Guide6 min read11 views
Updated 1 November 2026 · Written by the Wahanaya.lk team
The VIC (Vehicle Identity Card) sticker is a DMT-issued identity sticker fixed inside your windscreen showing your registration number, part of the chassis number and the year it was issued.
The VIC, short for Vehicle Identity Card, is a small sticker the Department of Motor Traffic (DMT, formerly called the RMV) issues for every registered vehicle. It is fixed inside the front windscreen and shows your registration number, part of your chassis number, and the year it was issued, so a traffic officer or DMT inspector can quickly match the vehicle to its records. It is not your CR book and it is not your revenue licence — it is a separate identity mark that sits alongside both.
The VIC sticker carries your vehicle's registration number, the last digits of its chassis number, and the year the sticker was issued, along with a DMT confirmation mark. According to MotorGuide.lk, newer stickers also include a QR code, and the DMT has at various points discussed adding RFID-style technology so officers could read a vehicle's details from a distance — but you should treat that as a future possibility rather than something every vehicle has today. The point of all this is simple: an officer can glance at the sticker, cross-check the number plate, and get a reasonable match without pulling out the CR book.
No, and this is the mix-up most people make. Your revenue licence is the annual vehicle tax, and it comes with its own sticker or barcode that you renew every year — you can read more about that process in our guide on renewing your revenue licence. The VIC sticker is not a tax document and is not renewed yearly. It stays on the vehicle until something changes that requires the DMT to issue a new one, such as a new CR book, a number plate change, or a transfer of ownership. If you've only ever thought about the revenue licence disc on your windscreen, the VIC is the other, less talked-about sticker next to it.
You get a new VIC sticker any time the DMT issues you a new Certificate of Registration. That happens at first registration of a new or newly imported vehicle, after you change the number plate, after certain changes of attributes (like engine or chassis number corrections), and after an ownership transfer when the buyer's new CR book is issued. If none of those things have happened to your vehicle, your existing VIC sticker should still be the one on file with the DMT.
File a police complaint first, describing the sticker as lost, torn, or faded beyond reading. Then take a copy of that police complaint, your CR book, and your NIC to the DMT and apply for a duplicate. A fee applies, and because DMT charges are revised from time to time, confirm the current amount and the exact form you need at your nearest district DMT office rather than relying on an old figure. Don't just peel off a damaged sticker and leave the windscreen bare — get the replacement process started, since the sticker is one of the identity checks an officer may look for.
Sri Lanka's traffic law treats tampering with or deliberately damaging official vehicle markings as an offence, and a missing or illegible VIC sticker is something an officer can question you about during a routine check. The exact penalty schedule for this specific sticker isn't something we could confirm from a single clear source, and police fine amounts are updated periodically, so if you're ever unsure, ask directly at a DMT counter or check the Sri Lanka Police traffic fines schedule rather than guessing. The safer move is simply to keep the sticker intact and visible rather than find out the hard way.
It should be fixed on the inside of the front windscreen, in a spot that stays clearly visible and readable from outside the car. Avoid putting dark tint strips, parking permits, or other stickers over it. If your windscreen has been replaced — after a crack or a full glass change — check that the VIC sticker was transferred or reissued, since a windscreen job is an easy way to lose it without noticing until a check stops you.
If you're buying a used vehicle, treat the VIC sticker as one more thing to check alongside the CR book, chassis number, and engine number — the details should all line up with no mismatches. A sticker that looks brand new on an otherwise old, unmodified vehicle, or one where the registration number doesn't match the plate, is worth asking the seller about before you commit. You can browse currently listed vehicles on /vehicles, compare what a fair asking price looks like on /price-check, and if you're planning to finance the purchase, work out a monthly figure with the /leasing calculator first.
If you're selling, make sure your VIC sticker, CR book, and revenue licence are all in order before you list the vehicle — buyers increasingly know to ask. You can list your vehicle on /post-ad, and it's worth reading our general safety pointers at /safety-tips before you meet a buyer. If you run into a situation the DMT counter staff can't fully clarify — a sticker that doesn't match, a windscreen replacement that happened under a previous owner, or anything else unusual — ask other owners and sellers in the Wahanaya forum; someone has likely dealt with the same DMT counter and process before.
Yes, you can sell a car in Sri Lanka from overseas by giving a registered Power of Attorney to someone in Sri Lanka, signed before a Sri Lankan embassy or consular officer, then used by your attorney to sign the RMV transfer forms on your behalf.
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