DVLA To Commence New Number Plate Issuance early 2026

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) has announced that all vehicles in Ghana will receive new RFID-compliant number plates beginning April 1, 2026, as part of efforts to digitise vehicle identification and enhance road management systems nationwide.

The new plates, equipped with Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology, will enable authorities to digitally scan and identify vehicles for electronic tolling, speed monitoring, and traffic law enforcement.

According to the DVLA, the rollout will be implemented in phases, starting with new vehicle registrations from January 1, 2026, followed by the re-registration of all existing vehicles from April 1, 2026.

DVLA Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Foster Akwasi Asante Esq, said the reform represents a major milestone in Ghana’s transport digitisation agenda.

He explained that the new system will replace the existing format.

“Each plate will indicate the region and zone where the vehicle was registered — for instance, a vehicle registered in the Adenta zone of Greater Accra will end with the code ‘AD’, replacing the year display such as ‘25’ for 2025,” he said.

The DVLA boss added that the reform will also address the abuse of “DV” (Defective Vehicle) plates, which are often misused by private vehicle owners.

The Authority is introducing new DV and Temporary (TMP) plates, alongside a special sticker system to identify vehicles that are not yet ready for road use.

Some stakeholders who attended the program commended the government for that initiative.

Stating that, it will help eliminate smuggling of vehicles with or without registration numbers.

End.