What do “in circulation” and “out of circulation” mean?

A registered vehicle is either “in circulation” — it has valid licence plates and insurance cover — or “out of circulation”. In the latter case the plates are deposited or cancelled; the vehicle may not be used on public roads.

Under Art. 81 VZV, when a vehicle is taken out of circulation or replaced, the keeper must have the registration document (and any duplicate) cancelled by the authority.

In ASTRA’s public vehicle data, the “entry-into-circulation status” field indicates the state: “I” = in circulation, “A” = out of circulation.