Until July 2014, Northern Ireland's system was administered by the Driver and Vehicle Agency (DVA) in Coleraine, which had the same status as the DVLA.

[8] Characters on number plates purchased from 1 September 2001 do not use a specific named typeface, but must use what is known as the "prescribed font" within legislation set out in The Road Vehicles (Display of Registration Marks) Regulations 2001.

However, the wording in the legislation designates that slight variations in typeface are legal providing they are "substantially similar" to the prescribed font.

[3]When the UK was a member state of the European Union, it was permissible (but never mandatory) to display number plates conforming to the common EU format introduced by Council Regulation (EC) No 2411/98, with a blue strip (in order to construct the background colour of the EU / Council flag) on the left side of the plate with the Flag of Europe (yellow or gold circle of stars) above the international vehicle registration code of the member state (GB).

After this, GB Europlates must be replaced by a number plate that features the UK sign in order to be valid as a national identifier.

From 8 December 2020, vehicles with a Zero Emission value are allowed to display a green band on the left hand side of the plate, where the country identifier would usually sit.

This used the scheme introduced in 1932, of a three-letter combination followed by a sequence number from 1 to 999, but also added a letter suffix, which initially changed on 1 January each year.

[58] Most other areas followed suit during 1964, but some chose to stick to their own schemes up until 1 January 1965, when the letter suffix was made compulsory.

The available range was then A21 AAA to Y999 YYY, the numbers 1–20 being held back for the government's proposed, and later implemented, DVLA select registration sales scheme.

It was decided to research a system that would be easier for crash or vehicle related crime witnesses to remember and clearer to read, yet still fit within a normal standard plate size.

These reversed sequences were completed quickly, leading to the introduction of the current "AXX 1234" format in January 1966, where "XX" is the county code and "A" is a serial letter.

[69] As popularity grows, the prices reached for the most expensive plates have increased with many motorists attracted by the investment potential as well as vanity.

In the UK, sales of private plates via the Driver & Vehicle Licensing Agency exceeded £100 million per annum for the first time in 2016.

The registration RAC3R is a suffix style plate that was issued in 1976, the same year British racing driver James Hunt won the Formula One World Championship.

Subsequently, due to the number of issued trade plates in the UK, the five-digit numerical only format was replaced before reaching its maximum limit of ‘99999’, with a leading letter in place of the first digit.

Since 2019, certain trailers that are being used internationally must be registered with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) and display a unique registration number.

This applies to: These trailers only need to be registered if they are travelling through a country abroad that has signed up to the 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Traffic.

[91] Since 1979 cars operated by foreign embassies, high commissions, consulates and international organisations are issued unique vehicle registration marks.

Eligible officials are required to be accredited by the Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) who liaise with Specialist Registrations at the Driver & Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) for issuance.

Many vintage and classic cars no longer bear their original index marks due to the owners being offered high premiums for the desirable registrations.

[citation needed] Touring coaches often operate in other parts of the UK with registration numbers originally issued in Northern Ireland.

KKK, ASS, GOD, BUM, SEX and also COVID related number plates such as ‘CO22 ONA’, ‘CO22 RNA’, and ‘CO22 VD?’ were all withdrawn.

In the days before the Internet, dealers would advertise lists of plates in publications such as The Sunday Times, Exchange and Mart and Auto Trader.

A brief definition of labels used: a "private number plate" would generally be one that is not personal to the user, an example would be XX11 or OO 11 (although unlikely initials, they might still be attractive and very different from the standard issue).

Motor cars used by the reigning monarch on official business, which are (as of 2017[update]) all Rolls-Royces or Bentleys built to special specifications, do not carry number plates.

Criminals sometimes use copies of number plates legitimately used on a vehicle of identical type and colour to the one used, known as "cloning", to avoid being identified.

The UK Government introduced on 1 August 2008 regulations requiring the production of personal identification and vehicle registration documents when having number plates made by a retailer.

Registered number plate suppliers must keep records including the documents produced by their customers; they can be required to be shown to the police, although in reality this has seldom happened.

[99] The British Standards BSAU145a through to BSAU145d did not necessarily state the type of materials which were needed to manufacture UK registration plates.

Further advances in the field saw modifications being made to thermal printers in order to print the registration mark directly on to the reflective backing sheet.