History of vehicle registration plates of the Philippines

Philippine vehicle registration plates have a long history. The earliest license plates were introduced around 1912 with the introduction of Legislative Act No. 2159.

In this article, "L" stands for a letter in 1974–1980 and 1981 series plates, "X" stands for an alphanumeric symbol (in 1974–1980 license plates), "P" stands for a prefix (in 1933–1980 license plates), and "D" stands for a number (in all license plates).

Specifications

Early license plates Most early license plates just showed the serial number, most likely a 4 to 5-digit number and a small box on the left of the serial number which displays the 2-digit year mark, which is written downwards. This continued until 1932.

e.g. 31 44789, 31 stands for the year 1931

1933 series With the Revised Motor Vehicle Law (Act No. 3992) introduced in 1933, second-generation Philippine license plates were introduced; they can be in the format of "A-B" or "P-B", where A is an area code number (used until 1960), P is a vehicle classification prefix, and B is a 3 to 6-digit number. Sometimes single-letter suffixes were used.

Hyphens were used in separating the numbers; this was later replaced by asterisks in 1938. On the bottom of the license plate are the 2-digit year mark, the place the car is registered, and the word "P.I.", in that order (e.g. "36 MANILA P.I.", 36 stands for 1936). In 1938 the "P.I." was dropped, the place name and the year mark were simply displayed (e.g. MANILA 60, 60 stands for 1960).  Prefixes were common in license plates starting in 1938. Sometimes prefixes stand for place names (e.g. "PS" stands for Pasay).

1934 – For government vehicles, the plate has a shield outline with the 2-digit year mark (sometimes written downward) inside it, then the word "P.I." below, then a 2 or 3-digit number on the right of the shield outline, and then the word "PHILIPPINES" on the bottom of the license plate. 1935 – with the original (1933) numbering format 1936 – with original numbering format 1937 – 1938 – with a revised numbering format and bottom text. Instead of "(year) (place) P.I.", the bottom text is displayed as "(place) (year)", sometimes with an asterisk or hyphen dividing the words. Prefixes on license plates came into use. 1939 – with second numbering format 1940 – with the second numbering format 1941 – with the second numbering format 1942 – Manila license plates omit the "1" prefix from this point on. 1944 – 1945 – 1946 – On some license plates, there were two-year markers (e.g. 46*PHILIPPINES*46). 1947 – same format as 1936 license plates () but with 2nd (1938) numbering format 1948 – 1949 – 1950 – Typeface was slightly changed and a new numbering format was used. On license plates with two numbers, the left number is smaller than the right number. Motorcycle plates now have the prefix of "MC". 1951 – 1952 – 1953 – 1954 – (similar to 1950 license plates) 1955 – same format as 1942 license plates () but with the 3rd (1950) numbering format Diplomatic plates for that year were . 1956 – same format as 1953 license plates () Starting that year, the font on the bottom of the license plates has been slightly modified. 1957 – same format as 1952 plates () 1958 – 1959 – 1960 – (same format as 1950 and 1954 plates) 1961 – a new numbering format and color set has been used. Above the serial number is "RIZAL'S CENTENARY YEAR", and on the right of the plate is a decal depicting the Rizal Monument. Standard format (B, E, H, J, L, MC, T, TR, etc.) – Public transport (PUB, PUJ, TX)- Government use (RP series)- Rental vehicle (U) – 1962 Standard format – Public transport – Government use – Service vehicle (S) – Unusual variant(s) – 1963 Standard format – Public transport – Government use – Service vehicle – Rental vehicle – Unusual variant(s) – 1964 – the text above the serial number reads "MABINI CENTENNIAL" Standard format – Public transport- Government use – Service vehicle – Rental vehicle – Unusual variant(s) – 1965 – the text above the serial number reads "CHRISTIANIZATION'S 4TH CENTENNIAL" Standard format – Government use – 1966 Standard format – Public transport – Pickup truck (AC) – Diplomatic use (DC, CC, etc.) – 1967 Instead of new color schemes for the years 1967–1969, date tabs (with a 2-digit year marker) were inserted on the lower-right corner of a 1966-subseries plate. The use of these tabs continued until 1969.

1970 series In 1970, Philippine vehicle license plates adapted a numbering format similar to Japanese license plates. It can be in a format of "DD-DD", (from 0–0 to 99–99, sometimes 00 to 09 are used) with single or double-letter suffixes. Most vehicle category prefixes are on the lower-left of the plate. For government vehicles, "RP" is displayed before the number. Year stickers were introduced in 1973.

1974 series A new license plate format was introduced for the year 1974. The format is "L DDD", "DDD L", "XX DDD" or "DDD XX", with the vehicle classification at the lower-left corner of the plate, followed by the place name (which was changed to "PILIPINAS" in 1977), and the 2-digit year marker. The initial typeface resembles the 1970 series plates. (e.g. G 582, 159 F, FE 358, 576 NK)

1977 The typeface and color schemes were changed. 1980 The color schemes were changed again.

1981 series In 1981, the vehicle registration plate system has been revised again, taking the format of LLL-DDD. Color-coded year stickers appear for the first time in 1982, based on the license plate's color scheme (notable exceptions are in 1983, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990 and 1993). Stickers for vehicle classification appeared in the same year. The byline at the bottom of the plate was displayed as "PILIPINAS" ("Philippines"). Later then in some yellow and government (Rizal Monument) plates, the byline's font was clear and it was also displayed as "PILIPINAS" except to its font and kerning, where the characters were condensed kerning and with wide glyphs.

One of the biggest changes of this design was the font. It was based on military-grade letterings (such as the MV Freedom Star nameplate), UK license plate fonts and are proprietary for government use. For example, the letterforms of this font like the letters C, G, T, V, Z and L, have similarities except there are some subtle modifications. Letters with middle horizontal lines like B, F, E, H, P, R and S have a slight up than dead center (middle). Numbers with middle lines like 3, 5, 6, 8, 9 had also a slight up when compared with the latter. Letters that had middle intersecting lines, middle horizontal lines and midpoints like letters K and W have also slight-ups similar to those middle line changes that mentioned earlier. All middle horizontal lines and midpoints has to be consistent and to be slightly up from the middle. Additionally, number 2 and 7 have subtle modifications. Unlike the pre-1981 and post-2000 plate series whereas the font changes over time, this font is a monospaced, sans-serif and military-grade but it is considered vulnerable since there is a chance of alteration such as fraud and glyph substitution (ex. P→R, S→8, 5→8, C→0, etc.) and designed to fit in a wide plate.

In 2002, the font weight has been changed for private vehicles (Matatag Na Republika plate series), while the 1981 font remains for other vehicles and PUVs. It is thinned and condensed form and more squarish than the 1981 font series by looking its loops.

Diamond shape, specifically a lozenge () was used as a separator between the letter block and the numbers. 1988 The license plates are slightly redesigned. Sometimes, an "F" between the "LLL-DDD" serial number indicates a front plate; an "R" indicates a rear plate. Public transport plates are usually displayed as yellow symbols on a black background (front and rear plates). For other license plates, the rear plates have the inverted colors of the front plates. 1994 The license plates have slightly reverted to the 1981 format; in 1995, most license plates had started the byline displayed as "PHILIPPINES 2000". 2000 Most license plates have the byline displayed as "Angat Pinoy 2004" ("Raising Philippines 2004"), "PILIPINAS", or "PERLAS NG SILANGAN" ("Pearl of the East"). 2002 The license plates were completely redesigned, with the background being a blue/white/green gradient with a picture of the Rizal Monument in the center. Most license plates have the byline displayed as "MATATAG NA REPUBLIKA" ("Strong Republic"); a few have it displayed as "PILIPINAS" or "PERLAS NG SILANGAN". Some public transport license plates have a blue/yellow/green gradient background with the Rizal Monument picture in the center (mostly with 2002 subseries letterings) or a golden yellow background with the lettering similar to 1987 subseries license plates. 2005 3-year validation stickers appear for the first time. 2009 For NCR Plates, The letters, "I","O" & "Q", will display either in the middle or end.

2014 series In January 2013, Land Transportation Office ventures the plate standardization project that will redesign the plates and will include new security features, regions will now be indicated at the bottom of the plate number with a bar code at the top left of the plate. The color of the new plate is changed to black on white with the new format LLL-DDDD for light motor vehicles and LL-DDDDD for motorcycles.

2014 New plate released for government vehicles, motorcycles, and tricycles. Government vehicles will still follow the plate series format, and the first letter will start with "S" in red characters on a white background with regions indicated at the bottom of the plate. New plate released for diplomatic vehicles. DDDD and DDDDD plate format, 4-digit diplomatic plates with blue numbers on a white background are in embassy use, while 5-digit diplomatic license plates with black numbers on a blue background are in diplomat use. New white plate released for vehicles registered 2013 and below, replacing the old green plates for every vehicle. 2017 New registration conduction sticker format released: L-D-L-DDD for new vehicles.

2018 series In July 2018, the Land Transportation Office released a newly updated plate simplifying the 2014 series. The new font of the plate is FE-Schrift. The plate no longer indicates the region below it, instead, the first prefix of the plate will indicate the region of where the vehicle is registered, bringing back the 1981 license plate series alphabetical designation. At the right bottom of the plate is where the small QR code is located.

2020 New larger motorcycle plates with a DDD-LLL format were released in 2020 for the 2018 series plates. The plate consists of color-coded strip with a QR code in the middle, every color and whether the position of the strip is at the top or bottom of the plate will indicate the region where it is registered. 2021 New government plate released with updated features following the current series for 2016 to 2019 registered vehicles. 2022 New diplomatic plates released for foreign diplomats assigned in the Philippines. Diplomatic plate format DDD-DDDD in blue characters on a white background, the first 3 digits of the plate will indicate the assigned number of the country, and international organizations that are based in the Philippines. The next 4 digits of the plate are randomized registration digits and are assigned by the LTO and DFA, however, the 1000 number will always be assigned and reserved for the ambassadors. 2023 New plate format released: L-DDD-LL for motorcycles and tricycles. New registration conduction sticker format released: LL-DDD-L for new vehicles. New plate released with updated features following the current series for all old green plate registered vehicles. 3-year Registration for brand new Motorcycles below 200cc.