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ISO 3166-1 alpha-2

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A map of Europe, with ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes in place of the full names of countries and other territories. 'Exceptional reservations' codes CQ, EU and UK are not shown.

ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes are two-letter country codes defined in ISO 3166-1, part of the ISO 3166 standard[1] published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), to represent countries, dependent territories, and special areas of geographical interest. They are the most widely used of the country codes published by ISO (the others being alpha-3 and numeric), and are used most prominently for the Internet's country code top-level domains (with a few exceptions). They are also used as country identifiers extending the postal code when appropriate within the international postal system for paper mail, and have replaced the previous one consisting one-letter codes. They were first included as part of the ISO 3166 standard in its first edition in 1974.

Uses and applications

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The ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes are used in different environments and are also part of other standards. In some cases they are not perfectly implemented.

Perfect implementations

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The ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes are used in the following standards:

Short name Long name Comment
ISO 3166-2 Country subdivision code[1]
ISO 3901 International Standard Recording Code (ISRC)[2]
ISO 4217 Currency code[3]
ISO 6166 International Securities Identifying Number (ISIN)[4]
ISO 9362 Bank Identifier Codes (BIC) Also known as SWIFT codes[5]
ISO 13616 International Bank Account Number (IBAN)[6]
ISO 15511 International Standard Identifier for Libraries and Related Organizations (ISIL)
UN/LOCODE United Nations Code for Trade and Transport Locations Implemented by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe[7]

Imperfect implementations

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Starting in 1985, ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes have been used in the Domain Name System as country code top-level domains (ccTLDs). The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority currently assigns the ccTLDs mostly following the alpha-2 codes, but with a few exceptions.[8] For example, the United Kingdom, whose alpha-2 code is GB, uses .uk instead of .gb as its ccTLD, as UK is currently exceptionally reserved in ISO 3166-1 on the request of the United Kingdom.

The WIPO coding standard ST.3 is based on ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes, but includes a number of additional codes for international intellectual property organizations, which are currently reserved and not used at the present stage in ISO 3166-1.[9]

The European Commission generally uses ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes with two exceptions: EL (not GR) is used to represent Greece, and UK (not GB) is used to represent the United Kingdom.[10][11] This notwithstanding, the Official Journal of the European Communities specified that GR and GB be used to represent Greece and United Kingdom respectively.[12] For VAT administration purposes, the European Commission uses EL and GB for Greece and the United Kingdom respectively.

The United Nations uses a combination of ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 and alpha-3 codes, along with codes that pre-date the creation of ISO 3166, for international vehicle registration codes, which are codes used to identify the issuing country of a vehicle registration plate; some of these codes are currently indeterminately reserved in ISO 3166-1.[13]

IETF language tags (conforming to the BCP 47 standard track and maintained in an IANA registry) are also partially derived from ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes (for the region subtags). The full list of ISO 3166-1 codes assigned to countries and territories are usable as region subtags. Also, the "exceptionally reserved" alpha-2 codes defined in ISO 3166-1 (with the exception of UK) are also usable as region subtags for language tags. However, newer stability policies (agreed with ISO) have been implemented to avoid deleting subtags that have been withdrawn in ISO 3166-1; instead they are kept and aliased to the new preferred subtags, or kept as subtags grouping several countries. Some other region grouping subtags are derived from other standards. Under the newer stability policies, old assigned codes that have been withdrawn from ISO 3166-1 should no longer be reassigned to another country or territory (as has occurred in the past for "CS").

Current codes

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Decoding table

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The following is a colour-coded decoding table of all ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes.

Decoding table of ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes
AA AB AC AD AE AF AG AH AI AJ AK AL AM AN AO AP AQ AR AS AT AU AV AW AX AY AZ
BA BB BC BD BE BF BG BH BI BJ BK BL BM BN BO BP BQ BR BS BT BU BV BW BX BY BZ
CA CB CC CD CE CF CG CH CI CJ CK CL CM CN CO CP CQ CR CS CT CU CV CW CX CY CZ
DA DB DC DD DE DF DG DH DI DJ DK DL DM DN DO DP DQ DR DS DT DU DV DW DX DY DZ
EA EB EC ED EE EF EG EH EI EJ EK EL EM EN EO EP EQ ER ES ET EU EV EW EX EY EZ
FA FB FC FD FE FF FG FH FI FJ FK FL FM FN FO FP FQ FR FS FT FU FV FW FX FY FZ
GA GB GC GD GE GF GG GH GI GJ GK GL GM GN GO GP GQ GR GS GT GU GV GW GX GY GZ
HA HB HC HD HE HF HG HH HI HJ HK HL HM HN HO HP HQ HR HS HT HU HV HW HX HY HZ
IA IB IC ID IE IF IG IH II IJ IK IL IM IN IO IP IQ IR IS IT IU IV IW IX IY IZ
JA JB JC JD JE JF JG JH JI JJ JK JL JM JN JO JP JQ JR JS JT JU JV JW JX JY JZ
KA KB KC KD KE KF KG KH KI KJ KK KL KM KN KO KP KQ KR KS KT KU KV KW KX KY KZ
LA LB LC LD LE LF LG LH LI LJ LK LL LM LN LO LP LQ LR LS LT LU LV LW LX LY LZ
MA MB MC MD ME MF MG MH MI MJ MK ML MM MN MO MP MQ MR MS MT MU MV MW MX MY MZ
NA NB NC ND NE NF NG NH NI NJ NK NL NM NN NO NP NQ NR NS NT NU NV NW NX NY NZ
OA OB OC OD OE OF OG OH OI OJ OK OL OM ON OO OP OQ OR OS OT OU OV OW OX OY OZ
PA PB PC PD PE PF PG PH PI PJ PK PL PM PN PO PP PQ PR PS PT PU PV PW PX PY PZ
QA QB QC QD QE QF QG QH QI QJ QK QL QM QN QO QP QQ QR QS QT QU QV QW QX QY QZ
RA RB RC RD RE RF RG RH RI RJ RK RL RM RN RO RP RQ RR RS RT RU RV RW RX RY RZ
SA SB SC SD SE SF SG SH SI SJ SK SL SM SN SO SP SQ SR SS ST SU SV SW SX SY SZ
TA TB TC TD TE TF TG TH TI TJ TK TL TM TN TO TP TQ TR TS TT TU TV TW TX TY TZ
UA UB UC UD UE UF UG UH UI UJ UK UL UM UN UO UP UQ UR US UT UU UV UW UX UY UZ
VA VB VC VD VE VF VG VH VI VJ VK VL VM VN VO VP VQ VR VS VT VU VV VW VX VY VZ
WA WB WC WD WE WF WG WH WI WJ WK WL WM WN WO WP WQ WR WS WT WU WV WW WX WY WZ
XA XB XC XD XE XF XG XH XI XJ XK XL XM XN XO XP XQ XR XS XT XU XV XW XX XY XZ
YA YB YC YD YE YF YG YH YI YJ YK YL YM YN YO YP YQ YR YS YT YU YV YW YX YY YZ
ZA ZB ZC ZD ZE ZF ZG ZH ZI ZJ ZK ZL ZM ZN ZO ZP ZQ ZR ZS ZT ZU ZV ZW ZX ZY ZZ
Colour legend
242 Officially assigned: assigned to a country, territory, or area of geographical interest
7 Officially assigned: formerly either assigned to a different entity or reserved indeterminately, then deleted and later reassigned as above
43 User-assigned: free for assignment at the disposal of users
13 Exceptionally reserved: reserved on request for restricted use
30 Indeterminately reserved: used in coding systems associated with ISO 3166-1
7 Transitionally reserved: deleted from ISO 3166-1 but reserved transitionally
14 Deleted: deleted and free for reassignment
320 Unassigned: free for assignment by the ISO 3166/MA only
676 Overall total

Officially assigned code elements

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The following is a complete list of the 249 current officially assigned ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes, with the following columns:[1]

  • Code: ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code, pointing to its ISO 3166-2 article
  • Country name: English short name officially used by the ISO 3166 Maintenance Agency (ISO 3166/MA)
  • Year: Year when alpha-2 code was first officially assigned (1974, first edition of ISO 3166)
  • ccTLD: Corresponding country code top-level domain (some are unassigned or inactive); exceptions where another ccTLD is assigned for the country are shown in parentheses
  • Notes: Any unofficial notes
Code Country name (using title case) Year ccTLD Notes
Andorra 1974 .ad
AE United Arab Emirates 1974 .ae
AF Afghanistan 1974 .af
AG Antigua and Barbuda 1974 .ag
AI Anguilla 1985 .ai AI previously represented French Afars and Issas
AL Albania 1974 .al
AM Armenia 1992 .am
AO Angola 1974 .ao
AQ Antarctica 1974 .aq Covers the territories south of 60° south latitude
Code taken from name in French: Antarctique
AR Argentina 1974 .ar
AS American Samoa 1974 .as
AT Austria 1974 .at
AU Australia 1974 .au Includes the Ashmore and Cartier Islands and the Coral Sea Islands
AW Aruba 1986 .aw
AX Åland Islands 2004 .ax An autonomous county of Finland
AZ Azerbaijan 1992 .az
BA Bosnia and Herzegovina 1992 .ba
BB Barbados 1974 .bb
BD Bangladesh 1974 .bd
BE Belgium 1974 .be
BF Burkina Faso 1984 .bf Name changed from Upper Volta (HV)
BG Bulgaria 1974 .bg
BH Bahrain 1974 .bh
BI Burundi 1974 .bi
BJ Benin 1977 .bj Name changed from Dahomey (DY)
BL Saint Barthélemy 2007 .bl
BM Bermuda 1974 .bm
BN Brunei Darussalam 1974 .bn Previous ISO country name: Brunei
BO Bolivia, Plurinational State of 1974 .bo Previous ISO country name: Bolivia
BQ Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba 2010 .bq Consists of three Caribbean "special municipalities", which are part of the Netherlands proper: Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba (the BES Islands)
Previous ISO country name: Bonaire, Saint Eustatius and Saba
BQ previously represented British Antarctic Territory
BR Brazil 1974 .br
BS Bahamas 1974 .bs
BT Bhutan 1974 .bt
BV Bouvet Island 1974 .bv Dependency of Norway
BW Botswana 1974 .bw
BY Belarus 1974 .by Code taken from previous ISO country name: Byelorussian SSR (now assigned ISO 3166-3 code BYAA)
Code assigned as the country was already a UN member since 1945[14]
BZ Belize 1974 .bz
CA Canada 1974 .ca
CC Cocos (Keeling) Islands 1974 .cc External territory of Australia
CD Congo, Democratic Republic of the 1997 .cd Name changed from Zaire (ZR)
CF Central African Republic 1974 .cf
CG Congo 1974 .cg
CH Switzerland 1974 .ch Code taken from name in Latin: Confoederatio Helvetica
CI Côte d'Ivoire 1974 .ci ISO country name follows UN designation (common name and previous ISO country name: Ivory Coast)
CK Cook Islands 1974 .ck
CL Chile 1974 .cl
CM Cameroon 1974 .cm Previous ISO country name: Cameroon, United Republic of
CN China 1974 .cn
CO Colombia 1974 .co
CR Costa Rica 1974 .cr
CU Cuba 1974 .cu
CV Cabo Verde 1974 .cv ISO country name follows UN designation (common name and previous ISO country name: Cape Verde, another previous ISO country name: Cape Verde Islands)
CW Curaçao 2010 .cw
CX Christmas Island 1974 .cx External territory of Australia
CY Cyprus 1974 .cy
CZ Czechia 1993 .cz Previous ISO country name: Czech Republic
DE Germany 1974 .de Code taken from name in German: Deutschland
Code used for West Germany before 1990 (previous ISO country name: Germany, Federal Republic of)
DJ Djibouti 1977 .dj Name changed from French Afars and Issas (AI)
DK Denmark 1974 .dk
DM Dominica 1974 .dm
DO Dominican Republic 1974 .do
DZ Algeria 1974 .dz Code taken from name in Arabic الجزائر al-Djazā'ir, Algerian Arabic الدزاير al-Dzāyīr, or Berber ⴷⵣⴰⵢⵔ Dzayer
EC Ecuador 1974 .ec
EE Estonia 1992 .ee Code taken from name in Estonian: Eesti
EG Egypt 1974 .eg
EH Western Sahara 1974 .eh Previous ISO country name: Spanish Sahara (code taken from name in Spanish: Sahara español)
ER Eritrea 1993 .er
ES Spain 1974 .es Code taken from name in Spanish: España
ET Ethiopia 1974 .et
FI Finland 1974 .fi
FJ Fiji 1974 .fj
FK Falkland Islands (Malvinas) 1974 .fk ISO country name follows UN designation due to the Falkland Islands sovereignty dispute (local common name: Falkland Islands)[15]
FM Micronesia, Federated States of 1986 .fm Previous ISO country name: Micronesia
FO Faroe Islands 1974 .fo Code taken from name in Faroese: Føroyar
FR France 1974 .fr Includes Clipperton Island
GA Gabon 1974 .ga
GB United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 1974 .gb
(.uk)		 Includes Akrotiri and Dhekelia (Sovereign Base Areas)
Code taken from Great Britain (from official name: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland)[16]
Previous ISO country name: United Kingdom
.uk is the primary ccTLD of the United Kingdom instead of .gb[17] (see code UK, which is exceptionally reserved)
GD Grenada 1974 .gd
GE Georgia 1992 .ge GE previously represented Gilbert and Ellice Islands
GF French Guiana 1974 .gf Code taken from name in French: Guyane française
GG Guernsey 2006 .gg A British Crown Dependency
GH Ghana 1974 .gh
GI Gibraltar 1974 .gi
GL Greenland 1974 .gl
GM Gambia 1974 .gm
GN Guinea 1974 .gn
GP Guadeloupe 1974 .gp
GQ Equatorial Guinea 1974 .gq Code taken from name in French: Guinée équatoriale
GR Greece 1974 .gr
GS South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands 1993 .gs
GT Guatemala 1974 .gt
GU Guam 1974 .gu
GW Guinea-Bissau 1974 .gw
GY Guyana 1974 .gy
HK Hong Kong 1974 .hk Hong Kong is officially a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China since 1 July 1997
HM Heard Island and McDonald Islands 1974 .hm External territory of Australia
HN Honduras 1974 .hn
HR Croatia 1992 .hr Code taken from name in Croatian: Hrvatska
HT Haiti 1974 .ht
HU Hungary 1974 .hu
ID Indonesia 1974 .id
IE Ireland 1974 .ie
IL Israel 1974 .il
IM Isle of Man 2006 .im A British Crown Dependency
IN India 1974 .in
IO British Indian Ocean Territory 1974 .io
IQ Iraq 1974 .iq
IR Iran, Islamic Republic of 1974 .ir Previous ISO country name: Iran
IS Iceland 1974 .is Code taken from name in Icelandic: Ísland
IT Italy 1974 .it
JE Jersey 2006 .je A British Crown Dependency
JM Jamaica 1974 .jm
JO Jordan 1974 .jo
JP Japan 1974 .jp
KE Kenya 1974 .ke
KG Kyrgyzstan 1992 .kg
KH Cambodia 1974 .kh Code taken from former name: Khmer Republic
Previous ISO country name: Kampuchea, Democratic
KI Kiribati 1979 .ki Name changed from Gilbert Islands (GE)
KM Comoros 1974 .km Code taken from name in Comorian: Komori
Previous ISO country name: Comoro Islands
KN Saint Kitts and Nevis 1974 .kn Previous ISO country name: Saint Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla
KP Korea, Democratic People's Republic of 1974 .kp ISO country name follows UN designation (common name: North Korea)
KR Korea, Republic of 1974 .kr ISO country name follows UN designation (common name: South Korea)
KW Kuwait 1974 .kw
KY Cayman Islands 1974 .ky
KZ Kazakhstan 1992 .kz Previous ISO country name: Kazakstan
LA Lao People's Democratic Republic 1974 .la ISO country name follows UN designation (common name and previous ISO country name: Laos)
LB Lebanon 1974 .lb
LC Saint Lucia 1974 .lc
LI Liechtenstein 1974 .li
LK Sri Lanka 1974 .lk
LR Liberia 1974 .lr
LS Lesotho 1974 .ls
LT Lithuania 1992 .lt LT formerly reserved indeterminately for Libya Tripoli
LU Luxembourg 1974 .lu
LV Latvia 1992 .lv
LY Libya 1974 .ly Previous ISO country name: Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
MA Morocco 1974 .ma Code taken from name in French: Maroc
MC Monaco 1974 .mc
MD Moldova, Republic of 1992 .md Previous ISO country name: Moldova (briefly from 2008 to 2009)
ME Montenegro 2006 .me ME formerly reserved indeterminately for Western Sahara
MF Saint Martin (French part) 2007 .mf The Dutch part of Saint Martin island is assigned code SX
MG Madagascar 1974 .mg
MH Marshall Islands 1986 .mh
MK North Macedonia 1993 .mk Code taken from name in Macedonian: Severna Makedonija
Previous ISO country name: Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of (designated as such due to Macedonia naming dispute)
ML Mali 1974 .ml
MM Myanmar 1989 .mm Name changed from Burma (BU)
MN Mongolia 1974 .mn
MO Macao 1974 .mo Previous ISO country name: Macau; Macao is officially a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China since 20 December 1999
MP Northern Mariana Islands 1986 .mp
MQ Martinique 1974 .mq
MR Mauritania 1974 .mr
MS Montserrat 1974 .ms
MT Malta 1974 .mt
MU Mauritius 1974 .mu
MV Maldives 1974 .mv
MW Malawi 1974 .mw
MX Mexico 1974 .mx
MY Malaysia 1974 .my
MZ Mozambique 1974 .mz
NA Namibia 1974 .na
NC New Caledonia 1974 .nc
NE Niger 1974 .ne
NF Norfolk Island 1974 .nf External territory of Australia
NG Nigeria 1974 .ng
NI Nicaragua 1974 .ni
NL Netherlands, Kingdom of the 1974 .nl Officially includes the islands Bonaire, Saint Eustatius and Saba, which also have code BQ in ISO 3166-1. Within ISO 3166-2, Aruba (AW), Curaçao (CW), and Sint Maarten (SX) are also coded as subdivisions of NL.[18]
Previous ISO country name: Netherlands
NO Norway 1974 .no
NP Nepal 1974 .np
NR Nauru 1974 .nr
NU Niue 1974 .nu Previous ISO country name: Niue Island
NZ New Zealand 1974 .nz
OM Oman 1974 .om
PA Panama 1974 .pa
PE Peru 1974 .pe
PF French Polynesia 1974 .pf Code taken from name in French: Polynésie française
PG Papua New Guinea 1974 .pg
PH Philippines 1974 .ph
PK Pakistan 1974 .pk
PL Poland 1974 .pl
PM Saint Pierre and Miquelon 1974 .pm
PN Pitcairn 1974 .pn Previous ISO country name: Pitcairn Islands
PR Puerto Rico 1974 .pr
PS Palestine, State of 1999 .ps Previous ISO country name: Palestinian Territory, Occupied
Consists of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip
PT Portugal 1974 .pt
PW Palau 1986 .pw
PY Paraguay 1974 .py
QA Qatar 1974 .qa
RE Réunion 1974 .re
RO Romania 1974 .ro
RS Serbia 2006 .rs Republic of Serbia
RU Russian Federation 1992 .ru ISO country name follows UN designation (common name: Russia); RU formerly reserved indeterminately for Burundi
RW Rwanda 1974 .rw
SA Saudi Arabia 1974 .sa
SB Solomon Islands 1974 .sb Code taken from former name: British Solomon Islands
SC Seychelles 1974 .sc
SD Sudan 1974 .sd
SE Sweden 1974 .se
SG Singapore 1974 .sg
SH Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha 1974 .sh Previous ISO country name: Saint Helena.
SI Slovenia 1992 .si
SJ Svalbard and Jan Mayen 1974 .sj Previous ISO name: Svalbard and Jan Mayen Islands
Consists of two Arctic territories of Norway: Svalbard and Jan Mayen
SK Slovakia 1993 .sk SK previously represented the Kingdom of Sikkim
SL Sierra Leone 1974 .sl
SM San Marino 1974 .sm
SN Senegal 1974 .sn
SO Somalia 1974 .so
SR Suriname 1974 .sr Previous ISO country name: Surinam
SS South Sudan 2011 .ss
ST Sao Tome and Principe 1974 .st
SV El Salvador 1974 .sv
SX Sint Maarten (Dutch part) 2010 .sx The French part of Saint Martin island is assigned code MF
SY Syrian Arab Republic 1974 .sy ISO country name follows UN designation (common name and previous ISO country name: Syria)
SZ Eswatini 1974 .sz Previous ISO country name: Swaziland
TC Turks and Caicos Islands 1974 .tc
TD Chad 1974 .td Code taken from name in French: Tchad
TF French Southern Territories 1979 .tf Covers the French Southern and Antarctic Lands except Adélie Land
Code taken from name in French: Terres australes françaises
TG Togo 1974 .tg
TH Thailand 1974 .th
TJ Tajikistan 1992 .tj
TK Tokelau 1974 .tk Previous ISO country name: Tokelau Islands
TL Timor-Leste 2002 .tl Name changed from East Timor (TP)
TM Turkmenistan 1992 .tm
TN Tunisia 1974 .tn
TO Tonga 1974 .to
TR Türkiye 1974 .tr Previous ISO country name: Turkey
TT Trinidad and Tobago 1974 .tt
TV Tuvalu 1977 .tv
TW Taiwan, Province of China 1974 .tw Covers the current jurisdiction of the Republic of China
ISO country name follows UN designation (due to political status of Taiwan within the UN)[16] (common name: Taiwan)
TZ Tanzania, United Republic of 1974 .tz
UA Ukraine 1974 .ua Previous ISO country name: Ukrainian SSR
Code assigned as the country was already a UN member since 1945[14]
UG Uganda 1974 .ug
UM United States Minor Outlying Islands 1986 .um Consists of nine minor insular areas of the United States: Baker Island, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Islands, Navassa Island, Palmyra Atoll, and Wake Island
.um ccTLD was revoked in 2007[19]

The United States Department of State uses the following user assigned alpha-2 codes for the nine territories, respectively, XB, XH, XQ, XU, XM, QM, XV, XL and QW.[20]

US United States of America 1974 .us Previous ISO country name: United States
UY Uruguay 1974 .uy
UZ Uzbekistan 1992 .uz
VA Holy See 1974 .va Covers Vatican City, territory of the Holy See
Previous ISO country names: Vatican City State (Holy See) and Holy See (Vatican City State)
VC Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1974 .vc
VE Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of 1974 .ve Previous ISO country name: Venezuela
VG Virgin Islands (British) 1974 .vg
VI Virgin Islands (U.S.) 1974 .vi
VN Viet Nam 1974 .vn ISO country name follows UN designation (common name: Vietnam)
Code used for Republic of Viet Nam (common name: South Vietnam) before 1977
VU Vanuatu 1980 .vu Name changed from New Hebrides (NH)
WF Wallis and Futuna 1974 .wf Previous ISO country name: Wallis and Futuna Islands
WS Samoa 1974 .ws Code taken from former name: Western Samoa
YE Yemen 1974 .ye Previous ISO country name: Yemen, Republic of (for three years after the unification)
Code used for North Yemen before 1990
YT Mayotte 1993 .yt
ZA South Africa 1974 .za Code taken from name in Dutch: Zuid-Afrika
ZM Zambia 1974 .zm
ZW Zimbabwe 1980 .zw Name changed from Southern Rhodesia (RH)

User-assigned code elements

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User-assigned code elements are codes at the disposal of users who need to add further names of countries, territories, or other geographical entities to their in-house application of ISO 3166-1, and the ISO 3166/MA will never use these codes in the updating process of the standard. The following alpha-2 codes can be user-assigned: AA, QM to QZ, XA to XZ, and ZZ.[21] For example:

Furthermore, the code element OO is designated as an escape code if the number of regular user-assigned code elements is not sufficient.[32]

Reserved code elements

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Reserved code elements are codes which have become obsolete, or are required in order to enable a particular user application of the standard but do not qualify for inclusion in ISO 3166-1. To avoid transitional application problems and to aid users who require specific additional code elements for the functioning of their coding systems, the ISO 3166/MA, when justified, reserves these codes which it undertakes not to use for other than specified purposes during a limited or indeterminate period of time. The reserved alpha-2 codes can be divided into the following four categories: exceptional reservations, transitional reservations, indeterminate reservations, and codes currently agreed not to use.

Exceptional reservations

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Exceptionally reserved code elements are codes reserved at the request of national ISO member bodies, governments and international organizations, which are required in order to support a particular application, as specified by the requesting body and limited to such use; any further use of such code elements is subject to approval by the ISO 3166/MA. The following alpha-2 codes are currently exceptionally reserved:

Code Area name or country name Current actual country ccTLD Notes
AC Ascension Island United Kingdom .ac Reserved on request of UPU for stamp issuing area
CP Clipperton Island France — Reserved on request of ITU for location of certain telecommunications installations
CQ Island of Sark United Kingdom — Reserved on request of the United Kingdom. Letters are derived from French name Sercq.
DG Diego Garcia United Kingdom — Reserved on request of ITU for location of certain telecommunications installations
EA Ceuta, Melilla Spain — Reserved on request of WCO for area not covered by European Union Customs arrangements[33]
Part of Spanish North Africa (Spanish: África Septentrional Española)
EU European Union multiple .eu Reserved on request of ISO 4217/MA for the European monetary unit Euro
Extended for ISO 6166 "Securities – International securities identification numbering system (ISIN)" in March 1998
Extended for any application needing to represent the name European Union in August 1999
EZ Eurozone multiple — Reserved on request of ISO 6166/RA for the European OTC derivatives within International securities identification numbering system (ISIN)
FX France, Metropolitan France — Reserved on request of France
Officially assigned before deleted from ISO 3166-1 (now assigned ISO 3166-3 code FXFR)
IC Canary Islands Spain — Reserved on request of WCO for area not covered by European Union Customs arrangements.
Code taken from name in Spanish: Islas Canarias
SU USSR multiple .su From June 2008; Transitionally reserved from September 1992
Officially assigned before deleted from ISO 3166-1 (now assigned ISO 3166-3 code SUHH)
Official name and previous ISO country name:[34] Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (common name: Soviet Union)
TA Tristan da Cunha United Kingdom — Reserved on request of UPU for stamp issuing area
UK United Kingdom United Kingdom .uk Reserved on request of the United Kingdom lest UK be used for any other country
Also used by the European Commission
United Kingdom is officially assigned the alpha-2 code GB
UN United Nations multiple — Reserved directly by ISO 3166/MA for the United Nations

The following alpha-2 codes were previously exceptionally reserved, but are now officially assigned:

Code Area name or country name Notes
AX Åland Islands Reserved on request of Finland
GG Guernsey Reserved on request of UPU for stamp issuing area
IM Isle of Man Reserved on request of UPU for stamp issuing area
JE Jersey Reserved on request of UPU for stamp issuing area

Transitional reservations

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Transitional reserved code elements are codes reserved after their deletion from ISO 3166-1. These codes may be used only during a transitional period of at least five years while new code elements that may have replaced them are taken into use. These codes may be reassigned by the ISO 3166/MA after the expiration of the transitional period. The following alpha-2 codes are currently transitionally reserved:

Code Formerly used country name Reserved from Reserved to ccTLD ISO 3166-3 Notes
AN Netherlands Antilles 2010-12 2060-12 .an ANHH Divided into BQ (Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba), CW (Curaçao) and SX (Dutch part of Sint Maarten)
BU Burma 1989-12 2039-12 — BUMM Name changed to Myanmar (MM)
CS Originally Czechoslovakia, later Serbia and Montenegro 2006-09 2056-09 — CSHH
CSXX		 Code taken from name in Serbian: Srbija i Crna Gora, for Serbia and Montenegro, which however is now divided into Montenegro (ME) and Serbia (RS).
(Though reserved, the ccTLD .cs was never actually assigned to Serbia and Montenegro; the ccTLD of Serbia and Montenegro was .yu, as that formerly unified country's name, and that of its larger predecessor, had previously been Yugoslavia.)
CS originally represented Czechoslovakia. Its successor state Czechia uses CZ, and Slovakia SK.
NT Neutral Zone 1993-07 2043-07 — NTHH Divided between Iraq (IQ) and Saudi Arabia (SA)
TP East Timor 2002-05 2052-05 .tp TPTL Code taken from previous ISO country name: Portuguese Timor, name changed to Timor-Leste (TL)
YU Yugoslavia 2003-07 2053-07 — YUCS Code used for the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia before 1992 and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia after 1992
ZR Zaire 1997-07 2047-07 — ZRCD Name changed to Congo, the Democratic Republic of the (CD)
ccTLD .zr has been deleted[35]

The following alpha-2 code was previously transitionally reserved, but was later reassigned to another country as its official code:

Code Formerly used country name Date of reservation ccTLD ISO 3166-3 Notes
CS Czechoslovakia 1993-06 — CSHH Code reassigned to Serbia and Montenegro
ccTLD .cs has been deleted

For each deleted alpha-2 code, an entry for the corresponding former country name is included in ISO 3166-3. Each entry is assigned a four-letter alphabetic code, where the first two letters are the deleted alpha-2 code.

Indeterminate reservations

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Indeterminately reserved code elements are codes used to designate road vehicles under the 1949 and 1968 United Nations Conventions on Road Traffic but differing from those contained in ISO 3166-1. These code elements are expected eventually to be either eliminated or replaced by code elements within ISO 3166-1. In the meantime, the ISO 3166/MA has reserved such code elements for an indeterminate period. Any use beyond the application of the two Conventions is discouraged and will not be approved by the ISO 3166/MA. Moreover, these codes may be reassigned by the ISO 3166/MA at any time. The following alpha-2 codes are currently indeterminately reserved:

Code elements reserved indeterminately
Code Area name or country name Current code Notes
DY Benin BJ [note 1]
EW Estonia EE [note 1]
FL Liechtenstein LI [note 2]
JA Jamaica JM [note 3]
LF Libya Fezzan [note 2]
PI Philippines PH [note 3]
RA Argentina AR [note 3]
RB Bolivia [cf. Botswana: identical code element] BO [note 2]
RB Botswana [cf. Bolivia: identical code element] BW [note 3]
RC China CN & TW [note 3]
RH Haiti HT [note 1]
RI Indonesia ID [note 3]
RL Lebanon LB [note 3]
RM Madagascar MG [note 3]
RN Niger NE [note 4]
RP Philippines PH [note 4]
SF Finland FI [note 5]
WG Grenada GD [note 1]
WL Saint Lucia LC [note 1]
WV Saint Vincent VC [note 1]
YV Venezuela VE [note 1]

The following alpha-2 codes were previously indeterminately reserved, but have been reassigned to another country as its official code:

Code elements previously reserved indeterminately
Code Area name or country name Current code Notes Code reassigned to
LT Libya Tripoli [note 2] Lithuania
ME Western Sahara EH [note 2] Montenegro
RU Burundi BI [note 2] Russian Federation
Notes
  1. ^ a b c d e f g Code notified to United Nations Secretary-General under 1949 or 1968 Road Traffic Conventions
  2. ^ a b c d e f Code in use for road transport purposes, but not notified to United Nations Secretary-General under 1949 Road Traffic Convention
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Code under 1949 Road Traffic Convention
  4. ^ a b Code under 1968 Road Traffic Convention
  5. ^ Code notified to United Nations Secretary-General under 1949 or 1968 Road Traffic Conventions.
    Previously used in international postal codes and vehicle registration codes to represent Finland (code was not officially assigned), and the code was previously listed as transitionally reserved from 1995-09 until 2012-06.
    Code taken from name in Finnish and Swedish combined: Suomi Finland.

Codes currently agreed not to use

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In addition, the ISO 3166/MA will not use the following alpha-2 codes at the present stage, as they are used for international intellectual property organizations in WIPO Standard ST.3:

WIPO code elements not formally reserved
Code Organization name
AP African Regional Industrial Property Organization (ARIPO)
BX Benelux Trademarks and Designs Office (BOIP)
EF Union of Countries under the European Community Patent Convention
EM European Trademark Office (EUIPO)
EP European Patent Organization (EPOrg), i.e. union of countries under the European Patent Convention (EPC)
EV Eurasian Patent Organization (EAPO)
GC Patent Office of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCCPO)
IB International Bureau of WIPO
OA African Intellectual Property Organization (OAPI)
WO World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)

WIPO Standard ST.3 actually uses EA, instead of EV, to represent the Eurasian Patent Organization. However, EA was already exceptionally reserved by the ISO 3166/MA to represent Ceuta and Melilla for customs purposes. The ISO 3166/MA proposed in 1995 that EV be used by WIPO to represent the Eurasian Patent Organization; however, this request was not honoured by WIPO.

Deleted codes

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Besides the codes currently transitionally reserved and two other codes currently exceptionally reserved (FX for France, Metropolitan and SU for USSR), the following alpha-2 codes have also been deleted from ISO 3166-1:[36]

Code Formerly used country name ISO 3166-3 Notes
AI French Afars and Issas AIDJ Code later reassigned to Anguilla
BQ British Antarctic Territory BQAQ Code later reassigned to Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba
CT Canton and Enderbury Islands CTKI
DD German Democratic Republic DDDE Code taken from name in German: Deutsche Demokratische Republik
Common name: East Germany
DY Dahomey DYBJ Name changed to Benin (BJ)
The code is now indeterminately reserved.
FQ French Southern and Antarctic Territories FQHH See TF and FR-TF.
GE Gilbert Islands (initially Gilbert and Ellice Islands) GEHH Code later reassigned to Georgia
HV Upper Volta HVBF Code taken from name in French: Haute-Volta
JT Johnston Island JTUM
MI Midway Islands MIUM
NH New Hebrides NHVU
NQ Dronning Maud Land NQAQ A dependent territory of Norway
PC Pacific Islands (Trust Territory) PCHH
PU United States Miscellaneous Pacific Islands PUUM Consisted of Baker Island, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Kingman Reef, and Palmyra Atoll
PZ Panama Canal Zone PZPA
RH Southern Rhodesia RHZW Name used by country itself: Rhodesia (Southern Rhodesia was the colonial name)
SK Sikkim SKIN Code later reassigned to Slovakia
VD Viet-Nam, Democratic Republic of VDVN Common name: North Vietnam
WK Wake Island WKUM
YD Yemen, Democratic YDYE Common name: South Yemen

For each deleted alpha-2 code, an entry for the corresponding former country name is included in ISO 3166-3. Each entry is assigned a four-letter alphabetic code, where the first two letters are the deleted alpha-2 code.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "Country Codes - ISO 3166". International Organization for Standardization (ISO).
  2. ^ "The International Standard Recording Code". International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. Archived from the original on 2014-02-12. Retrieved 2009-03-06.
  3. ^ "Currency codes - ISO 4217". ISO.
  4. ^ "ISO6166 - an outline of the standard". Association of National Numbering Agencies. Archived from the original on 2009-07-27. Retrieved 2009-03-06.
  5. ^ "About BIC". Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication. Archived from the original on 2009-03-01.
  6. ^ "IBAN Registry" (PDF). Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-01-02.
  7. ^ a b "UN/LOCODE Code List by Country". United Nations Economic Commission for Europe. Retrieved 6 May 2017.
  8. ^ "IANA – Root Zone Database". Internet Assigned Numbers Authority.
  9. ^ "Standard ST.3 – Recommended standard on two-letter codes for the representation of states, other entities and intergovernmental organizations" (PDF). Handbook on Industrial Property Information and Documentation. World Intellectual Property Organization. April 2007. pp. 3.3.1–3.3.9.
  10. ^ "Publications Office – Interinstitutional style guide – Countries". European Union.
  11. ^ "Interinstitutional style guide – 'EU-27 and candidate countries'". publications.europa.eu. Retrieved 2022-10-03.
  12. ^ "Commission Regulation (EC) No 2645/98 of 9 December 1998 on the nomenclature of countries and territories for the external trade statistics of the Community and statistics of trade between Member States". Official Journal of the European Communities, L 335. European Union. 1998-12-10. pp. 22–29.
  13. ^ "Distinguishing signs used on vehicles in international traffic" (PDF). United Nations Economic Commission for Europe.
  14. ^ a b "Codes to history: Code for formerly used names of countries completes the trilogy of country codes" (PDF). ISO Bulletin. ISO. April 2000. pp. 10–12. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 5, 2008.
  15. ^ "Falkland Islands Government". Archived from the original on 2016-12-11. Retrieved 2016-12-22.
  16. ^ a b "ISO 3166 – FAQs – Specific". ISO.
  17. ^ IANA .gb whois information
  18. ^ "NL - Netherlands (Kingdom of the)". ISO Online Browsing Platform.
  19. ^ Special Meeting of the Board Minutes ICANN, January 16, 2007
  20. ^ "Dependencies and Areas of Special Sovereignty". U.S. Department of State. Retrieved 2022-04-27.
  21. ^ "Glossary for ISO 3166 - Codes for countries and their subdivisions". ISO.
  22. ^ "International ISRC Agency Bulletin 2010/02: Country Code for ISRC in the United States" (PDF). IFPI. 6 December 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-08-10. Retrieved 2019-02-27.
  23. ^ Mark Davis. "Unicode Technical Standard #35: Unicode Locale Data Markup Language (LDML)". Unicode Consortium.
  24. ^ "List of Countries for the foreign trade statistics of Switzerland 2017" (PDF). ezv.admin.ch. 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-02-02.
  25. ^ "Мир ∙ География ∙ Справочник ∙ Президент России".
  26. ^ "Get an EORI number". gov.uk. Retrieved 2020-12-07.
  27. ^ Swedish tax Authority: This is how VAT is affected by Brexit - Special rules for trade with Northern Ireland
  28. ^ "Glossary:Country codes - Statistics Explained". europa.eu.
  29. ^ SWIFT: IBAN Registry Archived 2013-11-01 at the Wayback Machine, Release 50, September 2014
  30. ^ "XK country code for Kosovo". GeoNames Blog. 8 March 2010.
  31. ^ "Agreement between the Nordic Patent Institute and the International Bureau of the World Intellectual Property Organization" (PDF). World Intellectual Property Organization. 1 May 2013. Retrieved 2013-08-07.
  32. ^ "Country codes in ISO 3166". davros.org. 2003-07-25. Retrieved 2018-11-13.
  33. ^ "EA -". ISO Online Browsing Platform.
  34. ^ "Codes for the representation of names of countries" (PDF) (First ed.). International Organization for Standardization. 15 December 1974. Retrieved 9 July 2021 – via cia.gov.
  35. ^ "Report on zr domain deletion". iana.org. IANA. June 20, 2001. Retrieved January 17, 2021.
  36. ^ Clive Feather (2003-07-25). "Country codes in ISO 3166 (Table 2: codes withdrawn from use)".
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