The Benefits of Using a Northern Irish Plate

Northern Irish plates are different to those in the rest of the British Isles. And they have one incredibly useful advantage – they are considered dateless. There is no letter in any series to indicate years.

The format of Irish plates is typically 2 or 3 letters followed by up to 4 digits and unlike the English, Welsh and Scottish plates, the letters I and Z can be used.

If at one time, the Northern Ireland number plates were considered ‘the poor relation’, they can not be considered like that any more. With dateless plates increasing in demand and the ease of which you can create name plates, some Northern Irish plates have become investment plates.

At the same time, however, they do allow a lot of people join the personalised plate ladder. Lots of younger drivers want to personalise their plate as much as they personalise their car and having a Northern Irish plate allows them to do that. With prices starting from as low as £50, they are a very real option to get a cheap personalised plate.

Northern Ireland is divided up into eight separate licensing areas. They are:

  • Belfast which issued the ‘_AZ’ and ‘IFZ’ registrations (e.g., BAZ, DAZ)
  • Enniskillen which issued ‘_IL’, ‘IIG’ currently issuing ‘KIG’ (e.g., GIL, BIL)
  • Downpatrick which issued ‘_BZ’ and currently issuing ‘SJZ’ (e.g., ABZ)
  • Ballymena which issued ‘_KZ’ and currently issuing ‘DRZ’ (e.g., UKZ)
  • Coleraine which issued ‘_NZ’ and currently issuing ‘RNZ’ (e.g., LNZ)
  • Londonderry which issued ‘_UI’ and currently issuing ‘TUI’ (e.g., OUI)
  • Omagh which issued ‘_JI’, ‘_HZ’ and currently issuing OHZ (e.g., PJI, CHZ)
  • Armagh which issued ‘_IB’ and currently issuing ‘CXZ (e.g., GIB, RIB)

Clever use of names

The most sought after plates are those dateless plates that spell out names or nicknames. Because Northern Irish plates use ‘I’ and ‘Z’, there is room or scope to spell out names.

Here are a few to get you thinking:

  • Barry (BAZ)
  • Gary (GAZ)
  • Katherine (KAZ)
  • Catherine (CAZ)
  • Darren (DAZ)
  • Raza (RAZ)
  • Sarah (SAZ)
  • Jeremy (JEZ)
  • Terry (TEZ)
  • JIL (Jill)
  • GIL (Gillian)
  • PJI (Patrick James or Peter Joseph)

And while the Northern Irish plates have formats and words that suit names, they also work well with interests.

Here’s a few more to get you thinking:

  • Show your love of France or your French nationality – OUI
  • If you have a Mercedes, feel free to use – MBZ
  • If you have a Volkswagen, car, you can use – VIW
  • Show your passion for the Welsh when you use – WLZ
  • Display your nationality with pride with – UKZ

So in summary, you can use a personalised Northern Irish number plate to:

  • Hide the age of your vehicle
  • Get a cheaper personalised number plate
  • Display your name
  • Show your nationality.

When thinking about a personalised number plate, Northern Irish number plates should be top of your list.