ABOUT
HQ USAREUR Registry of Motor Vehicles History
The United States Army, Europe (USAREUR) Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV) was
established approximately Twenty- three months after D-Day; the RMV was created
in the rubble and chaos of postwar Germany. First established in Frankfurt in
May 1946, it kept track of the cars that Soldiers acquired or brought into
Germany. In August 1949 the Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV) moved to Building
11, Campbell Barracks, Headquarters, U.S. Army Europe. In September 1967 the RMV
moved from Campbell Barracks to the American Shopping Center in Heidelberg,
Germany until February 1975 when it again moved from the basement of the
building in the American Shopping Center in Heidelberg to Building 3980 in the
CPO and Family Housing Building, across the street from the Heidelberg Shopping
Center on Czernyring . In February 1997 the RMV moved again from Heidelberg to
Building 335 Taylor Barracks, Mannheim, Germany where it remained until March
2011 when U.S. Army Europe's restructuring and transformation resulted in the
RMV moving from Mannheim Germany to its new home in Building 216 Sembach Kaserne,
within the Kaiserslautern Garrison's footprint.
The RMV is a HQDA Non-appropriated Supplemental Mission Fund under the
operational control of the USAREUR Provost Marshal. The organization operates
around the clock every day of the year, supporting the operations of 16 field
registration and driver's testing stations throughout Germany. RMV has many
diverse missions and responsibilities from providing additional fuel
authorizations, processing traffic tickets for all U.S. Forces in Germany and
manufactures all U.S. Forces and German license plates used by U.S. forces
personnel to ensure positive control and to achieve efficiencies and reduce
overall registration costs.
The Registry has made many strides in implementing Force Protection measures to
keep U.S. Forces personnel and family members safer; among the most visible
measure was after many years of negotiations and final approval by German
authorities, the RMV started converting to German plates in January 2006 and
completed the changeover in 2008. All U.S. forces personnel and their family
members receive German license plates from the area where they are stationed.
This reduces the visibility of U.S. Forces members, making it safer for them to
travel and blend into their local communities/environment. The Registry was
instrumental in the implementation of the AAFES Germany Fuel Ration Card program
and still processes all requests for additional fuel authorizations. We ensure
that only authorized individuals get tax-free fuel in Germany. It also acts as
the sole authority for tax-free fuel authorizations.
RMV establishes policy and creates the publications that govern driving and
registering vehicles in Germany, driver's licensing and testing, as well as,
owning and registering Privately Owned Firearms (POFs) in Germany. These
regulations conform to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Supplementary
Agreement and German law. Over the past few years German police have intensified
traffic enforcement measures to make the roads safer. The RMV processes hundreds
of thousands of traffic citations worth millions of dollars in fines, as well as
suspensions and revocations for violations of U.S. and German law.
For the past Sixty- seven (67) years, the USAREUR Registry of Motor Vehicles has
supported all members of the Forces, Civilian Components and their Families, and
look forward to continue serving the proud men and women who dedicate their
lives to protecting our freedom.
CONTACT
Information on 112 - the European Union emergency number.
