Amman, July 27 (Petra) – The recent government decision to overhaul the license plate codes for public vehicles aims to enhance clarity, transparency, and ease of identification across categories of public sector vehicles, Director of the Drivers and Vehicles Licensing Department (DVLD) Brig. Gen. Omar Qur’an said on Sunday.

Speaking to Petra, Qur’an said the decision covers vehicles belonging to the Senate, House of Representatives, ministries, public institutions, diplomatic corps, and temporarily imported vehicles. He explained that the reclassification will allow the DVLD to reclaim previously assigned codes, thereby expanding the pool of available numbers for private citizens.

Previously, around 3 percent of the license plate number pool was reserved for government vehicles. These numbers will now be returned to the general database and reissued as private numbers, without altering existing procedures for issuing or selling plate numbers, Qur’an added.

He clarified that the codes formerly designated for official entities will now be repurposed as standard private license numbers and handled in accordance with existing regulations.

Qur’an noted that current mechanisms for selling license plates whether standard or special will remain unchanged. Highly distinctive plate numbers will continue to be auctioned publicly, while other special numbers will be available through authorized direct sale channels.

One major change under the new system, according to Qur’an, is the allowance for citizens to buy and sell reserved plate numbers without having to register them on vehicles, marking a significant shift from the previous requirement that all sales be conducted solely through the DVLD and linked to registered vehicles.

Proceeds from the sale of all special plate numbers, regardless of their original coding, will be directed to the University Student Support Fund beginning next semester, in addition to the existing budget allocation, which was increased by 50 percent this year to JD30 million.

The Cabinet, in a session chaired Saturday by Prime Minister Jaafar Hassan, approved amendments to the vehicle license plate system. The overhaul replaces numeric codes with letter-based codes that indicate the relevant authority, as follows:

Prime Minister and ministers: PM
Senate: SN
House of Representatives: PR
Judicial Council: JC
Government institutions: GV
Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority: AQ
Diplomatic entities: CD
Temporary import vehicles: TM

The changes do not apply to private, public, or commercial cargo vehicles, whose license plate formats will remain unchanged.

The Cabinet emphasized that the reform enhances traceability and classification of official vehicles while improving the efficiency of number management, expanding citizen access to available numbers, and supporting national education through redirected revenues.

//Petra// AF

27/07/2025 21:52:11