[Car Knowledge] Knowledge about retaining license plates and duplicating license plates! I often hear people talking about retaining duplicate license plates, but what exactly is this?

If the ID number is a unique identification for each person, then the license plate number is the ID number of a car, right?

All vehicles must be registered and licensed before they can be driven or used on the road. Each vehicle generally only needs to be registered once with the Transport Department. After the registration is completed, the Transport Department will assign a vehicle registration number - also known as the "license plate number". Although car dealers usually handle vehicle registration and licensing for customers, many people like to equip their cars with a meaningful license plate number. What procedures are required to "change the identity" of your car? After changing to a new car, can the license plate number you are using be transferred to the new car?

Changing a license plate number usually involves two procedures: retaining the license plate and duplicating the license plate.

In the Hong Kong automobile industry, "retaining a fake license plate" is a common term. "Keep cards" and "Deck cards".

stay card

1. definition
   • "Retaining the license plate" means that when a car owner scraps or sells the car, he or she applies to the Transport Department to retain the license plate number of the vehicle (i.e. license plate number retention) so that it can be transferred to another car for use in the future.
2. Purpose
   • It allows car owners to keep their favorite or commemorative license plate numbers without losing them when the vehicle is scrapped or sold.
3. program
   • Vehicle owners need to go to the Transport Department to complete the license plate retention procedures and pay the relevant handling fees.
   • After retaining the license plate, the number will be temporarily kept by the Transport Department and can be transferred to another new or used car within a specified period (usually 12 months).
   • If the number is not used within the specified period, it may be revoked or require an extension.

Decks

- Definition

• That is, a reserved license plate number or one obtained from an auction is applied to a vehicle under the name of the same owner.
• The license plate application process itself is free, but if you use a license plate number that you won at a license plate auction or that was allocated at a special fee, you will have to pay a license plate registration fee ($100).

It is advisable to clarify the order of procedures <br>If you need to apply for a series of license plate retention, license plate duplication or transfer, you should pay more attention to the order of submitting different applications and the requirements of each procedure. Otherwise, you will spend your time, effort and money, but fail to achieve the expected results, and even lose your favorite license plate number!

The following are the Transport Department’s Detailed instructions for the retention deck procedure:

https://www.1823.gov.hk/en/faq/knowing-how-to-change-the-id-of-your-vehicle