Bulgaria

International code: BG
ISO code: BG / BGR
Data status: Verified

Plates show the state or region of registration.

Explore 28 provinces on the map Driving in Bulgaria: plates, vignettes and zones

Current plate formats

StandardSince 1992
CB 1234 AB
The code of the province of first registration (one or two letters), four digits and a one- or two-letter series. Only 12 letters are used, and only nine of them in the series. E in the series is reserved for trailers, apart from a few busy provinces that started using it in 2022 (Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna). A single series letter is found on motorcycles and mopeds. Plates have carried the blue EU strip since 2007 (the Bulgarian flag between 2000 and 2007). Custom plates are possible for a fee and drop the series.
black on white
Make this plate →
ElectricSince 2022
EA 1234 AB
Electric vehicles since 17 November 2022, with dark green characters. EA for cars and EM for motorcycles replace the province code, so the plate does not show where the vehicle was registered.
#1b7a3a on white
Make this plate →
TemporaryCurrent
123 H 456
Three digits, a letter and three digits, with a red stripe on the right that shows the year (and sometimes the month) of expiry. H is for unregistered or exported vehicles, M for the same since 2017 when the H series ran out, and B for car dealers.
black on white
Make this plate →
DiplomaticCurrent
CC 1234
White characters on red. C is for diplomats, CC for consular staff and CT for other staff of missions. The first two digits are the code of the country of the mission, and two small digits at the lower right give the year of expiry.
white on red
Make this plate →
TemporaryCurrent
XX 1234 25
White characters on light blue, for vehicles of foreigners brought into Bulgaria for a limited time. XX (and XH since 2019) is followed by four digits and two small digits for the year of expiry.
white on #8ecbea
Make this plate →
MilitaryCurrent
BA 123 456
Bulgarian Army (BA, from Българска армия), with six digits, since 2006. Civil Protection vehicles used CP and five digits, no longer issued.
black on white
Make this plate →

Area codes (30)

Each code opens a page with the region it stands for.

History

1958
Black plates with white characters for private vehicles (white with black for state vehicles), written with a Cyrillic province abbreviation such as Сф for Sofia.
1986
New plates in the format X(X) NNNN Y(Y), yellow for private and white for state vehicles, with E in the series for trailers.
1992
Province codes are changed to the 12 Cyrillic letters that look like Latin ones. Plates become white with black characters, and the hyphens disappear in 1993.
2006
Sofia moves from C to CA, after C ran out in late 2005 (CB follows in 2014). A blue strip with the Bulgarian flag becomes mandatory on 1 July.
2007
Bulgaria joins the EU on 1 January and plates with the EU flag and BG on the blue strip replace the national flag in the following months (some references date the change to 2008).
2019
Plates no longer have to be changed when a registered vehicle is sold, so the code shows only where the vehicle was first registered.
2022
Green electric vehicle plates start with EA and EM, and busy provinces start using E as a series letter.