New Mexico License Plates

The current base became available in 1991, replacing all earlier issues.

The letters E, I, O, U, Q, and V are not used on any of the regular passenger issues.

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Believed to be the mail-out series.

This plate began in 2010 as a Centennial commemorative, replacing the Balloon plate. It started at LGR-001.

Low: LGR-012

RU- and RV- skipped.

Believed to be the mail-out series.

Balloon base

This plate is missing "Land of Enchantment" and the plant in the lower left corner. The wheelchair logo is on the left, and H/P was originally stacked on the right, but now it has shifted to the left after 9999 H/P. "Handicapped" is embossed below the numbers.

The latest high for this type was on the Centennial base.

Centennial MC high: 21787A 2015-07-06 Phil Tonin

Balloon base, stacked r/v with a big A at end.

New type with Green/Yellow fade with Zia sun offset to the upper right.

G 92371 is the high for the former type.

These were on the Balloon base, but no longer. The change might have been with the J series.

Balloon high: 09797T/RH

This series went on sale January 1, 2024. Proceeds benefit the Acequia and Community Ditch Fund (ACDF).

This new plate is available only to residents of Las Cruces. When a person holding a special City of Las Cruces registration plate ceases to reside in Las Cruces, that person shall immediately remove the special City of Las Cruces registration plate from the vehicle; return it to the Motor Vehicle Division; and exchange it for another plate.

For purposes of plate issuance to residents of Las Cruces, the vehicle's current registration must show a Las Cruces (street or P.O. Box) address. No additional proof of residence is required.

The fee payable for the initial issuance of a special City of Las Cruces registration plate and for each subsequent renewal is thirty-seven dollars ($37.00) in addition to regular vehicle registration fees. Twenty-five dollars ($25.00) of the fee collected for each registration plate shall be distributed to the city of Las Cruces Recreation Fund.

After 9999S/U, the series changed to S/U0001

New Mexico Support Our Troops license plates feature the always-stacked U/S letters and are available in both passenger and motorcycle sizes. Passenger numbering format moved from 4-digits to five after 2999US was reached in 2008. US moved from suffix to prefix in mid-2024 and numbering reverted to 4-digits around the same time.

Progression: UNM001 - UNM999

001UNM - 999UNM

UNM0001 - UNM9999

0001UNM - 9999UNM

00UNM01 - 99UNM99

00001 and up

The latest design has an all-numeric 5 digit serial.

Progressed from D/V 9999 to D/V 001A, then to D/V A001..

New purple heart base. Purple letters and numbers on white base.

This optional base became available in 1999, but it was replaced in 2010 by the optional Centennial plate. Balloon plates are no longer available, but they are still valid.

Apparently issued NM1234, 1NM234, 12NM34, 123NM4, 1234NM, then AA 001 to BZ 999, then CAA001 to DZZ999. The E series was skipped on the balloon plates, so FAA001 followed DZZ999. The series ended at LGP999.