Applying for a registration number

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Vehicles that are subject to registration must be fitted with number plates before they can be driven on the public highway.

Under the Luxembourg system, there are 2 types of registration number:

numbers from the current series, which are attached to the vehicles themselves and stay with them throughout their lifetime;
personalised registration numbers, which remain in the name of their holders, unless they give them up so they can be assigned to another person.

It is forbidden to change the registration number (the licence plate number) of a vehicle that is already registered in a person's name.

An exception is made if the number plates were stolen.

Who is concerned

Businesses concerned

All information provided hereafter is aimed at:

businesses who wish to register a car in the name of the company;
professionals in the automotive industry.

Professionals in the automotive industry are considered to be car dealerships, car rental businesses, vehicle registration service providers or transport companies.

Vehicles concerned

Anyone residing in Luxembourg must apply for a registration number when registering a vehicle falling in one of the following categories:

cars;
vans;
tricycles and quadricycles;
trailers;
caravans;
mobile homes;
machinery;
buses and coaches;
lorries;
tractor units and articulated lorries;
motor-homes and camping-cars;
mopeds;
light quadricycles.

Required registration

In the following cases, a new registration number must first be applied for before the vehicle can be registered:

registration of a new vehicle;
purchase/registration of a vehicle registered in a another country;
purchase of a vehicle already registered in Luxembourg under a personalised registration number belonging to the former owner;
purchase of a vehicle registered under a number with the old format (2 letters and 3 digits or 1 letter and 4 digits);
re-registration of a vehicle.

Preliminary steps

In order to access the online application form, professionals in the automotive industry must first have their professional eSpace certified for professionals in the automotive industry by the National Society of Automotive Traffic (Société nationale de circulation automobile - SNCA).

To certify the business eSpace, the persons concerned must complete the online procedure for the certification of a business eSpace and attach:

a certification from the employer attesting that the employee has power of signature and acts in the interest and on behalf of the company (scanned document in PDF format);
a copy of the company's business permit (scanned document in PDF format).

Costs

The reservation of registration numbers is free of charge.

To register a vehicle with a number from the current series, applicants must purchase a government tax stamp in the amount of EUR 50.

When registering the vehicle with a personalised registration number, the following extra charges apply:

EUR 50 if the number is being used for the first time;
EUR 24 if a number is being reused by the same owner.

 The 
 tax is due only at 
 the time of registering the vehicle.

Changing the number on the registration certificate is free of charge if the number plate was stolen. However, the cost of the new number plate is borne by the applicant.

How to proceed

Applying for a registration number by a professional in the automotive industry

The reservation of a registration number from the current series by a professional from the automotive industry can be made online with the MyGuichet.lu assistant.

Clients of professionals from the automotive industry can reserve their personalised registration numbers via the online procedure without LuxTrust authentication (except for applications for a 4-digit number plate) by completing the application with the details of the person in whose name the vehicle will be registered.

Application for a registration number by all other businesses

Registration number from the current series

The application for a registration number from the current series can be filed:

either online via the MyGuichet.lu assistant;
or by contacting the National Society of Automotive Traffic (Société nationale de circulation automobile - SNCA).

The registration number assigned to a person is the first one available from the current series.

The numbers in the current series are composed as follows:

2 letters and 2 digits for mopeds or light quadricycles;
2 letters and 4 digits for all other vehicles.

Personalised registration number

There are 4 distinct series of personalised registration numbers:

for mopeds or light quadricycles: 2 letters and 2 digits;
for all other vehicles:
- a 5-digit number;
- 2 letters and 4 digits; or
- a 4-digit number.

Personalised registration numbers can be reserved via the MyGuichet.lu assistant.

There are no more 4-digit registration numbers available, so all new applications for a 4-digit registration number are placed on a waiting list in the order they are received, and the numbers are assigned in that same order. It can take several years to be assigned a 4-digit registration number. As such numbers only become very rarely available, the applicant will be assigned a random number.

Applications for a 4-digit registration number have to be submitted using the MyGuichet.lu online assistant (see section Forms / Online services).

The assignment of 4-digit numbers is restricted to one number per person.

Once their application has been processed, applicants may check their position in the waiting list on MyGuichet.lu.

When a 4-digit number has been reserved in the name of an applicant, the applicant will receive mail at his official home address stating what number was assigned to him.

Re-using a personalised registration number on another vehicle

Personalised registration numbers that are currently being used for a registered vehicle can automatically be kept by their holder and transferred to another vehicle, provided that the current vehicle is taken off the road.

The number remains assigned to its holder for 36 months after the vehicle was deregistered and taken off the road. At the end of that period, if the holder has not registered another vehicle under the same number, the number will revert to the SNCA and will become available to another applicant.

Number plates for vintage vehicles and other number plate formats

The appearance of number plates may vary, depending on the date of initial registration of the vehicle.

If it is technically impossible to mount a European-format number plate on a vehicle, the owner/holder of the vehicle in question may use a plate with a different format. In such cases, the vehicle owner/holder is advised to file an online application with the SNCA, accompanied by a photograph, to find out what specific conditions apply.

Manufacturing of the number plate

Once a registration number has been reserved, the ministerial authorisation for the assignment of the number is sent to its holder by post.

Once the registration number has been assigned, the person concerned must contact a Luxembourg-registered number plate manufacturer to have the plate made.

If a number plate is damaged or deteriorated, it is recommended that it be replaced.

Transferring a personalised registration number

The current holder of a personalised registration number may assign the number to another person for the purpose of registering a vehicle with the number in question.

When the holder of a personalised registration number dies, their heir, parent or first-degree relative is entitled to keep the personalised registration number.

The transfer of a personalised registration number is still subject to payment of the applicable regulatory tax.

The transfer of a personalised registration number must be completed before the number can be used to register a vehicle. The transfer can be made by sending a completed "Transfer of a registration number" form (Transfert d'un numéro d'immatriculation) via email, signed by both parties concerned and accompanied by a copy of their identity documents, to the National Society of Automotive Traffic (SNCA, nplaques@snca.lu).

Once transferred, a personalised number will remain assigned to its new holder for 36 months. At the end of that period, if the new holder has not used the number to register a vehicle, the number will revert to the SNCA and will become available again for other applicants.

Theft of a number plate

If a number plate is stolen, the owner or holder of the vehicle must report the theft to the Police who will draft a declaration of theft or a complaint report.

The owner/holder must then apply for a new registration number as soon as possible to replace the current one.

Using a vehicle without a number plate may lead to a fine.

To change the number on the certificate, applicants must send or bring the following documents to the National Society of Automotive Traffic (SNCA):

the completed and signed registration certificate application form;
where applicable, the tax stamp;
a valid insurance certificate, established by an insurance company accredited in Luxembourg and bearing the new registration number;
the declaration of theft established by the Police;
parts 1 and 2 (grey and yellow respectively) of the registration certificate;
a valid roadworthiness inspection certificate, if the vehicle is covered by one;
a copy of the vehicle owner's/holder's identity document;
the owner's written consent to have the number replaced, if the applicant is the holder of the vehicle.

The person submitting the registration documents to the SNCA must produce their identity card. If the application is being submitted by a third party, they must produce a power of attorney. In that case, it is important to ensure that the name of the vehicle's owner or holder, and not that of their representative, appears on all the documents.

The old number will be considered unassigned for 5 years from the presumed date of the theft. Nevertheless, it will still be reserved for the owner or holder of the vehicle in question.

Forms / Online services

Demande de certification d'espace pour les professionnels de l'automobile

Accéder à la démarche

Demande de réservation d'un numéro d'immatriculation pour les professionnels de l'automobile

Accéder à la démarche

Réservation d'un numéro d'immatriculation - sans authentification

Accéder à la démarche

Demande en obtention d'un certificat d'immatriculation

Télécharger le formulaire PDF, 564 Kb

Demande d'attribution d'un numéro d'immatriculation

Télécharger le formulaire PDF, 108 Kb

Mandat pour toute démarche nécessaire auprès de la Société nationale de circulation automobile

Télécharger le formulaire PDF, 680 Kb

Who to contact

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National Society of Automotive Traffic
Assignment of vehicle registration numbers

11, route de Luxembourg
L-5230 Sandweiler
Luxembourg

Phone : (+352) 26626 - 400

(+352) 26626 - 400 nplaques@snca.lu Path to Assignment of vehicle registration numbers

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Legal references

Directive 92/53/CEE du Conseil du 18 juin 1992

modifiant la directive 70/156/CEE concernant le rapprochement des législations des États membres relatives à la réception des véhicules à moteur et de leurs remorques
Règlement (CE) nº 2411/98 du Conseil du 3 novembre 1998

relatif à la reconnaissance en circulation intracommunautaire du signe distinctif de l'État membre d'immatriculation des véhicules à moteur et de leurs remorques
Directive 1999/26/CE de la Commission du 20 avril 1999

portant adaptation au progrès technique de la directive 93/94/CEE du Conseil relative à l'emplacement pour le montage de la plaque d'immatriculation arrière des véhicules à moteur à deux ou trois roues
Règlement ministériel du 5 mai 2014

déterminant l'état des plaques d'immatriculation, des plaques rouges et des signes distinctifs particuliers ainsi que les supports de ces plaques et signes
Règlement grand-ducal modifié du 26 janvier 2016

relatif à la réception et l'immatriculation des véhicules routiers