Vehicle registration plates of Iowa

The U.S. state of Iowa first required its residents to register their motor vehicles and display license plates in 1911.

Passenger plates 1913 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 1955 (dated 1956) issue was the first Iowa license plate to comply with these standards

Image	Dates issued	Description	Slogan	Serial format	Serials issued	Notes
150px	1913	Black lettering on white base	none
150px	1915	Black lettering on yellow base	none
150px	1919	White lettering on brown base	none
150px	1920	Black lettering on light green base	none
150px	1921	Silver lettering on black base	none
150px	1922	Black lettering on silver base	none
150px	1923	Yellow-orange lettering on black base	none
150px	1924	White lettering on black base	none
150px	1925	Black lettering on gray base	none
150px	1926	White lettering on maroon base	none
150px	1927	Orange lettering on dark blue base	none
150px	1928	Black lettering on white base	none			Prefix letters used to avoid 7-digit plates
150px	1929	Black lettering on dark green base	none			Prefix letters used to avoid 7-digit plates
150px	1930	White lettering on dark blue base	none
150px	1932	White lettering on maroon base	none
150px	1933	White embossed lettering and border on navy background	none	Coded by county of issuance (e.g., "1" for Adair County) 12-3456
150px	1934	Yellow lettering on dark blue base	none
150px	1935	White lettering on dark blue base	none
150px	1936	Dark blue lettering on white base	none
150px	1937	White lettering on dark blue base	none
150px	1940	Dark blue lettering on orange base	none
150px	1941	Black lettering on white base	none
150px	1946	White lettering on black base	none
150px	1947	Black lettering on white base	none
150px	1948	Yellow on silver tab used on 1947 base	none
150px	1949	White embossed lettering and border on black background	none	Coded by county of issuance 12-3456		Aluminum with "waffle" pattern hatching texture for strength
150px	1950	Black lettering on white base	none
150px	1951	Red on silver tab on 1950 base	none
150px	1952	White lettering on black base	none
150px	1953	Black lettering on white base	The Corn State			First year a motto of any kind appeared on the plate. Rather than use the official nickname of "The Hawkeye State", they chose the unofficial nickname of "The Corn State".
150px	1955	Orange on silver tab on 1953 base	The Corn State
150px	1956	White lettering on black base	none
150px	1957	Black on silver tab on 1956 base	none
150px	1958	Black lettering on white base	none
150px	1959	Black lettering on yellow base	none
150px	1960	Black lettering on light gray base	none
150px	1961	Black lettering on yellow base	none
150px	1962	Black lettering on white base	none
150px	1963	White lettering on black base	none
150px	1964	White lettering on green base	none
150px	1965	White lettering on dark blue base	none
150px	1966	White lettering on red base	none
150px	1967	Black lettering on white base	none
150px	1968	Red lettering on white base	none
150px	1969	Black lettering on white base	none
150px	1970	Red lettering on white base	none
150px	1971	Black lettering on white base	none
150px	1972–74	Embossed black numbers on yellow plate with border line; "IOWA 72" embossed in black block letters centered at top; black sticker box embossed in top right corner	none	1-123456 1/0 123456	Coded by county of issuance (1 or 1/0)	Revalidated for 1973 and 1974 with stickers.
				0/0 12345	0/0 1 to ?	Non-resident plates; revalidated in the same manner as county-coded plates.
150px	1975–78	Embossed black numbers on white plate with border line; "IOWA 75" embossed in black block letters centered at top	none	1 ABC123 1/0 ABC123	1 AAA000 to 9/9 HMZ999	Three-letter serials assigned in blocks to each county (1 or 1/0); this practice continues today.
				HNA123 0/0 HNA123	HNA000 to 0/0 HNZ999	Non-resident plates; issued with "NON RESIDENT" legend at bottom or 0/0 code at far left.
150px	1979–85	White numbers on green plate with border line; "IOWA" and county name in white block letters centered at top and bottom respectively; "79" in top right corner. Plate elements either embossed (above) or debossed (below).	county name	ABC 123	AAA 000 to approximately KCZ 999	County codes abolished after 57 years, replaced by county names at bottom of plate. Whether the plate was embossed or debossed depended on the county of issuance. HNA 000 to HNZ 999 issued on non-resident plates, which omitted the county name at the bottom.
150px
150px	1986–96	Embossed white numbers on blue plate with border line; "IOWA" and county name embossed in white block letters centered at top and bottom respectively; "86" embossed in top right corner	county name	ABC 123	LAA 000 to YZZ 999
150px	1996–98	Embossed blue numbers on graphic plate with light blue sky, white city skyline and gray farm scene; "IOWA" screened in blue serifed letters centered at top; county name on sticker centered at bottom	county name	123 ABC	000 AAA to approximately 399 FSK
	1998 – mid 2001	As above, but with county name screened in blue block letters			Exclusively from 400 FSK to approximately 999 HMY; intermittently from 000 HMZ to approximately 999 JYC
	mid 2000 – late 2011	As above, but with numbers screened rather than embossed			Intermittently from 000 HMZ to approximately 999 JYC; exclusively from 000 JYD to approximately 999 YPK	Originally issued in eight most populous counties (Black Hawk, Dubuque, Johnson, Linn, Polk, Pottawattamie, Scott, Woodbury); issued in all counties from mid-2001. 000 KDA to 999 KZC skipped in error; 000 SAA to 999 SHG reserved for Special plates; U and V not used as first letters in serials.
150px	late 2011 – early 2012	As above, but with numbers, state name and county name in black rather than blue	county name	123 ABC	000 YPL to approximately 999 YXZ
	early – late 2012				000 YYA to 999 ZZZ	Zeros became slashed.
	late 2012 – present			ABC 123	AAA 000 to EAG 999 (as of December 16, 2015)

Current non-passenger and optional types

Non-passenger types

Image	Type	First issued	Serial format	Notes
	Apportioned Power Unit		PA 1234	Plate color is green on white, issued to semis, or commercial vehicles only
	Apportioned Trailer		TA 1234	Plate is green on white. Issued to semi trailers only.
	Dealer		D1 D12 D123 D1234	Plus one- to three-digit suffix that ascends for each dealer. Plate color is red and blue on white.
	Motorcycle		1234 AB	With the exception of the size (1/4 that of a standard plate), and that only one plate is issued, there is no difference in the motorcycle plate and the standard issue license plate.
	Official		123456	All official plates are black on white.
	State Patrol		123 or 1234	State trooper's plates are official plates that are colored black on yellow, with two red stars on either side of the plate number. The plate number of each car is also the badge number for that trooper, excluding post 16, who drive pool cars assigned numbers which are currently not being used by another trooper.. The sequence is never below 2 numbers, and never higher than 3 numbers. These are placed on marked units only. Unmarked units have regular issued State of Iowa plates.
150px	Official County		12345	County plates appear the same as the standard official plates.
	County Sheriff's Department		S00-1234	Plates are forest green on white, with the symbol of the Sheriff's star on the far left side of the plate. A two number prefix with an S in front of it and to the left of the hyphen refers to the county to which the car is attached (i.e. the prefix S29 would be a deputy from Des Moines County while a prefix of S56 would denote a deputy from Lee County), the numbers appearing to the right of the hyphen correspond to the badge number of the deputy that is driving. These are placed on marked units only.
	Special		123 SAB (000 SAA to 999 SHG)	"Special" screened vertically to left of serial.
150px	Trailer		1234 AB

Optional types

Iowa offers its motorists a number of optional issue designs that are available upon the payment of an additional fee.

Plates of all types other than the university types are available for both automobiles and motorcycles, the latter using a smaller overall plate size. University Plates are the only plates not colored the same as the standard issue plate, the color scheme is a yellow base, with the university's main sports team color on both the numbers, and a header denoting the school (i.e. red for Iowa State University, black for University of Iowa, purple for UNI, et cetera).

Image	Type	First issued	Serial format	Notes
	Air Force Cross			Must present military form DD-214 showing receipt of medal to be issued. Issuance is strictly regulated by the Iowa Department of Transportation, and the Iowa Department of Veterans' Affairs.
	Airman's Medal			Must present military form DD-214 showing receipt of medal to be issued. Plate issuance is strictly regulated by the Iowa Department of Transportation, and the Iowa Department of Veterans' Affairs.
	Breast Cancer Awareness		123BA
	Bronze Star			Must present military form DD-214 showing receipt of medal to be issued. As with all plates denoting high issue military medals, the issuance of this plate is strictly regulated by the Iowa Department of Transportation, and the Iowa Department of Veterans' Affairs.
	Cattlemen Care		CA123 123CA 123CI
	Congressional Medal of Honor—Air Force		the plate number is the number of issuance of the medal	plate is light blue on white, with the words "Medal of Honor" in place of county name. Plate is issued by the state Veterans Administration.
	Congressional Medal of Honor—Army		plate number is medal issuance number	county name replaced with the words "Medal of Honor." Plate is light blue on white. Plate is issued by state Veterans Administration. Must provide Military form DD-214 showing receipt of medal, as well as a copy of the medal certificate. Medal of Honor plates issued for all branches of service are strictly regulated.
	Congressional Medal of Honor—Navy		Plate number is medal issuance number	county name replaced with the words "Medal of Honor." Plate is light blue on white. Plate is issued by state Veterans Administration
	Distinguished Service Cross		DSC123 DSC1234	Must present military form DD-214 showing receipt of medal to be issued
	Education			Must show NEA membership card and hold credentials as a schoolteacher to be issued.
	Emergency Medical Services		123EM 123EN	You need your signature and your director's signature notarized proving that you are indeed a member of a paid or volunteer EMS service in Iowa
	Masons			Must provide membership in an area Freemasons Lodge to be issued this plate
	Ex-Prisoner of War		POW123 POW1234	Must present military form DD-214 showing receipt of the POW medal before issuance.
	Firefighter		FF123 123FF FD123 123FD 1234F F1234	Must have Firefighter's Identification before issuance. Plate is red on white, with nationally recognized firefighter's insignia in far left side, and reads "Firefighter," in place of county name.
	God Bless America		US123 123US 123UA 123UD 123UE 123UK 123UP 123UQ 123UR 123UT
	Gold Star Mothers/Wives			Must have proof of membership within Gold Star Mother's, or Gold Star Wives in order to be issued this plate
	Iowa Heritage
	Iowa State University		ISU1234
	Legion of Merit			Must present military form DD-214 showing receipt of medal to be issued.
	Love Our Kids		K1234
	Motorcycle Rider
	National Guard		N1234	Must have Military Identification denoting member of National Guard in order to be issued this plate.
	Natural Resources – Bald eagle		AB 123
	Natural Resources – Goldfinch/wild rose		AB123 AB 123
	Natural Resources – Pheasant		AB 123
	Navy and Marine Corps Medal			Must present military form DD-214 showing receipt of medal to be issued.
	Navy Cross		NC123 NC1234	Must present military form DD-214 showing receipt of medal to be issued.
	Organ and Tissue Donor Awareness		U1234 1234U	Must provide proof as an organ, or tissue donor (usually found on drivers license), to be issued this plate
	Pearl Harbor Survivor			Must have proof to be issued this plate. Proof would consist of Military form DD-214, denoting that applicant was stationed on any one of the eight Battleships moored at Pearl Harbor Dec. 7, 1941, or any smaller vessel that was documented to be at Pearl Harbor during the attack. In place of county name, the plate reads Pearl Harbor Survivor. Can have ship's hull number placed as plate number for no extra charge, provided the sequence is not already taken by another motorist.
150px	Persons with Disabilities		C1234 1234C J1234 1234J Y1234 1234Y 1234Z, Z1234	Must have proof of disability, as well as the signature of a board certified doctor before plate is issued. Nobody can be issued this plate without the approval of the Iowa Department of Transportation. The plate is marked with the universal handicapped symbol on the far left hand side, with the serial number following, the one letter four number combination can either be with the letter first, or last in sequence.
	Purple Heart		P1234	Must present military form DD-214 showing receipt of medal to be issued
	Retired Air Force		R1234	Must present Military Identification Card denoting retirement to be issued.
	Retired Army		R1234	Must have military identification card denoting retirement to be issued
	Retired Coast Guard		R1234	Must present Coast Guard identification card showing retirement to be issued
	Retired Marines		R1234	Must have military identification card denoting retirement to be issued
	Retired Navy		R1234	Must have military identification card denoting retirement to be issued
	Share the Road		SR123 (passenger) 123SU (motorcycle)
	Shriners		ZA123 ZB123	Must present a Shriners membership card to be issued
	Silver Star			Must present military form DD-214 showing receipt of medal to be issued
	Soldier's Medal			Must present military form DD-214 showing receipt of medal to be issued
	University of Iowa		UI 1234
	University of Northern Iowa		UNI1234
	Veteran		V1234	Plate appears as standard plate, with an American flag to the far left, with the word "Veteran" above, plate is issued by the state Veteran's Administration, all applying must have copy of Military form DD-214 denoting Honorable Discharge in order to receive the Veterans plate.
	Police Department		1234567	Plate is white on dark blue, with a police officer's badge from the corresponding city on the left side, along with a seven digit number, and at the bottom, the City Police Department of issuance. These are issued only by the local police departments within the state, and placed on marked units only upon receipt of vehicle. They are illegal to be displayed by non-police officers.

Previous non-passenger and optional types

Optional types

Image	Type	First issued	Design	Serial format	Notes
150px	Sesquicentennial of statehood	1992	red on reflective white with blue and red graphics	S123456	Plate is outdated, and no longer used.
	Sesquicentennial of statehood	1992	red on reflective multicolored background	123456S	Plate is outdated, and no longer used.

External links

• Iowa license plates 1969-present