Illinois Banned License Plates

Looking for a new, custom license plate for your vehicle in Illinois? Did you know that some of the vanity license plates are banned or rejected? But don’t worry! This article covers every detail about Illinois-banned license plates and more.

What Types of License Plates Exist?

Illinois Secretary of State lists several types of license plates. They are based on the status of the driver and the vehicle type. For example, there are basic passenger vehicle license plates, vanity license plates, personalized license plates, etc.

Why Do Vanity Plates Get Rejected?

Vanity license plates give you the opportunity of choosing your preferred set of numbers and letters for your vehicle license plate. However, sometimes the combination of letters and numbers makes up an offensive word or expression. That is the reason why some custom vanity license plates get rejected or even banned.

Limitations on Illinois Personalized and Vanity License Plates

If you are looking for a personalized vanity license plate, you also have to take into consideration the following limitations:

• Mix of letters and numbers
• Using space in between the letters
• Lowercase letters

Types of Illinois Banned License Plates

More than 6000 vanity license plates are banned in Illinois. This means that either they are offensive or overly creative. Below are some examples of such license plates.

• NUTJOB
• HAFNKED
• DABUTT
• VODKA
• LMFAO
• IPOOP
• IFART
• FOBAMA
• DEADGRL
• BRDPOO

Examples of Illinois Offensive Vanity License Plates

Below are several examples of offensive vanity license plates in Illinois.

• TEABAG
• PACKSUX
• IDHITIT
• NIKLBAG

The first vanity plate name, for example, is offensive, especially if the driver of the vehicle is British.

Do I Have to Pay for a Custom Vanity License Plate?

Personalized vanity custom plates cost a certain amount. In addition, you have to pay application and registration fees as well.

What is the Cost of a Custom License Plate in Illinois?

If you are looking for a custom license plate, you need to be a registered owner and the plate must be registered to an Illinois vehicle. If your vehicle is newly acquired, the cost of a vanity license plate is $94 plus the registration fees. In case of a personalized license plate, the cost is $47 plus registration fees.

Other Limitations on Illinois Custom Vanity License Plates

Illinois vanity license plates contain either up to 3 numbers or 1-7 letters. Custom vanity license plates can contain a mixture of letters and numbers only if the number of characters is no more than 7.

How to Order a Custom Illinois Vanity License Plate

Below are the steps you need to complete to get your vanity or custom license plate registered:

1. Visit the official website of the state of Illinois
2. Choose Online Services from the dropdown menu
3. Click on the License Plate Purchasing option
4. Choose the type of your vehicle
5. Choose your license plate theme from the available options
6. Select either a vanity license plate or a custom license plate
7. Choose the message of your plate
8. Check the availability of the plate
9. Verify your information and pay the application fees

You will receive an approval or rejection letter within 2-4 weeks.