Vehicle registration plates of Costa Rica

Costa Rica requires its residents to register their motor vehicles and display vehicle registration plates.[1] The country has issued plates since at least 1923. The letters "CR" on plates into the early 1940s indicated the country name. The country name has been spelled out on the plates since at least 1944. In 1959 the legend "Centro America" [Central America] has appeared on the plates. Annual plates appear to have been issued through at least 1954. There were plates where the first two characters indicated what city the owner lived in. Multi-year base plates began to appear in 1955, but their use was not consistent until the mid-1960s. The current plate size is the North American standard of 6 × 12 inches (152 × 300 mm).[2]

Current license plate

Early plates
Image First issued Design Slogan Serial format Serials issued Notes
1961 White numbers on a dark blue background SJ-12345 SJ is a city code for San José. Note this plate appears to have been poorly repainted.

2013 Series

New license plates for all vehicle were issued starting in mid 2013 and continuing until completed in early 2015. The design of these plates included additional security features, such as a hologram at the left side, a security strip running across the plate, and additional elements that are now found throughout most countries.

Regular series plates
Regular  Series  of  2013  License  Plates
Image Type Serial format Serials issued Notes
Passenger Automobile 123456
ABC-123
Interprovincial bus 1234
12345
City and interurban bus 1234
12345
Commercial vehicle 123456
Commercial Limited Light Load Truck 123456
Disabled/Handicapped Driver D-123
D-1234
Electric Vehicle ABD-123 First available in 2019. Hybrid vehicles are excluded.
Motorcycle 123456
Taxi 1234
12345
City and Interurban Taxi 1234
12345
Historical Vehicle 12
123
1234

Special series plates
Special  Series  of  2013  License  Plates
Image Type Serial format Serials issued Notes
Consular Corps 1-23
Diplomatic Corps 1/2 - 123
International Mission 1/2 - 123
Official Vehicle 12-3456
Power Executive 1/2 - 1234

References
  1. http://www.worldlicenseplates.com/world/CE_COST.html
  2. http://www.plateshack.com/y2k/Costa_Rica/costaricay2k.html


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