The compliance plate is the manufacturer-fitted identification plate that proves the vehicle complies with Australian Design Rules (ADRs). It contains the VIN, manufacture date, gross vehicle mass (GVM), and country of compliance.
For new vehicles imported as parts and assembled in Australia, the compliance plate is added in Australia. For fully-imported vehicles, the plate is added at the manufacturer's port of departure.
Where the compliance plate is located
It varies by manufacturer, but common locations include:
- Driver's door jamb (most common on modern vehicles)
- Firewall in the engine bay (older vehicles)
- Under the bonnet, on the radiator support panel
- Inside the boot lid or rear hatch (some SUVs)
Why compliance plate inspection matters
Vehicle "rebirthing" — replacing the compliance plate from a stolen vehicle with one from a written-off donor — is a major organised-crime activity in Australia. The donor vehicle is typically a same-make-model-year statutory write-off purchased at salvage auction; its compliance plate is removed and re-affixed to the stolen car, which is then sold to an unsuspecting private buyer.
Signs of compliance plate tampering to look for:
- Re-rivets (the original plate uses specific rivet sizes; replacements often use mismatched ones)
- Mismatched fonts or character spacing
- Fresh paint near the plate edges
- The plate sits proud of the bodywork (suggesting the original was pried off)
- VIN on the compliance plate doesn't exactly match the VIN on the registration certificate
A NEVDIS check (in our $19.99 Essentials report) returns the VIN that the registration is actually attached to. If that VIN doesn't match what's on the compliance plate you're inspecting, the vehicle is almost certainly stolen.