How To Obtain French License Plates For Your Vehicle

In most countries, at the end of a vehicle’s registration, it is given a unique number that is stamped on both license plates, and France is no exception.

If you are moving to France with your car, you will need to register it and get new French license plates that fit officially approved standards.

This write-up will shed some light on the car registration process in France and how to get valid license plates easily.

How Does The French Car Registration System Work?

Car registration in France is handled online by ANTS, which is an abbreviation for Agence Nationale des Titres Sécurisés. Since the website is in French, foreigners might get confused along the way.

If you don’t understand French, another option is going through an authorized car registration agent. These agents will charge a fee and request your documents in order to complete registration.

When bringing a car into France, you will need some documents to complete registration, including;

• Proof of identity, address, and insurance
• Registration certificate with the seller’s name (carte grise barrée)
• Ministry of Transport certificate (contrôle technique) less than 6 months old. The time limit is 2 months in case of partial failure.
• Quitus fiscal (shows that the VAT has been paid). You do not need to pay VAT if your used vehicle was imported from an EU country.
• European Certificate of Conformity

Getting a Certificate of Conformity is often time-consuming, considering that you might need to complete your vehicle’s registration quickly.

EUROCOC can help you process a Certificate of Conformity in little time. You can order yours now.

If you are importing your car from a non-EU country, you will need some additional files, which are;

• An 846 A certificate (issued by French Customs)
• RTI (Réception à titre isolé). This is an approval for people without a European COC and the procedure is conducted at regional facilities.

How To Apply For French Number Plates?

After the registration process is complete and you have a registration number, you will need to order new plaque d’immatriculation (license plates in French) from a plate production company, while sticking to the official format which will be discussed later in this text.

How Much For Car Registration In France?

The cost of registering your vehicle in France depends on the region you live in and the type of car you drive, but on average, you might spend around €300, without including the Value Added Tax (VAT).

What Do French Car Number Plates Look Like?

Officially, number plates for cars in France are made from white reflective materials and have black characters that are non-reflecting. This is mandatory for both front and back number plates.

There is also a fixed size that car number plates in France have, and it is 520 mm x 110 mm (20.5 inches x 4.3 inches). The only other size allowed for cars is 275 mm x 200 mm (10.8 inches x 7.9 inches).

France is a member of the EU, so it is compulsory for every French license plate to have the EU flag. It is located on the left side of the plate as a blue section with 12 yellow stars forming a circle.

Underneath the 12 stars is the letter ‘F’, which is the International Vehicle Registration Code for France.

French license plates also have a blue section on their right, and this contains the logo and code of a region in France.

In most other countries, the region displayed on a vehicle’s plates is the region where the vehicle was registered. However, French citizens have the liberty of selecting any region of their choice.

To make it easy to perform a French number plate check, take a look at all French regions and their logos here.

Format Of French Number Plates

At the moment, there are 7 characters on French number plates. The characters are split into three groups – two letters, three numbers, and two letters – each separated by a dash (AA-BBB-CC).

The current vehicle registration system in France is called the SIV, and it was adopted in 2009. The system is very simple and easy to monitor, as registration numbers are given out serially.

The first SIV-registered vehicle had a license number of AA-001-AA, while the second had a number of AA-002-AA.

The SIV format will expire when a vehicle gets to ZZ-999-AA. Based on calculations, this will happen after 277,977,744 vehicles have been registered.

Three letters, ‘I’, ‘O’, and ‘U’ are not used on French plates.

What Types Of French License Plates Exist?

Most other types of French license plates that exist belong to non-private bodies such as the French National Police, the Armed Forces, and diplomatic missions.

French Custom Number Plates

In France, the registration numbers on license plates are given out serially, and as such, they cannot be customized.

Can I Change My French Plate Number?

Yes, you can change your French plate number if the plates get stolen, as this is a common issue in France. If someone uses your plate number on their car, they can commit crimes that will be traced to you.

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