The F@#& Words You Can’t Get on NJ License Plates

If you've ever wanted to get personalized license plates, or vanity plates if you will, you need to know that the New Jersey Division of Motor Vehicles has limits on what's allowed.

Before you roll your eyes and chalk this up to New Jersey being New Jersey, every state has standards for what's allowed and what isn't allowed.

I have firsthand experience in this exercise.  When we lived in Virginia, I was inspired by an episode of Seinfeld in which Kramer accidentally received the personalized license plates that were meant for a proctologist.

You Can't Say THIS on a License Plate

The episode was so funny, that I purchased personalized plates that said, AZZMAN.  I was excited when they arrived.  But a few months later, I received a letter from DMV, warning me that I had to replace them with something less offensive.

When you look up the list of plates that have been rejected, you've got to be impressed by the creativity of those who live in Jersey.

NJ DMV Frowns on Requests That Contain Hateful or Objectionable Words

The general rule of thumb is to keep it clean and stay away from anything that can be construed as hateful.  The New Jersey DMV has people on staff, who consider the requests that come in.  I imagine that one requirement for a position like this is you must be good at word search puzzles.

They read it forward, backward, and upside down, and check for foreign language quirks.  I'm sure they also have some computer program that checks it as well.  When all else fails, they can recall the plates at a later date in the event you slip one by.

Some of the more creative plates that were rejected include: