Quebec

Quebec 1969 passenger issue. From 1964 through 1971, this plate format with a fleur-de-lys symbol and embossed year at the left was used. Plates carried the slogan "La Belle Province" ("The Beautiful Province") and were issued in a 1A-2345 format (using letters A-T, excluding I, O and Q).

Quebec 1970 passenger issue. Same format as above in white on green. V, Z and some X plates were added to the series of letters in use for 1969 on this plate.

Quebec 1971 passenger issue. This odd color combination (described in the ALPCA archives as "black on metallic pea green") has been called one of the uglier plates in recent history. The format for this year was all numeric through 999-999, then 1A-2345 format as before, using letters A-K (excluding I).

Quebec 1971 passenger issue. Another of these metallic pea-green beauties, this time in the 1A-2345 format. These plates only reached the "K" series, making this one of the higher-numbered plates produced on this base.

Quebec 1972 passenger issue. This plate marked a format change for the province, with the fleur-de-lys and year moved to the top corners of the plate. Serial format was the same as 1971, with the all numeric plates followed by 1A-2345 plates using letters A-N, excluding I and L.

Quebec 1972 passenger issue. Another 1972 issue, in the 1A-2345 format.

Quebec 1973 passenger issue. Format was changed once again, using the fleur-de-lys as the separator and adding an embossed "19" to the top left corner as part of the date. Plates were issued in the same serial formats as the 1972 plates, with this one being of the all-numeric variety.

Quebec 1973 passenger issue. Continuation of the above series, once again the 1A-2345 format was used when the all-numeric plates were exhausted. The same set of letters that was used in 1972 carried over to the 1973 issue.

Quebec 1974 passenger issue. The fleur-de-lys was moved back to the top left and the serial format changed to a 123A456 format for these plates. This format would be used through 1982, with letters changing from year to year to avoid duplication.

Quebec 1975 passenger issue. The fleur-de-lys and date were reversed to opposite corners of the top of this plate. Again, the 123A456 format was used, with the letters A, K, N and S used.

Quebec 1975 passenger issue. This was a late-period 1975 Quebec plate which was made using the cream background color found on the 1976 plate rather than the white color on earlier 1975 plates. This was likely due to a run of 1975 plates being produced late in the year after production of the 1976 stock was already underway. These only appeared in the high "S" series of plates. My scanner tends to make all whites look pretty "cream" like, so you may have to take my word for the difference.

Quebec 1976 passenger issue. These plates were issued to commemorate the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal, featuring the Olympic rings at bottom center. The letters H, L, M and P were in use for this issue.

Quebec 1977 passenger issue. This plate design used a distinctive upper-and-lower case die set for the province name and slogan. I have distinct memories of my hometown of Saco, Maine being overrun with cars with these plates in the summer of 1977 as Quebecois tourists made their way to neighboring Old Orchard Beach. The letters R, S, T and V were used in 1977. This was the last year of the "La belle province" slogan.

Quebec 1978 passenger issue. This issue was similar in format to the 1977 plate, with the fleur-de-lys and province name swapping sides of the plate with the embossed date. This issue was the first to use the slogan "Je me souviens" ("I Remember"), which is a reference to the province's continuing struggle to maintain its distinct French culture within the rest of Canada and North America as a whole. It's considered a very political plate slogan, which remains in use today in Quebec. This was the last yearly issue for the province.

Quebec 1979 passenger issue. In 1979, these new plates were issued using the same format as the 1978 base but in blue on reflective white. These plates have debossed sticker boxes at the bottom corners for stickers, and remain in use today with proper validation (although plate stickers were discontinued in Quebec as of 1992). H, P, L, M and S were used as letters on these plates (in that order), which were issued with a couple different variations through the end of 1982. The first batch of these plates, in the "H", "P" and part of the "L" series were stamped very lightly, as can be seen in the incompletely stamped "u" in "Québec."

Quebec 1980 passenger issue (1979 base). Same format as above, later plates were subject to better manufacturing and more crisp stamping, resulting in a better quality plate.

Quebec 1981 passenger issue (1979 base). This plate was another variation of the 1979 base. Issued circa 1980, these plates had two bordered sticker boxes at the bottom edge of the plate. During this period, a short run of plates was made on galvanized steel stock rather than aluminum. These are quite rare and were only issued around the 807M to 830M series.

Quebec 1981 passenger issue (1979 base). Later variation of the above series. Starting in the late "M" series, Quebec began using reflective paint rather than sheeting, giving the background of the plate a more silvery-blue tint than white. This background paint was used through around 1986, when the province returned to traditional reflective sheeting.

Quebec invalidated passenger issue (1979 base). Another of the plates with the reflective paint, which was used for the entire "S" series following the "M" series. This plate is also marked by some of the runniest paint I've seen on a plate, and by a black sticker indicating that the plate has been invalidated. This sticker, with the circle and slash symbol on it, appears to be placed over a 1982 sticker on this plate. I believe that these stickers were used on plates that were turned in or otherwise invalidated before the registration stickers had run out.

Quebec 1984 passenger issue. Starting in 1983, these new plates were issued using the ABC-123 format and new, wider and bolder dies. Quebec used several subtle variations of these dies over the years, something I would not have noticed had it not been pointed out to me by fellow collector Manny Jacob of Ontario. Manny notes that the dies on this plate were featured on plates manufactured from the AAA series to the BNZ series. This general plate design, with some minor die variations and a numbering system change, remains in use today in Quebec. These plates remain valid along with the 79 base, without stickers.

Quebec 1987 passenger issue. Plates from the BPA series through the end of the DZZ series were produced in this style, featuring crisper stamping of the plate and slight variations in the dies for the fleur-de-lys, the province name and slogan. The serial dies appear to be identical to the AAA-BNZ series plate, as shown above.

Quebec 1988 passenger issue. Starting with the EAA series, there were more variations from the above issues. The font for the province name is similar to that on the BPA-DZZ plates, with the dies used for the serial made slightly wider and more rounded. The blue color is also somewhat darker on this plate than the earlier ones. This style was in use for the E, early J (JAA-JCZ), late K (KSA-KZZ), N, Q, R and early H (HAA through HBW 576) series of plates, in that order. The company which made these plates, Acme Co. of Montreal, went into bankruptcy during this stretch, resulting in the abrupt stopping point of HBW 576.

Quebec 1988 passenger issue. This is another variation of the die set used on this base. This plate uses dies that are less rounded than the plates above, which can be most easily noted by comparing the "8" characters between the plates. These dies were used for the rest of the J series (JDA-JZZ, the portion of the "J"s not previously used by Acme) and some K series plates (KAA through KRZ) before the province reverted back to the Acme series above.

Quebec 1991 passenger issue. Continuation of the die set found on the EEF plate above, this style was reverted back to after the "J" and "K" series plates listed above were issued. This plate also features some rather thick, runny blue paint, giving the numbers a bit of a textured appearance up close.

Quebec 1992 passenger issue. After Acme Co.'s bankruptcy, plates started being produced by a company called Relief Design in Saint-Louis-De-Blandford, Quebec. This company was a division of Waldale, Ltd. from Nova Scotia, who opened the branch in Quebec to meet the legal requirements that Quebec plates be produced in-province. Relief Design's first series of plates were produced in the previously skipped GAA to GZZ series, along with the rest of the H series (HCA-HZZ), the T series (TAA-TZZ) and the WAA series through XCZ. This series introduced yet another fleur-de-lys, slight variations again in the province name and slogan, and slightly different serial dies.

Quebec undated passenger issue (circa exp. 1995). In 1991, plate year stickers were discontinued, with the 1992 sticker being the last issue. Therefore, many 1979-91 plates can be seen on the road today with "92" stickers still displayed. From 1992 through 1995, plates continued to be issued with month stickers. From expiration year 1993 forward, the only way of telling if a Quebec plate is valid or not is to check the registration certificate for the vehicle. Dating plates from this era is somewhat difficult, although I've found a couple Quebec experts out there who have been kind enough to share expertise on the subject. This plate (along with the next two on the page) carries a variation in the fleur-de-lys logo at the top, and also the dies for the slogan at the bottom. This type was issued from the XDA series through the early Dxx series of the reversed-format 123-ABC plates.

Quebec undated passenger issue (circa exp. 1996). After 1995, from the late "Y" series on, Quebec plates were issued with no stickers at all. This plate was issued circa 1996, and would have been used exclusively without month or year stickers. Again with these plates, the registration certificate itself is the only way of proving valid registration.

Quebec undated passenger issue (circa exp. 1997). In late 1996, Quebec reached plate number ZZZ-999 and switched the sequence to a 123-ABC format. At the same time, the die set was modified slightly, with new dies used for the characters B, D, K, Q and R for better readability at a distance. Check the difference in the "Q" on this plate to the one above it. This variety of plate was in use through 1999, when more slight changes were made to the plate (see next).

Quebec undated passenger issue (circa exp. 1999). Plates from somewhere in the early-to-mid Dxx series through the end of the EXZ series used the same die set as previously, but were stamped much shallower than previous plates made by Relief Design. This difference may not appear on the scan, but is readily apparent when comparing two plates side by side. The practice of shallower stamping seems to have continued to the present, but with yet another die change taking place starting with the EYA series (see next.)

Quebec undated passenger issue (circa exp. 1999). This plate shows another die variation on these plates, using dies that are quite rounded for the numbers. See the difference between the squared-off "9" on the plate above and the rounded one on this plate. These dies are similar to those used on some 1991-era plates on this base. The sticker boxes (still present for some reason) and dies in general on this variety are also not stamped as deep as normal, resulting in what seems to be a less durable plate. This change occurred at the beginning of the "EYA" series of these plates and continues today.

Quebec undated passenger issue (circa exp. 2011). Quebec ran out of available combinations in the 123-ABC format in 2010, at which point this new A12-BCD format was introduced. The progression on these plates involves the first three characters going from B01 through Z99 before the final three plates advance (B01-AAA followed by B02-AAA through Z99-AAA, then flips to B01-AAB, etc.) A large number of letters are skipped in first position, including A, C, F, L, R, T and V, in addition to I, O and U not used in any position.

Additional Quebec information provided by: Stéphane Loysel, Manny Jacob, Jean-Louis Beaudoin, Andru Tomoiu

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Last Modified 10/10/2011 (added 2011 plate).

	Quebec 1969 passenger issue. From 1964 through 1971, this plate format with a fleur-de-lys symbol and embossed year at the left was used. Plates carried the slogan "La Belle Province" ("The Beautiful Province") and were issued in a 1A-2345 format (using letters A-T, excluding I, O and Q).
	Quebec 1970 passenger issue. Same format as above in white on green. V, Z and some X plates were added to the series of letters in use for 1969 on this plate.
	Quebec 1971 passenger issue. This odd color combination (described in the ALPCA archives as "black on metallic pea green") has been called one of the uglier plates in recent history. The format for this year was all numeric through 999-999, then 1A-2345 format as before, using letters A-K (excluding I).
	Quebec 1971 passenger issue. Another of these metallic pea-green beauties, this time in the 1A-2345 format. These plates only reached the "K" series, making this one of the higher-numbered plates produced on this base.
	Quebec 1972 passenger issue. This plate marked a format change for the province, with the fleur-de-lys and year moved to the top corners of the plate. Serial format was the same as 1971, with the all numeric plates followed by 1A-2345 plates using letters A-N, excluding I and L.
	Quebec 1972 passenger issue. Another 1972 issue, in the 1A-2345 format.
	Quebec 1973 passenger issue. Format was changed once again, using the fleur-de-lys as the separator and adding an embossed "19" to the top left corner as part of the date. Plates were issued in the same serial formats as the 1972 plates, with this one being of the all-numeric variety.
	Quebec 1973 passenger issue. Continuation of the above series, once again the 1A-2345 format was used when the all-numeric plates were exhausted. The same set of letters that was used in 1972 carried over to the 1973 issue.
	Quebec 1974 passenger issue. The fleur-de-lys was moved back to the top left and the serial format changed to a 123A456 format for these plates. This format would be used through 1982, with letters changing from year to year to avoid duplication.
	Quebec 1975 passenger issue. The fleur-de-lys and date were reversed to opposite corners of the top of this plate. Again, the 123A456 format was used, with the letters A, K, N and S used.
	Quebec 1975 passenger issue. This was a late-period 1975 Quebec plate which was made using the cream background color found on the 1976 plate rather than the white color on earlier 1975 plates. This was likely due to a run of 1975 plates being produced late in the year after production of the 1976 stock was already underway. These only appeared in the high "S" series of plates. My scanner tends to make all whites look pretty "cream" like, so you may have to take my word for the difference.
	Quebec 1976 passenger issue. These plates were issued to commemorate the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal, featuring the Olympic rings at bottom center. The letters H, L, M and P were in use for this issue.
	Quebec 1977 passenger issue. This plate design used a distinctive upper-and-lower case die set for the province name and slogan. I have distinct memories of my hometown of Saco, Maine being overrun with cars with these plates in the summer of 1977 as Quebecois tourists made their way to neighboring Old Orchard Beach. The letters R, S, T and V were used in 1977. This was the last year of the "La belle province" slogan.
	Quebec 1978 passenger issue. This issue was similar in format to the 1977 plate, with the fleur-de-lys and province name swapping sides of the plate with the embossed date. This issue was the first to use the slogan "Je me souviens" ("I Remember"), which is a reference to the province's continuing struggle to maintain its distinct French culture within the rest of Canada and North America as a whole. It's considered a very political plate slogan, which remains in use today in Quebec. This was the last yearly issue for the province.
	Quebec 1979 passenger issue. In 1979, these new plates were issued using the same format as the 1978 base but in blue on reflective white. These plates have debossed sticker boxes at the bottom corners for stickers, and remain in use today with proper validation (although plate stickers were discontinued in Quebec as of 1992). H, P, L, M and S were used as letters on these plates (in that order), which were issued with a couple different variations through the end of 1982. The first batch of these plates, in the "H", "P" and part of the "L" series were stamped very lightly, as can be seen in the incompletely stamped "u" in "Québec."
	Quebec 1980 passenger issue (1979 base). Same format as above, later plates were subject to better manufacturing and more crisp stamping, resulting in a better quality plate.
	Quebec 1981 passenger issue (1979 base). This plate was another variation of the 1979 base. Issued circa 1980, these plates had two bordered sticker boxes at the bottom edge of the plate. During this period, a short run of plates was made on galvanized steel stock rather than aluminum. These are quite rare and were only issued around the 807M to 830M series.
	Quebec 1981 passenger issue (1979 base). Later variation of the above series. Starting in the late "M" series, Quebec began using reflective paint rather than sheeting, giving the background of the plate a more silvery-blue tint than white. This background paint was used through around 1986, when the province returned to traditional reflective sheeting.
	Quebec invalidated passenger issue (1979 base). Another of the plates with the reflective paint, which was used for the entire "S" series following the "M" series. This plate is also marked by some of the runniest paint I've seen on a plate, and by a black sticker indicating that the plate has been invalidated. This sticker, with the circle and slash symbol on it, appears to be placed over a 1982 sticker on this plate. I believe that these stickers were used on plates that were turned in or otherwise invalidated before the registration stickers had run out.
	Quebec 1984 passenger issue. Starting in 1983, these new plates were issued using the ABC-123 format and new, wider and bolder dies. Quebec used several subtle variations of these dies over the years, something I would not have noticed had it not been pointed out to me by fellow collector Manny Jacob of Ontario. Manny notes that the dies on this plate were featured on plates manufactured from the AAA series to the BNZ series. This general plate design, with some minor die variations and a numbering system change, remains in use today in Quebec. These plates remain valid along with the 79 base, without stickers.
	Quebec 1987 passenger issue. Plates from the BPA series through the end of the DZZ series were produced in this style, featuring crisper stamping of the plate and slight variations in the dies for the fleur-de-lys, the province name and slogan. The serial dies appear to be identical to the AAA-BNZ series plate, as shown above.
	Quebec 1988 passenger issue. Starting with the EAA series, there were more variations from the above issues. The font for the province name is similar to that on the BPA-DZZ plates, with the dies used for the serial made slightly wider and more rounded. The blue color is also somewhat darker on this plate than the earlier ones. This style was in use for the E, early J (JAA-JCZ), late K (KSA-KZZ), N, Q, R and early H (HAA through HBW 576) series of plates, in that order. The company which made these plates, Acme Co. of Montreal, went into bankruptcy during this stretch, resulting in the abrupt stopping point of HBW 576.
	Quebec 1988 passenger issue. This is another variation of the die set used on this base. This plate uses dies that are less rounded than the plates above, which can be most easily noted by comparing the "8" characters between the plates. These dies were used for the rest of the J series (JDA-JZZ, the portion of the "J"s not previously used by Acme) and some K series plates (KAA through KRZ) before the province reverted back to the Acme series above.
	Quebec 1991 passenger issue. Continuation of the die set found on the EEF plate above, this style was reverted back to after the "J" and "K" series plates listed above were issued. This plate also features some rather thick, runny blue paint, giving the numbers a bit of a textured appearance up close.
	Quebec 1992 passenger issue. After Acme Co.'s bankruptcy, plates started being produced by a company called Relief Design in Saint-Louis-De-Blandford, Quebec. This company was a division of Waldale, Ltd. from Nova Scotia, who opened the branch in Quebec to meet the legal requirements that Quebec plates be produced in-province. Relief Design's first series of plates were produced in the previously skipped GAA to GZZ series, along with the rest of the H series (HCA-HZZ), the T series (TAA-TZZ) and the WAA series through XCZ. This series introduced yet another fleur-de-lys, slight variations again in the province name and slogan, and slightly different serial dies.
	Quebec undated passenger issue (circa exp. 1995). In 1991, plate year stickers were discontinued, with the 1992 sticker being the last issue. Therefore, many 1979-91 plates can be seen on the road today with "92" stickers still displayed. From 1992 through 1995, plates continued to be issued with month stickers. From expiration year 1993 forward, the only way of telling if a Quebec plate is valid or not is to check the registration certificate for the vehicle. Dating plates from this era is somewhat difficult, although I've found a couple Quebec experts out there who have been kind enough to share expertise on the subject. This plate (along with the next two on the page) carries a variation in the fleur-de-lys logo at the top, and also the dies for the slogan at the bottom. This type was issued from the XDA series through the early Dxx series of the reversed-format 123-ABC plates.
	Quebec undated passenger issue (circa exp. 1996). After 1995, from the late "Y" series on, Quebec plates were issued with no stickers at all. This plate was issued circa 1996, and would have been used exclusively without month or year stickers. Again with these plates, the registration certificate itself is the only way of proving valid registration.
	Quebec undated passenger issue (circa exp. 1997). In late 1996, Quebec reached plate number ZZZ-999 and switched the sequence to a 123-ABC format. At the same time, the die set was modified slightly, with new dies used for the characters B, D, K, Q and R for better readability at a distance. Check the difference in the "Q" on this plate to the one above it. This variety of plate was in use through 1999, when more slight changes were made to the plate (see next).
	Quebec undated passenger issue (circa exp. 1999). Plates from somewhere in the early-to-mid Dxx series through the end of the EXZ series used the same die set as previously, but were stamped much shallower than previous plates made by Relief Design. This difference may not appear on the scan, but is readily apparent when comparing two plates side by side. The practice of shallower stamping seems to have continued to the present, but with yet another die change taking place starting with the EYA series (see next.)
	Quebec undated passenger issue (circa exp. 1999). This plate shows another die variation on these plates, using dies that are quite rounded for the numbers. See the difference between the squared-off "9" on the plate above and the rounded one on this plate. These dies are similar to those used on some 1991-era plates on this base. The sticker boxes (still present for some reason) and dies in general on this variety are also not stamped as deep as normal, resulting in what seems to be a less durable plate. This change occurred at the beginning of the "EYA" series of these plates and continues today.
	Quebec undated passenger issue (circa exp. 2011). Quebec ran out of available combinations in the 123-ABC format in 2010, at which point this new A12-BCD format was introduced. The progression on these plates involves the first three characters going from B01 through Z99 before the final three plates advance (B01-AAA followed by B02-AAA through Z99-AAA, then flips to B01-AAB, etc.) A large number of letters are skipped in first position, including A, C, F, L, R, T and V, in addition to I, O and U not used in any position.