Vehicle registration plates of New Mexico

The U.S. state of New Mexico first required its residents to register their motor vehicles and display license plates in 1912. New Mexico is the only state that specifies "USA" on its licence plate, so as to avoid confusion with Mexico, the country.

Passenger baseplates 1912 to 1960

In 1956, the U.S. states and Canadian provinces came to an agreement with the Automobile Manufacturers Association that fixed 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 1955 (dated 1956) issue was the first New Mexico license plate that complied with these standards.

Dates issued	Design	Slogan	Serial format	Serials issued	Notes
1912-13	Green on white	none	1234	unknown
1914	White on green	none	1234	unknown
1915	White on red	none	1234	unknown
1916	White on dark blue	none	1234	unknown
1917	Black on light orange	none	12345	1 to approximately 35000
1918	Light blue on orange	none	12345	1 to approximately 39000
1919	Black on white	none	12345	1 to approximately 43000
1920-23	Blue on white	none	12345	1 to approximately 45000	Revalidated for 1921 1922 and 1923 with tabs
1924	Black on orange	none	12345	1 to approximately 47000
1925	Black on white	none	12345	1 to approximately 49000	2 1925 plates were used 1 for the front and 1 on the back of the cars
1926	Embossed red numbers on gray plate with border line; "NM" and "26" embossed vertically at left and right respectively	none	12345	1 to approximately 51000
1927	Embossed black numbers on yellow plate with border line; embossed black Zia sun symbol at left with "27" in the center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in black block letters centered at bottom	none	12-345	1 to approximately 55-000	First use of the full state name and Zia sun symbol.
1928	Embossed beige numbers on dark blue plate with border line; embossed beige Zia sun symbol at left with "28" in the center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in beige block letters centered at bottom	none	12-345	1 to approximately 65-000
1929	Embossed red numbers on light yellow plate with border line; embossed red Zia sun symbol at left with "29" in the center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in red block letters centered at bottom	none	12-345	1 to approximately 75-000
1930	Embossed golden yellow numbers on black plate with border line; embossed golden yellow Zia sun symbol at left with "30" in the center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in golden yellow block letters centered at bottom	none	12-345	1 to approximately 71-000
1931	Embossed black numbers on golden yellow plate with border line; embossed black Zia sun symbol at left with "31" in the center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in black block letters centered at bottom	none	12-345	1 to approximately 70-000
1932	Embossed white numbers on green plate; embossed white Zia sun symbol used as separator; "NEW MEX 32" embossed in white block letters at left	"SUNSHINE STATE" embossed in white block letters at bottom, offset to right	12-345	1 to approximately 65-000
1933	Embossed red numbers on golden yellow plate; embossed red Zia sun symbol at left with "33" in the center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in red block letters centered at bottom	none	12-345	1 to approximately 65-000
1934	Embossed yellow numbers on red plate; embossed yellow Zia sun symbol at left with "34" in the center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in yellow block letters centered at bottom	none	12-345	1 to approximately 67-000
1935	Embossed white numbers on dark blue plate; embossed white Zia sun symbol at left with "35" in the center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in white block letters centered at bottom	none	12-345	1 to approximately 76-000
1936	Embossed dark blue numbers on white plate; embossed dark blue Zia sun symbol at left with "36" in the center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in dark blue block letters centered at bottom	none	12-345	1 to approximately 86-000
1937	Embossed maroon numbers on turquoise plate; embossed maroon Zia sun symbol at left with "37" in the center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in maroon block letters centered at bottom	none	12-345	1 to approximately 91-000
1938	Embossed black numbers on yellow plate; embossed black Zia sun symbol at left with "38" in the center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in black block letters centered at bottom	none	12-345	1 to approximately 92-000
1939	Embossed black numbers on orange plate; embossed black Zia sun symbol at left with "39" in the center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in black block letters centered at bottom	none	12-345	1 to approximately 93-000
1940	Embossed yellow numbers on red plate; embossed yellow Zia sun symbol at left with "1540" above and "1940" below; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in yellow block letters centered at bottom	"CORONADO CUARTO CENTENNIAL" embossed in yellow block letters at top	12-345	1 to approximately 96-000	Commemorated the 400th anniversary of the expedition of Francisco Vázquez de Coronado.
1941	Embossed red numbers on golden yellow plate; embossed red Zia sun symbol at left with "41" in the center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in red block letters centered at bottom	"THE LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in red block letters at top	12-345	1 to approximately 99-000	First use of the "Land of Enchantment" slogan.
1942	Embossed black numbers on white plate; embossed black Zia sun symbol at left with "42" in the center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in black block letters centered at bottom	"THE LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in black block letters at top	12-345	1 to approximately 92-000
1943	Screened black numbers on white plate	"PASSENGER" screened vertically at left	12345	1 to approximately 67000
1944	Embossed white numbers on black plate; embossed white Zia sun at left and "44" at center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in white block letters at bottom	"THE LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in white block letters at top	12-345	1 to approximately 95-000
1945	Embossed white numbers on blue plate; embossed white Zia sun at left with "45" at center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in white block letters at bottom	"THE LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in white block letters at top	12-345	1 to approximately 98-000
1946	Embossed red numbers on yellow plate; embossed red Zia sun at left with "46" at center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in red block letters at bottom	"THE LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in red block letters at top	12-345	1 to approximately 99-000
1947	Embossed yellow numbers on maroon plate; embossed yellow Zia sun symbol used as separator with "47" in the center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in yellow block letters centered at bottom	"THE LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in yellow block letters at top	1-12345 10-1234	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 10)
1948	Embossed white numbers on azure plate; embossed white Zia sun symbol used as separator with "48" in the center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in white block letters centered at bottom	"THE LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in white block letters at top	1-12345 10-1234	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 10)
1949	Embossed azure numbers on waffle-textured white plate; embossed azure Zia sun symbol used as separator with "49" in the center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in azure block letters centered at bottom	"THE LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in azure block letters at top	1-12345 10-1234	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 10)
1950	As 1948 base, but with "50" in the center of the Zia sun symbol	"THE LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" as on 1948 base	1-12345 10-1234	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 10)
1951	As 1949 base, but on smooth metal, and with narrower dies and "51" in the center of the Zia sun symbol	"THE LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" as on 1949 base	1-12345 10-1234	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 10)
1952	Embossed red numbers on white plate; embossed red Zia sun symbol used as separator; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in red block letters centered at bottom; "52" embossed in top left corner	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in red block letters at top, offset to right	1-12345 10-1234	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 10)
1953	Embossed white numbers on red plate with border line; embossed white Zia sun symbol used as separator; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in white block letters centered at bottom; "53" embossed in top left corner	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in white block letters at top, offset to right	1-12345 10-1234	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 10)
1954	Embossed red numbers on white plate with border line; embossed red Zia sun symbol used as separator; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in red block letters centered at bottom; "54" embossed in top left corner	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in red block letters at top, offset to right	1-12345 10-1234	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 10)
1955	Embossed golden yellow numbers on maroon plate with border line; embossed golden yellow Zia sun symbol used as separator; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in golden yellow block letters centered at bottom; "55" embossed in top left corner	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in golden yellow block letters at top, offset to right	1-12345 10-1234	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 10)
1956	Embossed white numbers on maroon plate with border line; embossed white Zia sun symbol used as separator; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in white block letters centered at bottom; "56" embossed in bottom left and bottom right corners	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in white block letters centered at top	1-12345 10-1234	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 10)
1957	Embossed green numbers on white plate with border line; embossed green Zia sun symbol used as separator; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in green block letters centered at bottom; "57" embossed in bottom left and bottom right corners	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in green block letters centered at top	1-12345 10-1234	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 10)
1958	Embossed red numbers on yellow plate and embossed yellow numbers on red plate with border lines; embossed red and yellow Zia sun symbols used as separaters; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in red and yellow block letters centered at bottom; "58" embossed in bottom right corner	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in red and yellow block letters centered at top	1-23456 10-1234	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 10)
1959	Embossed yellow numbers on maroon plate; embossed yellow Zia sun symbol used as separater; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in yellow block letters at bottom with "19" and "59" embossed at bottom corners	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in yellow block letters at top	1-23456 10-1234	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 10)
1960	As above but without "19" and "59" embossed in the bottom corners	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" as of 1959 base	1-23456 10-1234	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 10)

Passenger baseplates 1961 to present

Dates issued	Design	Slogan	Serial format	Serials issued	Notes
1961–64	Embossed red numbers on white plate with border line; embossed red Zia sun symbol used as separator; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in wide red block letters centered at bottom	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in narrow red block letters at top	1-12345 1-A1234 1/0-12345	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 1/0)	Single-digit county plates had the slogan centered, while double-digit county plates had the slogan offset to the right.
1965–69	Similar to 1961–64 base, but yellow rather than white	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" as on 1961–64 base	1-12345 1-A1234 1/0-12345	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 1/0)	Positioning of slogan same as on 1961–64 base. Single-digit county plates had "65" embossed in the bottom left corner.
1969–71	As above, but with "NEW MEXICO USA" embossed in narrow red block letters centered at bottom	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" as on 1961–64 base	1-12345 1-A1234 1/0-12345	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 1/0)	No change to positioning of slogan. Single-digit county plates initially had "19" embossed in the bottom left corner.
1972–74	Embossed red numbers on white steel plate with border line; red Zia sun symbol embossed in the center; "NEW MEXICO USA" embossed in red block letters centered at bottom; "72" embossed in bottom left corner	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in red block letters centered at top	ABC-123	AAA-001 to BCT-999	Letters I, O, Q, U and V not used in serials from 1973 onwards.^[1]
1974	Red numbers on white paper plate; red Zia sun symbol in the center; "NEW MEXICO" in red serifed letters centered at bottom; "74" in bottom right corner	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" in red serifed letters centered at top	ABC-123	BCW-001 to BFC-999	Temporary plates issued due to steel shortage.
1974	As 1972–74 plates, but aluminum rather than steel, and with "74" embossed in bottom left corner	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" as on 1972–74 plates	ABC-123	BCW-001 to BFC-999	Replacements for paper plates.
1974–76	As 1972–74 plates, but aluminum rather than steel	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" as on 1972–74 plates	ABC-123	BFD-001 to BTM-999
1976–78	Embossed red numbers on white plate; red Zia sun symbol embossed in the center; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in red block letters centered at bottom; "72" embossed in bottom left corner; stamped indentation at top center for county-name sticker	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in red block letters centered between numbers and state name	ABC-123	BTN-001 to approximately CCW-999
1978–82	Similar to 1976–78 plates, but yellow rather than white, and with no embossed year	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" as on 1976–78 plates	ABC-123	CCX-001 to approximately EGZ-999
1982 – mid 1988	Embossed red numbers on yellow plate; red Zia sun symbol embossed in the center; "New Mexico" screened in wide red serifed letters centered below numbers; stamped indentation at top center for county-name sticker	"Land of Enchantment" screened in narrow red block letters centered below state name	ABC-123	EHA-001 to approximately KAJ-999
mid 1988 – late 1990	As above, but with "USA" added after state name		ABC-123	KAK-001 to approximately LKL-999
late 1990 – early 1991	Embossed red numbers on yellow plate; red Zia sun symbol embossed in the center; light blue yucca graphic screened at bottom left corner and Native American zigzag bands screened at top corners; "New Mexico USA" screened in red serifed letters centered below numbers; stamped indentation at top center for county-name sticker	"Land of Enchantment" screened in light blue block letters centered below state name	ABC-123	LKM-001 to approximately LLL-999	Replaced all 1972–90 plates. Letter E not used in 123-ABC serial format (in addition to I, O, Q, U and V).^[1] County-name stickers discontinued sometime after 1996.
early 1991 – mid 1997			123-ABC	001-AAA to approximately 999-KFG
mid – late 1997	As above, but without yucca graphic and slogan	none	123-ABC	001-KFH to approximately 999-KHM	Erroneously made on trailer base.
late 1997 – late 1998	As 1990–97 plates	"Land of Enchantment" as on 1990–97 plates	123-ABC	001-KHN to approximately 999-LRK
late 1998 – present	As above, but with smaller dies and no stamped indentation at top center	"Land of Enchantment" as on 1990–97 plates	123-ABC	001-MAA to 999-TJK (as of January 1, 2016)

Optional types

Dates issued	Design	Slogan	Serial format	Serials issued	Notes
1999–2010	Embossed red numbers on white, yellow and orange gradient plate; green, yellow, orange and red hot air balloon graphic screened at far left with red Zia sun symbol on yellow section; "NEW MEXICO USA" screened in yellow serifed letters centered at bottom	"Land of Enchantment" screened in yellow serifed letters between numbers and state name	NM1234	NM0001 to NM9999
			1NM234	0NM001 to 9NM999
			12NM34	00NM01 to 99NM99
			123NM4	000NM1 to 999NM9
			1234NM	0001NM to 9999NM
			AB 123	AA 001 to BZ 999
			ABC123	CAA001 to LGP999
2010–present	Embossed yellow numbers on turquoise plate with border line; yellow and red Zia sun symbol embossed in the center; "NEW MEXICO" and "CENTENNIAL 1912-2012" screened in white block letters centered below and above numbers respectively	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" screened in yellow block letters centered below state name	ABC-123	LGR-001 to NPJ-999 (as of January 1, 2016)	Awarded "Plate of the Year" for best new license plate of 2010 by the Automobile License Plate Collectors Association, the first time New Mexico was so honored.

Non-passenger plates

Type	Dates issued	Design	Slogan	Serial format	Serials issued
Truck	1961–63	Embossed green numbers on reflective white plate with border line; embossed green Zia sun symbol used as separator; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in wide green block letters at bottom	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in narrow green block letters at top	1-12345 1/0-12345	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 1/0)
	1964–65	Embossed black numbers on reflective yellow plate with border line; embossed black Zia sun symbol used as separator; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in wide black block letters at bottom	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in narrow black block letters at top	1-12345 1/0-12345	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 1/0)
	1966–70	Embossed navy blue numbers on reflective white plate with border line; embossed navy blue Zia sun symbol used as separator; "NEW MEXICO" embossed in wide navy blue block letters at bottom	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in narrow navy blue block letters at top	1-12345 1/0-12345	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 1/0)
	1971–74	Embossed white numbers on reflective pale green plate with border line; embossed white Zia sun symbol used as separator; "NEW MEXICO USA" embossed in narrow white block letters at bottom	"LAND OF ENCHANTMENT" embossed in narrow white block letters at top	1-12345 1/0-12345	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 1/0)

County coding, 1947–74

New Mexico established a numeric county-code system for its passenger and truck plates in 1947. Santa Fe County was assigned code 1, while the remaining counties were assigned codes 2 through 31 in order of the number of registered vehicles in the county. Following shifts in these numbers, codes 2 through 31 were re-allocated in 1948, after which they remained constant.^[1] Los Alamos County was created in 1949, and subsequently assigned code 32.

The codes were discontinued on passenger plates in 1972, and on truck plates in 1975. From 1976 until sometime after 1996, the county of issuance was displayed on a sticker at the top of the plate.

County	1947	1948-74
Santa Fe	1	1
Bernalillo	2	2
Eddy	7	3
Chaves	3	4
Curry	5	5
Lea	4	6
Doña Ana	6	7
Grant	8	8
Colfax	10	9
Quay	11	10
Roosevelt	9	11
San Miguel	13	12
McKinley	12	13
Valencia	15	14
Otero	14	15
San Juan	18	16
Rio Arriba	19	17
Union	17	18
Luna	16	19
Taos	21	20
Sierra	22	21
Torrance	20	22
Hidalgo	24	23
Guadalupe	27	24
Socorro	25	25
Lincoln	26	26
De Baca	23	27
Catron	28	28
Sandoval	29	29
Mora	31	30
Harding	30	31
Los Alamos	–	32

Cibola County was created in 1981, after the codes had been discontinued.

References

1 2 3 "New Mexico License Plates". allaboutlicenseplates.com. Retrieved August 16, 2016.

External links

New Mexico license plates 1969-present

Vehicle registration plates of the United States

States	Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming

Federal district	Washington, D.C.

Insular areas	American Samoa Guam Northern Mariana Islands Puerto Rico U.S. Virgin Islands

Other registration plates	Native American tribes Designs and serial formats

By year	1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Vehicle registration plates of North America

Sovereign states	Antigua and Barbuda Bahamas Barbados Belize Canada Costa Rica Cuba Dominica Dominican Republic El Salvador Grenada Guatemala Haiti Honduras Jamaica Mexico Nicaragua Panama Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Trinidad and Tobago United States

Dependencies and other territories	Anguilla Aruba Bermuda Bonaire British Virgin Islands Cayman Islands Curaçao Greenland Guadeloupe Martinique Montserrat Puerto Rico Saint Barthélemy Saint Martin Saint Pierre and Miquelon Saba Sint Eustatius Sint Maarten Turks and Caicos Islands United States Virgin Islands

State of New Mexico

Santa Fe (capital)

Topics	Index Delegations Geography Government History World War II Landmarks Military Nuevomexicanos New Mexicans Paleontology Municipalities Census-designated places Symbols Transportation Tribes Tourist attractions New Mexican cuisine

Society	Crime Culture Demographics Economy Education Politics

Regions	Central New Mexico Colorado Plateau Eastern New Mexico Llano Estacado Northern New Mexico Permian Basin San Luis Valley Sangre de Cristo Mountains Southwestern New Mexico

Cities	Alamogordo Albuquerque Artesia Carlsbad Clovis Corrales Deming Española Farmington Gallup Grants Hobbs Las Cruces Las Vegas Los Alamos Los Lunas Lovington Portales Raton Rio Rancho Roswell Ruidoso Santa Fe Silver City Socorro Sunland Park Taos Tucumcari

Counties	See: List of counties in New Mexico Bernalillo Catron Chaves Cibola Colfax Curry De Baca Doña Ana Eddy Grant Guadalupe Harding Hidalgo Lea Lincoln Los Alamos Luna McKinley Mora Otero Quay Rio Arriba Roosevelt San Juan San Miguel Sandoval Santa Fe Sierra Socorro Taos Torrance Union Valencia

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