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Transport Canada
Disclaimer: These documents are not the official versions (more).

MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY ACT

Motor Vehicle Safety Regulations

Standard 115



Vehicle Identification Number

115.(1) Every vehicle shall have a vehicle identification number and the identification numbers of any two vehicles manufactured by a manufacturer within a thirty year period shall not be identical.

(1.1) A vehicle that is manufactured from an incomplete vehicle shall bear the vehicle identification number assigned by the incomplete vehicle manufacturer.

(1.2) Where a vehicle identification number is stated on a label bearing a statement of compliance affixed to a vehicle and the vehicle is altered, the vehicle identification number shall apply to the altered vehicle.

(2) Subject to subsection (2.1), the vehicle identification number of each vehicle shall

(a) be composed of capital, sanserif characters;

(b) be sunk into, embossed on or imprinted, clearly and indelibly, on

(i) any part of the vehicle that is not designed to be removed except for repair, other than glazing, or

(ii) a separate plate or label that is permanently affixed to a part referred to in subparagraph (i); and

 
Comes into force on September 1st, 2008

(b) be sunk into, embossed on or imprinted, clearly and indelibly, and in such a manner that the vehicle identification number cannot be removed without damaging or defacing the plate, label or vehicle, on

(i) an integral or structural part of the vehicle other than the dash-board pad or dash-board cover,

(ii) the dash-board or dash-board cover if it is not designed to be replaced following an air bag deployment, or

(iii) a separate plate or label that is permanently affixed in a location referred to in subparagraph (i) or (ii); and

 

(c) in the case of a passenger car, three-wheeled vehicle, multipurpose passenger vehicle, truck or low speed vehicle having a GVWR of 4 536 kg or less, be

(i) composed of characters having a minimum height of 4 mm,

(ii) located inside the passenger compartment, and

(iii) without any part of such vehicle being removed, readable through the vehicle glazing under daylight conditions by an observer having 20/20 vision Snellen whose eyepoint is located outside the vehicle adjacent to the left windshield pillar.

(2.1) The vehicle identification number of a snowmobile shall

(a) be composed of capital, sans serif characters;

(b) be sunk into, embossed on, imprinted on or permanently affixed on the right exterior vertical surface of the track tunnel;

(c) be difficult to remove, replace or alter without detection;

(d) be composed of characters having a minimum height of 4 mm;

(e) be legible and indelible;

(f) be legible without any part of the vehicle having to be removed; and

(g) be protected from corrosion.

  
Comes into force on September 1st 2008

(2.2) At the option of the manufacturer, the vehicle identification number may also be displayed in a bar code format that shall meet the requirements of section 5.6 of guideline AIAG B-10, Trading Partner Labels Implementation Guideline (February, 2000), except for the specifications respecting code density and dimensions, which shall meet the requirements of section 4.1 of standard AIAG B-2, Vehicle Identification Number Label Standard (June, 1988).

(2.3) Every bar coded vehicle identification number shall be displayed on

(a) the vehicle's compliance or information label; or

(b) a separate label that is applied beside the compliance or information label in accordance with paragraphs 7(a) and (b) of these Regulations.

(2.4) If the vehicle identification number is displayed on a label in a bar code format, it need not, until September 1, 2012, also be applied to the vehicle in accordance with paragraph 115(2)(b), but may, at the option of the manufacturer, be sunk into, embossed on or imprinted, clearly and indelibly, on

(a) any part of the vehicle that is not designed to be removed except for repair, other than glazing; or

(b) a separate plate or label that is permanently affixed to a part referred to in paragraph (a).

 

(3) The vehicle identification number of any vehicle shall be alphanumeric and shall be composed of 17 characters as follows:

(a) the first three characters shall uniquely identify the manufacturer, make and class of vehicle

(i) where the manufacturer manufactures five hundred or more vehicles of a prescribed class annually, and

(ii) in conjunction with the twelfth to fourteenth characters, inclusive, where the manufacturer manufactures less than five hundred vehicles of a prescribed class annually;

(b) the fourth to eighth characters, inclusive, shall uniquely identify the decipherable information for the vehicle as set out in column II of Table I, except that

(i) the fourth and fifth characters shall be alphabetic and the sixth and seventh characters shall be numeric for a passenger car, three-wheeled vehicle, multipurpose passenger vehicle, truck or low-speed vehicle having a GVWR of 4 536 kg or less,

(ii) subject to subparagraph (i), the characters and their positioning may be determined by the manufacturer; and

(iii) in the case of an incomplete vehicle to be completed as a trailer, the decipherable information required for an incomplete vehicle in column II of Table I shall be that for a trailer;

(c) the ninth character shall be the check digit determined in accordance with subsections (7) and (8) after all other characters have been determined by the manufacturer;

(d) the tenth character shall be the appropriate vehicle model year code set out opposite the vehicle year in Table II;

(e) the eleventh character shall identify the plant of manufacture of the vehicle;

(f) subject to paragraph (h), the twelfth to seventeenth characters, inclusive, shall be sequentially assigned by the manufacturer during the manufacturing process, where the manufacturer manufactures five hundred or more vehicles of a prescribed class annually;

(g) subject to paragraph (h), the twelfth to fourteenth characters in conjunction with the first to third characters, inclusive, shall uniquely identify the manufacturer, make and class of vehicle and the fifteenth to seventeenth characters, inclusive, shall be sequentially assigned by the manufacturer during the manufacturing process, where the manufacturer manufactures less than five hundred vehicles of a prescribed class annually; and

(h) the fourteenth to seventeenth characters, inclusive, shall be numeric for all vehicles and the thirteenth character shall be numeric if the vehicle is a passenger car, three-wheeled vehicle, multipurpose passenger vehicle, truck or low-speed vehicle having a GVWR of 4 536 kg or less.

 
(4) [Repealed by: SOR/2004-250]

 
(5) Each character used in a vehicle identification number shall be one of the Arabic numerals or Roman letters specified in Table III.

(7) The check digit referred to in paragraph (3)(c) shall be determined by

(a) assigning to each numeral of the vehicle identification number the actual mathematical value of that numeral;

(b) assigning to each letter the mathematical value for that letter specified in Table IV;

(c) multiplying the assigned value for each character of the vehicle identification number by the weight factor set out opposite that character in Table V; and

(d) adding together the numbers obtained under paragraph (c) and dividing the total by 11.

(8) The fractional portion of the quotient obtained by paragraph (7)(d), multiplied by eleven, shall be the check digit, except that if that product is 10, the check digit shall be X.

(9) The Minister may require manufacturers of vehicles in respect of which this section applies to submit to the Minister those characters that uniquely identify a vehicle including, where applicable, the twelfth to fourteenth characters, inclusive, that constitute part of the identifier, for each make and class of vehicle manufactured and, in all cases, the information necessary to decipher the characters in vehicle identification numbers.

(10) Where a character in a vehicle identification number identifies engine net brake power, the engine net brake power represented by that character shall not differ by more than 10 per cent from the actual engine net brake power.

(11) Manufacturers of vehicles in respect of which this section applies shall apply to the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers' Association for the characters referred to in paragraphs 3(a) and (g) that uniquely identify the manufacturer, make and class of vehicle.

TABLE I

Item

Column I
Class of Vehicle

Column II
Decipherable Information

1. Passenger car, three-wheeled vehicle or low-speed vehicle Line, series, body type, engine type and restraint system type
2. Multipurpose passenger vehicle Line, series, body type, engine  type and gross vehicle weight rating
3. Truck Model or line, series, chassis, cab type, engine type, brake system and gross vehicle weight rating
4. Bus Model or line, series, body type, engine type, and brake system
5. Trailer Type of trailer, body type, length and axle configuration
6. Motorcycle or restricted-use motorcycle Type of cycle, line, engine type and engine net brake power
7. Incomplete vehicle Model or line, series, cab type, engine type, and brake system
8. Trailer converter dolly Series and axle configuration
9. Snowmobile Type of snowmobile, line, engine type and engine net brake power

         

TABLE II

MODEL YEAR CODES

Year Code
1980 A
1981 B
1982 C
1983 D
1984 E
1985 F
1986
1987 H
1988 J
1989 K
1990 L
1991 M
1992 N
1993 P
1994 R
1995 S
1996 T
1997 V
1998 W
1999 X
2000 Y
2001 1
2002 2
2003 3
2004 4
2005 5
2006 6
2007 7
2008 8
2009 9
2010 A
2011 B
2012 C

 

TABLE III

AUTHORIZED CHARACTERS

Numbers: 1234567890

Letters: ABCDEFGHJKLMNPRSTUVWXYZ

All spaces provided for in the vehicle identification number must be occupied by a character specified in this Table.

 

TABLE IV

LETTER VALUES

A = 1 J = 1 T = 3
B = 2 K = 2 U = 4
C = 3 L = 3 V = 5
D = 4 M = 4 W = 6
E = 5 N = 5 X = 7
F = 6 P = 7 Y = 8
G = 7 R = 9 Z = 9
H = 8 S = 2  

     TABLE V

CHARACTER AND WEIGHT FACTOR

1st 8
2nd 7
3rd 6
4th 5
5th 4
6th 3
7th 2
8th 10
9th 0
10th 9
11th 8
12th 7
13th 6
14th 5
15th 4
16th 3
17th 2

Established by the CONSOLIDATED REGULATIONS OF CANADA, 1978.

amended by

SOR/79-306 30 March, 1979 pursuant to sections 4 and 7 of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act, effective 1 April, 1980

Subsection 115 (3).

SOR/79-940 6 December, 1979 pursuant to sections 4 and 7 of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act

Renumbered from 117 to 115.

SOR/82-753 29 July, 1982 pursuant to sections 4 and 7 of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act, effective 1 January, 1983

Revoked and replaced.

SOR/87-660 19 November, 1987 pursuant to sections 4 and 7 of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act

Subsection 115(2) of Schedule IV preceding paragraph (a); section 115 of Schedule IV by adding subsection (2.1); subsection 115(4) of Schedule IV; and Table I to section 115 of Schedule IV by adding "Snowmobile: Type, line, engine type and net brake power".

SOR/88-268 5 May, 1988 pursuant to sections 4 and 7 of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act

Subsection 115(4) of Schedule IV; and Table I to section 115 of Schedule IV by changing "Motorcycle, moped, motor-driven cycle" to "Motorcycle or restricted-use motorcycle".

SOR/88-535 18 October, 1988 pursuant to sections 4 and 7 of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act

Section 115 of Schedule IV by adding subsections 115(1.1) and 115(1.2); paragraph 115(2)(c) of Schedule IV preceding subparagraph (i); subsection 115(3) of Schedule IV; subsection 115(6) of Schedule IV is revoked; subsection 115(7) of Schedule IV preceding paragraph (a); subsections 115(9) and (10) of Schedule IV; and Table I to section 115 of Schedule IV.

PLEASE NOTE THAT THE MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY ACT IS NOW CHAPTER M-10 OF THE REVISED STATUTES OF CANADA, 1985.

SOR/92-545 17 September, 1992 pursuant to sections 4 and 7 of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act

Subparagraph 115(2)(b)(ii) of Schedule IV; paragraphs 115(3)(f) and (g) of Schedule IV to the French version; subsection 115(10) of Schedule IV; subsection 115(11) of Schedule IV to the French version; item 6 and 9 of table 1 to section 115 of Schedule IV in column II; and table V to section 115 of Schedule IV.

SOR/94-670 25 October, 1994 pursuant to sections 4 and 7 of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act

Subsection 115(1.1) of Schedule IV of the French Version; and item 7 of the Table I to section 115 of Schedule IV of the French version.

SOR/97-532 27 November, 1997 pursuant to sections 5 and 11 of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act, in force November 27, 1997

Subsection 115(11) of Schedule IV.

SOR/2000-182 4 May, 2000 pursuant to section 5 and subsection 11(1) of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act, into force May 4, 2000

Subsection 115(4) of Schedule IV is replaced.

SOR/2000-241 15 June, 2000 pursuant to section 5 and subsection 11(1) of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act, into force June 15, 2000

Subsection 115(2.1) of Schedule IV is replaced, Subsection 115(4) of Schedule IV is replaced.

SOR/2000-304 27 July, 2000 pursuant to section 5 and subsection 11(1) of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act, into force July 27, 2000

The portion of paragraph 115(2)(c) of Schedule IV before subparagraph (i) is replaced; Subparagraph 115(3)(b)(i) of Schedule IV is replaced; Paragraph 115(3)(h) of Schedule IV is replaced; The portion of item 1 of Table I to section 115 of Schedule IV is replaced.

SOR/2002-55 31 January, 2002 pursuant to section 5 and subsection 11(1) of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act, into force February 13, 2003.

Subsection 115(1.1) of Schedule IV is replaced; paragraph 115(3)(b) of Schedule IV is modified following after subparagraph (ii); the portion of item 7 of Table I to section 115 of Schedule IV in column I is replaced.

SOR/2003-272 24 July, 2003 pursuant to section 5 and subsection 11(1) of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act, comes into force 24 July, 2003.

The portion of paragraph 115(2)(c) of Schedule IV before subparagraph (i) is replaced; Subparagraph 115(3)(b)(i) of Schedule IV is replaced; Paragraph 115(3)(h) of Schedule IV is replaced; The portion of item 1 of Table I to section 115 of Schedule IV in column I is replaced.

SOR/2004-250 16 November, 2004 pursuant to section 5 and subsection 11(1) of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act, comes into force 16 November, 2004.

Subsection 115(2.1) of Schedule IV is replaced; The portion of subsection 115(3) of Schedule IV before paragraph (a) is replaced; Subsection 115(4) of Schedule IV is repealed. 
 
Coming into force on September 1st, 2008: Paragraph 115(2)(b) of Schedule IV is replaced; Paragraph 115(2.2, 2.3, 2.4) of Schedule IV are added. 

 


Last updated: 2005-03-08 Top of Page Important Notices