid and nobody has to change them, so you will see plenty on older cars. If a car has one, it was first registered in Spain before September 2000. The province is where it was registered then, not necessarily where it is today.
Special plates: mopeds, trailers, historic cars and machinery
Not every plate follows the ordinary pattern. A letter in front of the numbers, and in some cases the colour of the plate, tell you what kind of vehicle it is. These are the formats the Spanish vehicle regulations (Reglamento General de Vehículos) set out:
Mopeds (ciclomotores): yellow plate with black characters, in three rows: the letter C and the first digit, the other three digits, and three letters. Mopeds are issued in their own sequence.
Trailers and semi-trailers: red plate with black characters, the letter R, four numbers and three letters. A trailer carries its own plate, different from the car that tows it.
Historic vehicles: white plate with black characters starting with H. A car gets it once it has been officially recognised as a historic vehicle.
Special vehicles such as farm and construction machinery: white plate with red characters, E and four numbers on top and three letters below.
Drawings simplified to show the format and colours.
On the road you will also see temporary plates, trade plates used by dealers and workshops to move unregistered cars, and diplomatic and consular plates, each with its own colours. The rules also give taxis and private-hire cars with up to nine seats a blue rear plate with white characters.
What a plate does not tell you
The plate gives you the period. It does not tell you:
- the exact date of first registration,
- how many owners the car has had,
- whether it has liens, a seizure or a finance company's retention of title,
- its ITV (MOT) history and the mileage recorded at each inspection,
- whether it is deregistered or reported stolen.
All of that is in the DGT register, and you get it from the plate alone with the official DGT vehicle report, in English, in seconds. If you are about to buy, read our guide to buying a used car in Spain as well.
Get the official DGT report in English
Owners, ITV (MOT) history with mileage, liens and seizures of any vehicle registered in Spain. In your inbox in seconds.
Get the report — €19.97Frequently asked questions
What do Spanish license plates look like?
Since 18 September 2000, four numbers followed by three letters, for example 1234 BCD, on a white plate with the blue EU band and the letter E on the left. Plates are issued in order across the whole of Spain, so they say nothing about the region.
How can I tell how old a Spanish car is from its plate?
By the letters: they advance in order, starting at BBB in 2000, so the first letter tells you the period. B means 2000-2002, H means 2010-2014, L means 2019-2022. The table on this page gives the dates of every first letter.
Why do Spanish plates have no vowels?
Vowels, Ñ and Q are left out so that the letters never spell words and are not confused with numbers. That leaves 20 letters.
Do Spanish plates show the region the car is from?
Not since September 2000. Older plates started with the letters of the province where the car was registered, such as M for Madrid or B for Barcelona, and they are still valid.
What do Spanish moped plates look like?
Mopeds (ciclomotores) carry a small yellow plate with black characters in three rows: the letter C and the first digit, the other three digits, and three letters. Trailers have a red plate starting with R, historic vehicles a white one starting with H.
How do I find the exact registration date of a Spanish car?
The plate only gives the period. The exact first registration date, every owner, the ITV (MOT) history with mileage and any liens are in the official DGT report, which InfoCoche emails in English in seconds for €19.97.