This section describes VINs and their requirements. It has two detailed Q+A sections about submitting VINs to NEVDIS and the RAV and error reporting from NEVDIS and ROVER.
About Vehicle Identification Numbers and World Manufacturer Identifiers
The 17-character Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) provides a coded description of the vehicle including the: manufacturer, year of production, place of production and vehicle characteristics.
The World Manufacturer Identifier (WMI) forms the first three characters of the VIN. NEVDIS is the sole issuer and administrator of WMIs issued to Australian vehicle manufacturers.
WMIs are structured differently depending on the manufacturer’s volume. In Australia, less than 500 vehicles per annum is designated as a Low Volume Manufacturer and more than 500 vehicles is designated as High Volume.
Australian vehicle and trailer manufacturers must have a WMI. To be registered, a vehicle or trailer must have a VIN.
The Australian Design Rules for vehicles mandate that VINs issued by Australian Vehicle Manufacturers need to conform to the following international standards:
ISO 3779: specifies the requirements for content and structure of a VIN
ISO 3780: specifies the requirements for a world-wide unique identifier for a vehicle manufacturer – the World Manufacturer ID (WMI).
Road vehicle regulation is governed by the Australian Road Vehicle Standards legislation and its regulatory framework. The Road Vehicle Standards Act 2018 has replaced the Motor Vehicle Standards Act 1989. The operational aspects of the Act are contained in the Road Vehicle Standards Rules 2019.
VIN Submission Q+A
The National Exchange of Vehicle and Driver Information System (NEVDIS) is a national system that exchanges information about vehicles and driver licenses. Its primary purpose is to prevent fraud and theft by ensuring ‘one vehicle, one Vehicle Identification Number (VIN)’ and ‘one person, one driver licence’.
NEVDIS enables road authorities to interact across state borders and directly supports the transport and automotive industries. In addition to information supplied by road agencies, NEVDIS collects VIN data for compliance from vehicle wholesalers and stolen information from police. It also provides information to public and private sector organisations to facilitate provenance checking on vehicles, matching of biographic details on licenses, motor insurance underwriting and vehicle safety recalls.
The Register of Approved Vehicles (RAV) is a publicly searchable database of vehicles that have met the requirements of the Road Vehicle Standards (RVS) legislation and been approved to be provided to the Australian market. The RAV replaced the need for physical compliance (ID) plates to be fitted to vehicles.
RAV is managed by the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts via ROVER (the Road Vehicle Regulator).
A vehicle’s VIN must be entered on the NEVDIS database and the RAV before it can be road registered.
ROVER is the Road Vehicle Regulator.
The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts established ROVER to manage vehicle compliance and issue Vehicle Type Approvals.
With the introduction of the Road Vehicle Standards Act, two submission processes are required to make a VIN available for road registration.
NEVDIS VIN Submission
This process loads VINs onto the NEVDIS database. The NEVDIS database is used by licensing and registration agencies and law enforcement authorities. This process needs to be completed before VINs can be submitted to RAV and before a vehicle is registered.
If you don't have an Australian Company Number (ACN) you must use an approved agent to submit VINs .
An employee of a manufacturer with an ACN can apply to become an accredited VIN submitter (see Am I eligible to become an accredited VIN submitter? for more information).
RAV Submission
Before starting the RAV submission process, VINs must be loaded onto the NEVDIS database.
The RAV Submission process allows VINs to be added to the Register of Approved Vehicles (RAV).
The RAV is a publicly searchable database of vehicles that have met the requirements of the Road Vehicle Standards (RVS) legislation and been approved to be provided to the Australian market. The RAV replaced the need for physical compliance (ID) plates to be fitted to vehicles.
This process is managed by the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts via ROVER (the Road Vehicle Regulator).
Contact RAVquestions@infrastructure.gov.au or visit rover.infrastructure.gov.au for more information.
If you don't have an Australian Company Number (ACN) you must use an approved agent to submit VINs.
An employee of a manufacturer with an ACN can apply to become an accredited VIN submitter (see Am I eligible to become an accredited VIN submitter? for more information).
The Register of Approved Vehicles (RAV) is managed by the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts via ROVER (the Road Vehicle Regulator).
Use the ROVER website to apply for a vehicle type approval and RAV ID and RAV Submitter ID. The website has advice about loading VINs to the RAV. Contact RAVquestions@infrastructure.gov.au if further support is needed.
NOTE: Your VINs must be entered into the NEVDIS database before submitting them to RAV.
Before applying to NEVDIS for accreditation please read the Guide to Submitting a VIN to NEVDIS to understand the requirements of being a VIN Submitter.
If the legal entity of the business is incorporated and your company operates under an Australian Company Number (ACN), you can apply for accreditation directly to NEVDIS.
Each application costs $350 plus GST.
The following documentation is required as a minimum:
- Attachment A, pages 8-12 of the Guide to Submitting a VIN to NEVDIS
- NEVDIS VIN Submitter Accreditation Application Form
- National Criminal History Certificate
- Vehicle Type Approval.
The instructions for submission are included in the Guide to Submitting a VIN to NEVDIS.
If your business operates under an Australian Business Number (ABN) rather than an ACN, you have two options:
- You may engage an accredited agent to act on your behalf.
- If the ABN is associated with a corporate trustee, an application may be made under the trustee’s ACN. The application must be lodged in the name of the incorporated company as "Trustee (for the Trust if needed) trading as Business Name". For example: Sample Company as Trustee (for the Example Trust [if appropriate]) trading as Australian Business Name. A copy of the trust deed may be required as evidence of the link between the trustee, trust and business.
The NEVDIS approved VIN Submitter sends a text file to NEVDIS for processing. The NEVDIS Data Team processes the file and returns a report to the submitter indicating if the VINs have been successfully loaded.
Explanation of Report
SID = Submitter ID
BN = Batch Number
TT = Transaction Type
TOT = Total Transactions
OK = Transactions Successfully Loaded
REJ = Transactions Rejected
If you need additional assistance, please contact the data team nevdis@nevdis.com.au for further advice.
Successfully loaded VINs may then be loaded to the Register of Approved Vehicles via ROVER.
The VIN stamped on the vehicle or trailer must be the one issued by the Original Equipment Manufacturer.
Imported vehicles and trailers must use the VIN supplied by the overseas manufacturer.
NOTE: A vehicle must only have one identifier.
Only eligible Australian manufacturers can be issued with an Australian WMI. The eligibility requirements are complex.
Email nevdis@nevdis.com.au requesting information on the WMI application process.
We will email you with a series of questions. The response to these questions will determine our advice and the documentation we provide.
Error Reporting Q+A
The NEVDIS approved VIN Submitter sends a text file to NEVDIS for processing. The NEVDIS Data Team processes the file and returns a report to the submitter indicating if there are errors in the batch file.
Explanation of Report
SID = Submitter ID
BN = Batch Number
TT = Transaction Type
TOT = Total Transactions
OK = Transactions Successfully Loaded
REJ = Transactions Rejected
Additional information for the type of rejection will appear to the right of REJ.
DUP=DuplicateVin IVU=InvalidVINUpdate(22) IVD=InvalidVINDelete(23) ICD=InvalidCheckDigit MFC=MissingFCAI IDE=InvalidDecode IVC=InvalidVINCharacter
Where there are errors, the VINs will display at the bottom of the file as shown below:
Please refer to your instructions and decode to assist in resolving the error.
If you need additional assistance, please contact the data team nevdis@nevdis.com.au for further advice.
Successfully loaded VINs may then be loaded to the Register of Approved Vehicles via ROVER.
If the error message states that the VIN is not on NEVDIS, please contact nevdis@nevdis.com.au with a list of the VINs affected.
For all other error messages from ROVER , please contact RAVquestions@infrastructure.gov.au.
Submissions to ROVER are verified and submitters are notified and invoiced if the submission is successful.
RAV loading occurs at 12 noon and 6pm AEST every working day.
RAV loading requires either payment pre-approval or your invoice to have been paid.