Labelling requirements for Electric Vehicles (including Hybrid) and Hydrogen Vehicles
Electric and hydrogen-powered vehicles present hazards during certain rescue situations. As a safety measure for emergency services workers, we have introduced a requirement for certain vehicle types to be labelled.
If you have one of the following types of vehicles, you will need to get a label:
- electric vehicles
- hybrid vehicles
- hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.
Find out where to get your label
When do I need my label?
If an electric or hydrogen-powered vehicle was built after 1 January 2019, or an existing vehicle was modified to be electric or hydrogen-powered after 1 January 2019, the registered owner must display specific labels on the vehicle's front and rear number plates.
Enforcement of this requirement will start in October 2021, but until 1 January 2022 this enforcement will take an educational approach—during this period, no fines or penalties will be given to allow drivers time to attach their labels.
Where to get hydrogen or electric vehicle labels
MTA Queensland (MTAQ) currently have the new labels in production and will be available from 5 July 2021 for immediate delivery. The labels are now available for pre-order and can be requested via the MTAQ website.
For new electric or hydrogen vehicles, label requirements should be discussed with the vehicle dealer.
Fastening your label to your number plate
TMR has not mandated any specific method of fitting the labels to number plates, as long as the labels are securely fitted. Suggested methods include screws, pop rivets or adhesive/double-sided tape.
Electric vehicle label requirements (including Hybrid)
An electric powered vehicle means a vehicle powered by one or more electric motors or traction motors that are the only propulsion system for the vehicle or are used in conjunction with another propulsion system for the vehicle.
Electric vehicle labels must:
- be affixed to a plate made of metal that is at least 1mm thick
- be an equilateral triangular shape where each side has width of 30mm in length and each interior angle of which is 60º
- have a blue surface that complies with class 2 of Australian Standard 1906.1 Retroreflective Materials and Devices for Road Traffic Control Purposes—Retroreflective Sheeting
- be marked ‘EV’ in white capital letters that are at least 8mm high and have the orientation shown in the example
- be fixed to the number plates so that the letters on the label are in an upright position
- not wholly or partly obscure any characters on the number plates
Example of label for electric powered vehicle. Note: The example of the label is for illustrative purposes only and does not represent the label's actual size, dimension or colour.
Hydrogen vehicle label requirements
A hydrogen powered vehicle means a vehicle that is powered by a hydrogen fuel cell system and has one or more hydrogen fuel containers fitted to the vehicle for the system.
Hydrogen vehicle labels must:
- be affixed to a plate made of metal that is at least 1mm thick
- be a regular pentagonal shape where each side is 20mm in length and each interior angle of which is 108º
- must have a yellow surface that complies with class 2 of Australian Standard 1906.1 Retroreflective Materials and Devices for Road Traffic Control Purposes—Retroreflective Sheeting
- must be marked ‘H’ in a black capital letter that is at least 10mm high and have the orientation shown in the example
- must be fixed to the number plates so that the letter on the label is in an upright position
- must not wholly or partly obscure any characters on the number plates
Example of label for hydrogen powered vehicle. Note: The example of the label is for illustrative purposes only and does not represent the label's actual size, dimension or colour.
Where to get hydrogen or electric vehicle labels
MTA Queensland (MTAQ) currently have the labels for order and can be requested via the MTAQ website.
For new electric or hydrogen vehicles, label requirements should be discussed with the vehicle dealer.