Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni , presenting the next budget yesterday, announced "the possibility, for those who wish to avail themselves of it, of having personalized license plates : one will be able to more or less indulge oneself as one wishes, obviously at a cost." "And something tells me," Meloni continued, "that the creativity of Italians here could come into its own."
The personalized license plates will be the same as the current ones, with combinations of 22 permitted letters and 3 central numeric characters.
The recent reform of the Highway Code unlocks their introduction in Italy, although they cannot be reserved immediately. The text of the new code must complete the parliamentary process and receive the opinions of the competent bodies (Council of State, Unified Conference) for final publication in the Official Journal. This is expected in the spring of next year.
The formal entry into force of the legislation is scheduled for January 1, 2028 , but following this step, the Civil Motorization Department will have to issue specific implementing regulations and update its IT systems and the Personalized License Plate Portal.
As indicated in the new Highway Code text, prices vary depending on the vehicle. For cars, the total cost (front and rear license plates) will be €600.
This figure includes 500 euros paid to the Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato for physical production and a 100 euro surcharge allocated to the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport (MIT).
For motorcycles, the price drops to €360. The €600 or €350 fee covers the choice of combination and license plate production, plus the standard registration fees. The new "on-demand" license plates, as specified by the legislation, can only have the standard structure. Font style, plate size, position, and colors (white background with black characters and blue lateral bands) will remain identical to those currently in force and coordinated with European standards. Considering that the initial letter H has now been reached and will presumably last until 2028 (when the J will arrive), combinations of letters and numbers already assigned will be prohibited. However, license plates used from February 28, 1994, until today, and then made "free," will be allowed to be used. The license plate will remain linked to the vehicle and not the person . It will therefore last until its demolition, potentially creating—as is already happening in the United Kingdom—a parallel market for used "designer" cars.
It's also important to note that in the event of theft or loss of your personalized license plate, you can still request a duplicate with the same combination. The combination, starting from the letter J and above, will not be 100% free. Historically prohibited letters (such as I, O, Q, and U) will be excluded, as they can be confusing to read. Accented or foreign letters are also excluded: Characters such as Ç, Ñ, Ö, Ü, or special symbols cannot be used. Creativity—as cited by Prime Minister Meloni—will therefore be allowed to unleash its full potential by using the remaining 22 letters, including X, Y, W, K, and J, which are permitted. The scheme will therefore be a fixed 7-character scheme (AA 000 AA) with central numbers from 0 to 9.
(Unioneonline)