Vehicle Registration Plates of Malta - Pre-1995 Number-Plates

Pre-1995 Number-Plates

Prior to 1995, all number-plates in Malta used the format Z-9999 (a letter and 4 numbers, with a hyphen between the letter and the first number). Towards the right there was the letter M (for Malta) in a circle. Although all characters were printed in black, the background colour varied according to the vehicle's use:

• Rental cars: all started with an X (e.g. X-0001) and had a yellow background
• Taxis/buses/minibuses/coaches: all started with a Y (e.g. Y-0001) and had a red background
• Privately-owned cars: characters were randomly chosen (i.e. all except for M,Z,X,P and Q) had a white background.
• Diplomatic and tax exempt cars: all started with a Z (e.g. Z-0001) and had a white background.
• Privately owned Scooters and Motorbikes: all started with a P or Q (e.g. P-0001) and had a white background. Unlike the current system, these had licence plates attached to both the front and rear.