CIRCULAR 0-3-4

NEW MOTOR VEHICLE IDENTIFICATION PLATE APPROVAL

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 The Vehicle Safety Standards branch of the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government is responsible for the administration of the Motor Vehicle Standards Act 1989 (the Act). This Circular sets out the administrative arrangements in relation to approvals to place identification plates on Road Motor Vehicles in accordance with Section 10A(1) of the Act for fully compliant vehicles, and Section 10A(2) of the Act for vehicles with minor and inconsequential non-compliance.

Identification Plates were formerly known as Compliance Plates.

2. THE ROAD VEHICLE CERTIFICATION SYSTEM (RVCS)

2.1 ELECTRONIC APPLICATIONS

The department has established an electronic application / approval system which provides applicants with the ability to make applications, see the status of applications in progress and communicate with the department about their applications. The RVCS uses electronic forms and the internet to collect sufficient information to allow the Administrator of Vehicle Standards to make a decision on whether an Identification Plate approval should be issued.

2.2 INTERNET PUBLICATION OF APPROVALS

Once an application is approved, details of the approval are made public on the RVCS website. This information is used by state and territory registration authorities to allow bulk registration of approved vehicles.

2.3 MANAGEMENT OF APPROVALS

As the requirements for approval change, eg the introduction of new Australian Design Rules, the RVCS alerts approval holders when they need to update their application so that an amended approval may be issued and the approval holder may continue to supply vehicles to the market.

3. REGISTRATION IN THE RVCS

3.1 LICENSEES

People or Corporations wishing to apply for approval to place Identification Plates on New Road Motor Vehicles must first register as a Licensee in the RVCS. The registration form for a Licensee can be downloaded from the RVCS website accessible from www.infrastructure.gov.au. Upon registration, a software licence key will be provided to enable the installation of the forms software used by RVCS (Desktop eForms).  The forms software and forms templates can be downloaded from the RVCS website, or supplied on a CD-ROM upon request. A User Name and a password will also be issued to enable each participant to log on to the RVCS site to access information specific to their applications.

3.2 DESIGN AND PRODUCTION FACILITIES

At the time of registration each Licensee is required to register the production facilities and design facilities that have been used in the manufacture of the vehicles to which the application applies. This information will be used to schedule Conformity of Production (COP) audits.

3.3 AGENTS

Licensees may appoint one or more agents to lodge applications on their behalf.  Agents can be added at any time by completing the relevant sections on the Licensee Registration Form.

3.4 DELEGATES AND SIGNATORIES

Licensees must appoint a Delegate who is authorised to act for the Licensee. The Licensee may also appoint people within their organisation other than the Delegate to act on behalf of the Delegate. Delegates and Signatories may be added or removed at any time by completing the relevant sections on the Licensee Registration form.

4 APPLICATIONS FOR IDENTIFICATION PLATE APPROVAL

4.1 SUBMISSION

Licensees or their Agents may make applications for identification plate approval by submitting an Application for Compliance Approval (CA) form. An application will not be considered complete until the applicant has also submitted Summary of Evidence (SE) forms for all of the applicable ADRs.

The information entered into each SE form must be consistent with design and test evidence held by the licensee. Test evidence must be developed by test facilities that are registered in the RVCS. Test facility registration forms are available from the RVCS website. These test facilities will be subject to audit; refer circular 0-12-0.

Where the vehicle model includes a range of variants, the application must include SE forms that cover each design configuration. Circular 0-2-11 sets out the procedures for test vehicle selection to reduce the number of test vehicles that may otherwise need to be tested. Applicable Summary of Fleet (SF) forms must be submitted to describe the designs tested even where no reduction in test vehicles is sought, as the SF forms provide some information not duplicated on the SE forms. Each of these forms are electronic forms available from the RVCS website.

4.2 ROAD VEHICLE DESCRIPTORS (RVD)

For each application, RVD and RVD Image forms relevant to the vehicle category must be submitted. The RVD information is published along with the approval and is used by State and Territory Registration Authorities for bulk registration purposes. The RVD describes the range of variants that may be supplied under the approval. The information contained in the RVD forms must be consistent with the information submitted in Summary of Evidence forms. RVD and RVD image forms are electronic forms and may be downloaded from the RVCS website.

4.3 DOCUMENT REFERENCES

Each form must be uniquely identified by a manufacturer’s reference number that is no longer than 12 characters including spaces, dashes, etc

4.4 FILENAMES

Each form must be saved with a filename of 20 characters or less including spaces and no punctuation.

4.5 AMENDING EVIDENCE

Where the applicant has identified errors in the application, they may amend the application by submitting replacement or additional evidence. Additional forms or replacement forms must be uniquely identified in accordance with 4.3 above.

4.6 ACKNOWLEGEMENT OF SUBMISSION

A successful lodgement of an application will generate an electronic advice back to the applicant advising the application number. Applicants may track the progress of their applications by logging onto RVCS using their user ID and password.

4.7 DISCUSSION ITEMS

Application queries will be transmitted back to applicants electronically as Discussion Items (DIs) viewable for each participant on the RVCS web site. Discussion items must be resolved before an application may be approved. Applicants are expected to monitor the progress of their submissions and resolution of DIs.

4.8 SECURITY

The RVCS encrypts all electronic submissions effectively preventing the inadvertent release of information. All applications are treated as “commercial-in-confidence”. Applicants may nominate an embargo date for information to be published to the RVCS website once an approval is issued. This can be used to coincide with an official launch of a new model. The embargo date is contained on the RVD form.

5 MAKE-MODEL AND VARIANT

5.1 Refer to Circular 0-3-3 titled “Motor Vehicle Make-Model Designation” for details on Make-Model designations, and for specific guidance (clauses 4.4 – 5.2 inclusive of Circular 0-3-3) on completing RVD forms for Make-Model designations.

5.2 A separate Identification Plate Approval application must be made for each Make-Model. Variants of a Model can be included in one application for that Model.

6 PROCESSING TIME

6.1 An applicant should allow 32 calendar days processing time from the date of receipt of the last piece of satisfactory evidence completing the application, to the date of issue of an Approval.

7. SINGLE UNIFORM TYPE INSPECTION (SUTI)

7.1 A complementary part of the approval process is the SUTI of the vehicle model. SUTI is the inspection of a production vehicle of the model for compliance with the applicable ADRs. An IPA may be issued before a SUTI is conducted.

8. APPROVAL

8.1 If the Administrator is satisfied based on the evidence provided in the application that a vehicle model complies with all of the applicable ADRs, an Identification Plate Approval will be granted under Section 10A(1) of the Act. This then allows identification plates (in accordance with circular 0-3-2) to be fitted to those vehicles for which compliance with the applicable ADRs has been demonstrated.

8.2 Where the evidence provided shows that the vehicle does not comply with all of the applicable ADRs, but the non compliance is of a “Minor and Inconsequential” nature, the Administrator may issue an Identification Plate Approval under Section 10A(2) of the Act.

8.3 Each approval may be subject to conditions which will be attached to the approval document. Contravention of those conditions may be an offence under Section 10A(6) of the Act.

8.4 A copy of the Approval document will be forwarded to the applicant for information and safe keeping. A copy is also placed on the RVCS website.

9. AMENDING AND UPDATING APPROVALS

9.1 Licensees and agents may submit amending applications to expand the range of vehicles covered by the approval or to ensure that the approval includes new or amended ADRs. All current Approvals must be updated prior to new ADR becoming applicable. Approvals that do not contain approved ADR evidence for all applicable ADRs are automatically lapsed on the date that the new ADR(s) come into effect. Lapsed Approvals can be restored to full Approved status when evidence for the appropriate ADRs is submitted and approved. 

Note: It may be an offence under Section 10A(6) of the Act to place identification plates on vehicles where an approval is no longer in force.

10. CONFORMITY OF PRODUCTION

10.1 All approval holders are subject to audit by inspectors appointed under section 25 of the Act. Audits are based on quality assurance principles of ISO 9001:2000. Licensees are advised to ensure that a Quality Plan is operating in their organisation that ensures that Identification Plates are only placed on vehicles of the type approved. Licensees must be able to demonstrate that their design and manufacturing processes are controlled sufficiently to ensure that all vehicles are manufactured to the correct specifications.

11. PROVISIONAL APPROVALS

11.1 Provisional approvals for a limited period will be considered by the Administrator in certain cases pending further supply of information confirming ADR compliance. When such information is received and found satisfactory an amending approval for the life of the vehicle model will be issued.

12. NOTIFICATION OF CESSATION OF SUPPLY TO THE MARKET

12.1 When a Manufacturer ceases production of an approved Make-Model of vehicle for supply to the Australian market, the Manufacturer must notify the Administrator of Vehicle Standards.

12.2 This notification shall be submitted within 4 weeks of placing the last Identification Plate.