Vehicle registration plates of Connecticut

Current Connecticut license plate

The U.S. state of Connecticut began requiring its residents to display license plates on their motor vehicles in 1905. Since then, Connecticut has used a variety of license plate designs, and has issued different designs for passenger, non-passenger, and, more recently, optional plate types that often require an additional fee.

Plates are issued in pairs, one each for the rear and front of the vehicle, for most classes of vehicles. For most classes of vehicles, plate validation stickers, or metal date tabs in earlier decades, were discontinued in favor of windshield stickers beginning in September 2006. (Windshield stickers were no longer required beginning in 2010.) Vehicles that do not have a windshield, or are part of fleets that frequently rotate plates among vehicles, continue to receive plate stickers.

Until 2013 Connecticut, as a rule, skipped the number 0 as the leading digit in its plates, with the exception of dealer plates. Between July 2013 and August 2015, temporary 1ABCD2 and 1AB-CD2 serial formats were used, both of which allowed 0 to be used as the leading digit. In August 2015, a permanent AB-12345 serial format was introduced, and the number 0 could be used as the first of the five digits in the serial.

Passenger plates 1905 to 1956

1905-1936: Annual dated plates.

1937-early 1948: First multi-year base: black on natural aluminum with "CONN" embossed at lower right. Validated annually with metal tabs.

late 1948-1956: Black on reflective off-white with "CT" embossed at lower right. Validated annually with metal tabs.

Image	Dates issued	Description	Slogan	Serial format	Serials issued	Notes
	1905–09	White numbers on black plate	none	C1234	C1 to C9999	Each serial was specific to the motorist, rather than to an individual plate (so if the motorist owned more than one vehicle, the plates on each would display the same serial). Annual re-registration commenced 1907.[1]
	1910	White numbers on red plate	none	C12345	C1 to approximately C11400
	1911	Blue numbers on white plate	none	C12345	C1 to approximately C14000
	1912	White numbers on green plate	none	C12345	C1 to approximately C17700
	1913	White numbers on blue plate	none	C12345	C1 to approximately C21800
	1914	White numbers on green plate; "CONN" and "1914" in vertical white characters at left and right respectively	none	12345	1 to approximately 25000
	1915	Yellow numbers on black plate; "CONN" and "1915" in vertical yellow characters at left and right respectively	none	12345	1 to approximately 34000
	1916	White numbers on black plate; "CONN" and "1916" in vertical white characters at left and right respectively	none	12345	1 to approximately 49000
	1917	Dark blue numbers on white plate; dark blue bands at left and right containing "CONN" and "1917", respectively, in vertical white characters	none	12345	1 to approximately 62000
	1918	Dark green numbers on white plate; dark green bands at left and right containing "CONN" and "1918", respectively, in vertical white characters	none	12-345	1 to approximately 70-000
	1919	Black numbers on white plate; "CONN. 1919" in black characters centered at bottom	none	12-345	1 to approximately 83-000
	1920	Embossed blue numbers on white plate with border line; "CONN.–1920" embossed in blue characters centered at bottom	none	12-345	1 to approximately 99-000
	1921	Embossed yellow numbers on black plate with border line; "CONN.–1921" embossed in yellow characters centered at bottom	none	123-456	1 to approximately 110-000
	1922	Embossed maroon numbers on white plate with border line; "CONN.–1922" embossed in maroon characters centered at bottom	none	123-456	1 to approximately 125-000
	1923	Embossed white numbers on dark green plate; "CONN. 1923" embossed in white characters centered at bottom	none	123-456	1 to approximately 157-000
	1924	Embossed black numbers on gray plate; "CONN. 1924" embossed in black characters centered at bottom	none	12-345 A-1234	Issued in blocks by branch office[2]
	1925	Embossed white numbers on navy blue plate; "CONN. 1925" embossed in white characters centered at bottom	none	123-456 A-1234	Issued in blocks by branch office
	1926	Embossed black numbers on yellow plate; "CONN. 1926" embossed in black characters centered at bottom	none	123-456 A-12-345	Issued in blocks by branch office
	1927	Embossed white numbers on maroon plate; "CONN. 1927" embossed in white characters centered at bottom	none	123-456 A-12-345	Issued in blocks by branch office
	1928	Embossed white numbers on navy blue plate; "CONN. 1928" embossed in white characters centered at bottom	none	123-456 A-12-345	Issued in blocks by branch office
	1929	As 1927 base, but with "CONN. 1929" at bottom	none	123-456 A-12-345	Issued in blocks by branch office
	1930	As 1928 base, but with "CONN. 1930" at bottom	none	123-456 A-12-345	Issued in blocks by branch office
	1931	As 1927 base, but with "CONN. 1931" at bottom	none	123-456 A-12-345	Issued in blocks by branch office
	1932	Embossed white numbers on navy blue plate; "CONN. 1932" embossed in white characters at bottom	none	1234 A123 A/B123	Issued in blocks by branch office	Plates with the A/B123 serial format had the state abbreviation and year offset to the right. This practice continued until 1937.
	1933	Embossed white numbers on maroon plate; "CONN. 1933" embossed in white characters at bottom	none	1234 A123 A/B123	Issued in blocks by branch office
	1934	As 1932 base, but with "CONN. 1934" at bottom	none	1234 A123 A/B123	Issued in blocks by branch office
	1935	As 1933 base, but with "CONN. 1935" at bottom	none	1234 A123 A/B123	Issued in blocks by branch office
	1936	Embossed yellow numbers on navy blue plate; "CONN. 1936" embossed in yellow characters at bottom	none	1234 A123 A/B123	Issued in blocks by branch office
	1937	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CONN" embossed at bottom right. Metal colored tabs insert at bottom center to revalidate each year through 1956.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123	County coded	Black on yellow 37 tab
	1938	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CONN" embossed at bottom right.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123	County coded	Black on aluminum 38 tab
	1939	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CONN" embossed at bottom right.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123	County coded	Black on green 39 tab
	1940	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CONN" embossed at bottom right.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123	County coded	Black on yellow 40 tab
	1941	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CONN" embossed at bottom right.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123	County coded	Black on aluminum 41 tab
	1942	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CONN" embossed at bottom right.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123	County coded	Black on green 42 tab
	1943	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CONN" embossed at bottom right.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123	County coded	Black on yellow 43 tab
	1944	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CONN" embossed at bottom right.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123	County coded	Black on white 44tab
	1945	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CONN" embossed at bottom right.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123	County coded	Black on olive green 45 tab
	1946	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CONN" embossed at bottom right.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123	County coded	Black on aluminum 46 tab
	1947	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CONN" embossed at bottom right.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123	County coded	Black on green 47 tab
	early 1948	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CONN" embossed at bottom right. last year of CONN on plate.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123	County coded	Black on yellow 48 tab
	late 1948	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CT" embossed at bottom right. Metal colored tabs insert at bottom center to revalidate each year as 1937-48 base. First year of CT on plate.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123	County coded	Same tab as above
	1949	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CT" embossed at bottom right.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123	County coded	Black on aluminum 49 tab
	1950	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CT" embossed at bottom right.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123	County coded	Black on green 50 tab
	1951	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CT" embossed at bottom right.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123	County coded	Black on yellow 51 tab
	1952	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CT" embossed at bottom right.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123	County coded	Black on aluminum 52 tab
	1953	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CT" embossed at bottom right.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123	County coded	Black on dark red 53 tab
	1954	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CT" embossed at bottom right.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123	County coded	Black on yellow 54 tab
	1955	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CT" embossed at bottom right.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123, A/B1234	County Coded	Black on sea green 55 tab
	1956	Black rough-textured lettering embossed on unpainted aluminum base, "CT" embossed at bottom right. Last year of tabs on aluminum plates.	none	A/B123, 1/2123, 1/A123, A/1123, A/B1234	County coded	Black on dark red 56 tab

Passenger plates 1957 to present

In 1956, the U.S. states and Canadian provinces came to an agreement with the Automobile Manufacturers Association that standardized the size for license plates for vehicles, except those for motorcycles, at six inches in height by twelve inches in width, with standardized mounting holes. The 1956 (dated 1957) issue was the first Connecticut license plate that complied with these standards.

1957-1974: White on blue with "CONNECTICUT" embossed at bottom left, the first time the full state name has appeared on plates. Validated annually with metal tabs from 1957 through 1963 and with stickers from 1964 through 2001, although issuance of this base ceased in 1974.

1974-1976: Blue on reflective white. The slogan "Constitution State" made its debut on this base, but the plates did not hold up well and were recalled in 1990. Validated with stickers.

1976-1987: Reflective white on blue with "CONNECTICUT" at bottom and "Constitution State" at top. These plates were retired during the period September 2000 through August 2002. Validated with stickers.

1987-2000: Reflective white on blue with "CONNECTICUT" at top, slogan at bottom, and a silhouette of Connecticut in the top left. These were retired during the same period as their predecessors. Validated with stickers.

2000–present: Navy on screened blue, white, and navy with "CONNECTICUT" at top, slogan at bottom, and a silhouette in the top left. Validation stickers issued through August 2006 for expiration dates through August 2008. Windshield stickers were issued beginning September 2006. The stickers were discontinued in September 2010 after the Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles began allowing police agencies to use license plate scanners to verify registrations.^[3][4] The current Connecticut base plate was issued beginning in January 2000 to new registrants. In September 2000, motorists with existing white-on-blue plates were issued new plates bearing their plate permutation, meaning that permutations issued 1957 can be seen on the current base plates.

From 1980 through 1987, all passenger plates were issued as a rear-only plate. Since then, all passenger plates have been issued in pairs. Motorists are legally required to mount both plates on their cars.

Image	First issued	Description	Slogan	Serial format	Serials issued	Notes
	1957	Embossed white numbers on blue plate with border line; "CONNECTICUT" embossed in white block letters at bottom, offset to left	none	12345	1 to 99999	On the two-letter serial formats, serials with C or D as the first letter were reserved for Combination and Used Dealer plates respectively.
				AB 123	AA 1 to ZZ 999
				AB1234	AA1000 to BH9999
	1958			123·456	100·000 to 999·999
	1966			AB·1234	BJ·1000 to NZ·9999; ZA·1000 to ZF·9999
	1974	Embossed blue numbers on reflective white plate with border line; "CONNECTICUT" embossed in wide blue block letters centered at bottom	"CONSTITUTION STATE" embossed in narrow blue block letters centered at top	AB·12341	PA·1000 to approximately TP·4999
	1976	Embossed reflective (glass-beaded) white numbers on blue plate with border line; "CONNECTICUT" embossed in white block letters centered at bottom	"CONSTITUTION STATE" embossed in white block letters at top	AB·12341	TP·5000 to YZ·9999; ZG·1000 to ZZ·9999
	1980			123·ABC1	100·AAA to 999·EVX	Letters I and Q not used in this serial format. Serials with C as the first letter were reserved for Combination plates.
	1987	Similar to above, but with "CONNECTICUT" at top and embossed state shape in top left corner	"CONSTITUTION STATE" as above, but at bottom	123·ABC1	100·EVY to 999·NZM	Serials with L as the first letter were reserved for optional Preserve the Sound plates.
	2000	Embossed dark blue numbers on reflective gradient sky blue and white plate with dark blue border line; "Connecticut" screened in dark blue serifed letters centered at top; screened dark blue state shape in top left corner	"Constitution State" screened in same letters as state name, centered at bottom	123·ABC2	100·NZN to 999·ZZW	O and V not used as first letters in serials.
	June 2013			1ABCD2	0AAAA0 to 9AGGX9	Temporary serial formats used until the completion of a computer upgrade to allow standard seven-character serials (below). Initial 1ABCD2 format revised with addition of dot separator in response to visibility concerns. Letters C, I, Q, Y and Z not used in either format; O used in the 1ABCD2 format but not in the 1AB·CD2 format.
	December 2013			1AB·CD2	0AG·HA0 to 9AX·XX9
	August 2015			AB·12345	AA·00001 to AG·20000 (as of September 12, 2016)[5]	Standard seven-character serials introduced following the completion of the aforementioned computer upgrade.

Notes

• 1 Plus remakes of serials issued on previous bases: 123-456 and AB-1234 formats
• 1 Plus remakes of serials issued on previous bases: 123-456, AB-1234, and 123-ABC formats (serials from 100-AAA to 999-NZM)
• 2 Plus remakes of serials issued on previous bases: 123-456, AB-1234, and 123-ABC formats (serials from 100-AAA to 999-NZM)

Current plate types

Non-passenger types

Image	Type	Serial format	Design	Notes
	All Terrain	G·1234	Motorcycle-sized.
	Amateur Radio	(various)	Embossed lightning bolt divider in serial. These plates are issued to amateur (ham) radio operators. This type started in the 1950s. The operator's callsign is the registration number, with the neat lightning bolt separator.
	Ambulance	123 1234
	Apportioned	12345·A	Red serial. This type seems to have started in Connecticut in the mid-1980s, in the 1000-A series. Eventually the numbering format moved to 12345-A.
	Bus	1234
	Camp Trailer	123·456	"Camp Tr." legend.	This type started in 1924, with plates similar to regular commercial plates except for a 'B-' prefix. This continued until 1932 when "Camp Tr." was spelled out for the first time, and the 'B-' was dropped.
	Camper	12345 123·456
	Classic Vehicle (Motorcycle)	1234	Blue on white.	Issued for use on vehicles at least 20 years old. Previously "Early American," black on white.
	Classic Vehicle (Passenger)	1A·123	Blue on white.	Issued for use on vehicles at least 20 years old. Previously "Early American," black on white. The earliest of the "Early American" plates were issued in 1952. These were porcelain plates, black on a white background. Previous sequence of 12345 has reached 99999 and shifted to the new format.
	Combination	C·123456	"Constitution State" legend; "COMB" embossed vertically at right. This type started in 1922, with the same size, colors and format as regular passenger plates but with a 'C' prefix.	Previously CA·1234, C·12345, 12345, 123·CAB, 1C·2345, 12C·345 on past bases remade on the current base; 12345·C, 1CA·234, 12C·A34, 1234·CA, and 1234·DA on the current base.
	Combination - Handicapped	123·R 123·S 123·T	"Constitution State" legend. Wheelchair embossed to right of serial; "COMB" embossed vertically to right of wheelchair.
	Commercial	A·12345	"Constitution State" legend with "COMM" embossed vertically at left. Red serial.
	Connecticut News Photographer	12·C/N/P	"Constitution State" legend.
	Construction	1234	Red serial. These plates are generally used on heavy equipment with limited to no highway use. This type appears to have started sometime in the late 1960s or early 1970s.
	Factory	1234	Blue serial through at least 1821; red serial from at least 2399.	This type started in the mid-1920s, with a "FAC" legend slanted downwards on the right side of the plate after the serial number.
	Farm	1234 12345	Red serials through at least 37638; blue serials by at least 44132. This type started in 1933.
	Fire Apparatus	1234	Red serial.
	Handicapped - Passenger	123·A 1234·Z 1234·Y (backwards issue)	"Constitution State" legend. Wheelchair embossed at right.
	Hearse	U·123 U·8123
	Interstate	Z1234Z
	Medical Doctor	MD·1234		MD·0001 to MD·0999 followed MD·1000 to MD·9999
	New York Press	NYP·123		NYP·001 to NYP·999 Used by news reporters to park in Working Press zones in New York City.[6][7]
	Livery	L1234L	These plates are used on limousines and for-hire cars (but not taxis). The 'Livery' type started in 1910 and was used on vehicles which transported people for a charge.
	Medal of Honor	1
	Motorcycle	123·456	This type started in 1903. From 1903 through 1911, the registrant supplied their own (homemade) plates.
	Motorcycle - Handicapped	123·M	Wheelchair embossed to right of serial.
	Municipal	1·AB 12·AB 123·AB 1·ABC 12·ABC 123·ABC	These plates are used on town/city government vehicles - police cars to dump trucks. This type started in the mid-1970s. Prior to this, vehicles such as police cars used regular run-of-the-mill passenger car plates.	Letters signify municipality.
	Municipal - Preserve the Sound	1·AB 12·AB 123·AB 1·ABC 12·ABC 123·ABC	Uses a "MUNICIPAL CT" sticker in place of validation sticker.	Letters signify municipality.
	Official	1
	School Bus	S1234S 12S34 12A34		Prior to this, school buses used Serv. Bus plates. School Bus plates launched in 1995 decals.
	School Bus/Livery Bus	1SL23
	Service Bus	12345		This type started sometime in the 1940s.
	Snowmobile	12345	Motorcycle-sized.
	State Service Bus	123	These plates are typically used on buses belonging to the State Vocational schools, the State University system, and prisoner transport buses. This type started sometime in the 1970s.
	Taxi	T1234T	This type started in 1931, with a "TAXI" legend.
	Trailer	V·12345	Red serial. Examples have been reported as early as 1932. Generally the size and colors have been the same as Commercial plates.
	Transporter	1234	All-embossed red on yellow. This type is believed to have started in the late 1940s. The plates have an all-numeric serial, and are captioned 'Trans.'.
	Vanpool	1234
	Wrecker	1234 12345	All-embossed black on orange. These plates are used on tow trucks. A shop must first have Dealer or Repair plates in order to obtain Wrecker plates. Non-dealer or repair tow trucks use regular Commercial plates. This type appears to have started in 1954.

Optional issues

Image	Type	Serial Format	Design	Notes
	Optional Issues - Passenger	123·ABC 1ABC2		Types confirmed as using 1ABC2 format: Blue Knights, Combat Wounded, Ducks Unlimited, Fraternal Order of Police, Garden Clubs, Greenways, Laos War Veteran, Meriden, Norwich, Olympic Spirit, Silent Service, UCONN. Letters I, O, and Q are used in any letter position. Elks previously used 123-ELK; UCONN 1999 NCAA National Champions: 123·PEP; Olympic Spirit: 123·WIN; Penn State University: 123·PSU.
	Special issues - Combination	1CAB2
	Caring for Pets	123·PET 123·DOG 123·CAT 123·TLC 123·WAG 123·WOF 1ABC2
	Keep Kids Safe	123·ZZY		Previously 123·KID, 123·TOT, 123·ZZZ.
	Olympic Spirit	123·WIN 1ABC2
	Police Memorial	123·OFC 1ABC2
	Preserve the Sound - Passenger	123·LAA		LAK, LAL, LAM, LAN, LAO, LAP, LAR, LAS, and LAT series use Maine dies.
	Preserve the Sound - Camp Trailer
	Preserve the Sound - Camper	123·LA	"CAMP" embossed vertically.
	Preserve the Sound - Combination	123·LA	"COMB" printed vertically to left of serial.	Serials issued in descending order from 999·LZ.
	Preserve the Sound - Combination Handicapped	123L	"COMB" printed vertically to left of serial.
	Preserve the Sound - Commercial	123·CA	"COMM" printed vertically to left of serial; red serial.	Previously 000·LA, for which the high is 269·LC.
	Preserve the Sound - Handicapped	123L
	United We Stand - Passenger	1BAC2		Original format was 000·USA.
	United We Stand - Combination	1BCA2	"CO" and "MB" embossed vertically above and below separator dot.	Original format was USA·123.
	Veteran - Passenger	123·VAA		Originally 123·VET, then VAA and up.
	Veteran - Camper
	Veteran - Combination	123·VSA	"CO" and "MB" embossed vertically above and below separator dot.	Originally 123·VET.
	Veteran - Combination Handicapped	1V·23	Wheelchair embossed at right of plate. Format of 1V23 followed by "COMB" embossed vertically through at least 1V13; switched to format of 1V·23 with "CO" and "MB" embossed vertically above and below a separator dot at 3V·56 or lower.
	Veteran - Commercial	123·VZA
	Veteran - Handicapped	1V·23	Wheelchair embossed to left of serial.	Previously 000·V
	Veteran - Motorcycle		"Veteran - MC" legend.
	Veteran with V/E/T	123 V/E/T
	Veteran - POW	123 P/O/W
	Volunteer Firefighter - Passenger	123·AB	"Constitution State" slogan with small logo at right.
	Volunteer Firefighter - Combination	123·CA	"Constitution State" slogan with small logo at right.

Annual types

Political types

On both flat blue on white and Preserve the Sound bases:

• Assistant Majority Leader
• Assistant Minority Leader
• Deputy Majority Leader
• Deputy Minority Leader

Municipality codes

^[8]

State agency plates

Most state agencies in Connecticut register their vehicles with state plates. The plate starts with a number to represent the agency that owns the vehicle. Some agencies, such as the Connecticut State Police, register some vehicles using regular passenger or combination plates.

References

External links

• Connecticut license plates 1969-present