The Canadian territory of Nunavut was formed in April 1999 when it was split from the Northwest Territories (NWT). At the time of division, the governments of both territories agreed to continue to use the NWT's polar bear-shaped license plates, which had been in use since 1970. Although the design of the plates was shared, the government of the NWT held the copyright. Nunavut's version of the plate differed from the NWT's in the name of the jurisdiction at the bottom and the presence of an 'N' suffix in the serial.
In 2010, the government of the NWT decided to update its version of the polar bear-shaped plate. In turn, the government of Nunavut opted to go with a new plate design. On 3 August 2011, Nunavut announced that a contest would be held to create the new plates.
A total of 123 people entered the contest, submitting 200 designs. On 6 March 2012, Iqaluit resident Ron Froese was named the winner. His design consisted of a night scene featuring a polar bear, an inuksuk, three sets of northern lights to represent the three regions of Nunavut (Kitikmeot, Kivalliq and Qikiqtaaluk), and 25 stars to represent the communities of the territory. This design was first made available to motorists in July 2012.
In 2024, the government of Nunavut announced it would return to the polar bear shape, which it would use under an agreement with the government of the Northwest Territories. Aside from the shape, the plate design would be different from the design used in the NWT. During the summer of 2025, Nunavut officially presented the bear-shaped plate. The plate has a yellow border, and the bear looks to the left. The word Nunavut appears at the top of the plate.
Passenger baseplates 1999 to present ImageFirst issuedDesignSloganSerial formatSerials issuedNotesApril 1999Embossed blue serial on polar bear-shaped white plate with border line; "NUNAVUT" centred at bottom"EXPLORE CANADA'S ARCTIC" at top12345N10000N to approximately 22500NOnly single plates issued.July 2012Screened black serial on rectangular plate with night scene featuring polar bear, inuksuk, three sets of northern lights and 25 stars; "Nunavut" screened in black letters and in Inuktitut syllabics (ᓄᓇᕗᑦ) centred at bottom None123 456000 001 to approximately 017 300August 2025Embossed blue serial on polar bear-shaped white plate with yellow border line, inuksuk separating the numbers, blue star on top right, and above, "Nunavut" screened in blue letters and in Inuktitut syllabics (ᓄᓇᕗᑦ) centred at topNone123 456approximately 017 300 to 017 363
Non-passenger plates ImageTypeFirst issuedDesignSerial formatSerials issuedNotesQuad/Snowmobile1999Orange polar bear plate12345AATV2012As 2012 passenger baseA12 345A00 001 to A05 604 Replaced the snowmobile plate.Commercial1999Embossed blue serial on polar bear-shaped white plate with border line; "NUNAVUT" centred at bottomC1234N2012As 2012 passenger baseC12 345C00 001 to C05 114 Dealer2012As 2012 passenger baseD12 345D00 001 to D00 223 Government2012As 2012 passenger baseG12 345G00 001 to G02 059 Public Service2012As 2012 passenger baseP12 345P00 001 to P01 739 Used on taxis.Rental Vehicle1999Embossed blue serial on polar bear-shaped white plate with border line; "Nunavut" and in Inuktitut syllabics (ᓄᓇᕗᑦ), centred at bottomRE123N2012As 2012 passenger baseR12 345R00 001 to R00 632 Motorcycle1999Embossed blue serial on polar bear-shaped white plate with border line; "Nunavut" and in Inuktitut syllabics (ᓄᓇᕗᑦ), centred at bottom12345N2012As 2012 passenger baseM12 345M00 001 to M00 546 Trailer1999Embossed blue serial on polar bear-shaped white plate with border line; "Nunavut", and in Inuktitut syllabics (ᓄᓇᕗᑦ) centred at bottomT123452012As 2012 passenger baseT12 345T00 001 to presentValidated annually.
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