A motorist in Western Australia has spotted strange wording on a licence plate – and any Aussie drivers who have a similar plate on their cars risk a fine of as much as $2500 because it hasn’t been government approved.

The driver posted an image (below) of a numberplate with the words “Commonwealth of Australia” above the identifying letters and numbers and the website www.royalregistrydejure.com.au underneath them. 

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The post was titled “Is this a cooker?” and the poster wrote, “This number plate looks clearly fake. I looked up the website and it appears to go on about no taxes and crown this and that. Displaying these surely cannot be legal. They don’t flag under the licence check WA so not state issued.”

That all appears to be correct, as driving with a fake, unauthorised, altered or imitation number plate is a serious offence across Australia, worth a $2500 fine and 50 penalty units in WA – and the penalty is harsher in Victoria, where offenders risk six months’ imprisonment and 60 penalty units. 

The plate spotted in Mandurah seems to have all the hallmarks of belonging to a sovereign citizen: an Aussie who disengages from society and claims the country’s laws don’t apply to them. “Sov cits” don’t believe they have to pay tax or need birth certificates and driver’s licences, and believe laws can only be enforced when individuals consent to them.

Sovereign citizens came to the fore during the Covid pandemic, when many used their bizarre legal ideas in an attempt to prevent police from restricting their movements during lockdowns. 

In 2023, NSW police pulled over a driver who allegedly wasn’t displaying any number plates. She told officers she was “not under any public licence” and said, “Without the number plates and without the licence, I’m not actually under your membership.”