ISO 3166-1 alpha-2

ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes are two-letter country codes defined in ISO 3166-1, part of the ISO 3166 standard 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).[1] They were first included as part of the ISO 3166 standard in its first edition in 1974.

Contents

Uses and applications

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

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

Imperfect implementations

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.[9] 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.[10]

The European Commission 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.[11] This notwithstanding, the Official Journal of the European Communities specified that GB and GR be used to represent the United Kingdom and Greece respectively.[12]

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 are also partially derived from ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes.[14]

Current codes

Decoding table

The following is a colour-coded decoding table of all ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes.[15]

Click on the cell to see the definition of each code.

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
Officially assigned: assigned to a country, territory, or area of geographical interest.
User assigned: free for assignment at the disposal of users.
Exceptionally reserved: reserved on request for restricted use.
Transitionally reserved: deleted from ISO 3166-1 but reserved transitionally.
Indeterminately reserved: used in coding systems associated with ISO 3166-1.
Not used: not used in ISO 3166-1 in deference to international property organisation names.
Un-assigned: free for assignment by the ISO 3166/MA only.

Officially assigned code elements

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

Code Country name Year ccTLD ISO 3166-2 Notes
Andorra 1974 .ad ISO 3166-2:AD
AE United Arab Emirates 1974 .ae ISO 3166-2:AE
AF Afghanistan 1974 .af ISO 3166-2:AF
AG Antigua and Barbuda 1974 .ag ISO 3166-2:AG
AI Anguilla 1983 .ai ISO 3166-2:AI AI previously represented French Afar and Issas
AL Albania 1974 .al ISO 3166-2:AL
AM Armenia 1992 .am ISO 3166-2:AM
AO Angola 1974 .ao ISO 3166-2:AO
AQ Antarctica 1974 .aq ISO 3166-2:AQ Covers the territories south of 60° south latitude
Code taken from name in French: Antarctique
AR Argentina 1974 .ar ISO 3166-2:AR
AS American Samoa 1974 .as ISO 3166-2:AS
AT Austria 1974 .at ISO 3166-2:AT
AU Australia 1974 .au ISO 3166-2:AU Includes the Ashmore and Cartier Islands and the Coral Sea Islands
AW Aruba 1986 .aw ISO 3166-2:AW
AX Åland Islands 2004 .ax ISO 3166-2:AX
AZ Azerbaijan 1992 .az ISO 3166-2:AZ
BA Bosnia and Herzegovina 1992 .ba ISO 3166-2:BA
BB Barbados 1974 .bb ISO 3166-2:BB
BD Bangladesh 1974 .bd ISO 3166-2:BD
BE Belgium 1974 .be ISO 3166-2:BE
BF Burkina Faso 1984 .bf ISO 3166-2:BF Name changed from Upper Volta (HV)
BG Bulgaria 1974 .bg ISO 3166-2:BG
BH Bahrain 1974 .bh ISO 3166-2:BH
BI Burundi 1974 .bi ISO 3166-2:BI
BJ Benin 1977 .bj ISO 3166-2:BJ Name changed from Dahomey (DY)
BL Saint Barthélemy 2007 .bl ISO 3166-2:BL
BM Bermuda 1974 .bm ISO 3166-2:BM
BN Brunei Darussalam 1974 .bn ISO 3166-2:BN ISO country name follows UN designation (common name: Brunei)
BO Bolivia, Plurinational State of 1974 .bo ISO 3166-2:BO ISO country name follows UN designation (common name and previous ISO country name: Bolivia)
BQ Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba 2010 .bq ISO 3166-2: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 ISO 3166-2:BR
BS Bahamas 1974 .bs ISO 3166-2:BS
BT Bhutan 1974 .bt ISO 3166-2:BT
BV Bouvet Island 1974 .bv ISO 3166-2:BV
BW Botswana 1974 .bw ISO 3166-2:BW
BY Belarus 1974 .by ISO 3166-2: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[17]
BZ Belize 1974 .bz ISO 3166-2:BZ
CA Canada 1974 .ca ISO 3166-2:CA
CC Cocos (Keeling) Islands 1974 .cc ISO 3166-2:CC
CD Congo, the Democratic Republic of the 1997 .cd ISO 3166-2:CD Name changed from Zaire (ZR)
CF Central African Republic 1974 .cf ISO 3166-2:CF
CG Congo 1974 .cg ISO 3166-2:CG
CH Switzerland 1974 .ch ISO 3166-2:CH Code taken from name in Latin: Confoederatio Helvetica
CI Côte d'Ivoire 1974 .ci ISO 3166-2:CI
CK Cook Islands 1974 .ck ISO 3166-2:CK
CL Chile 1974 .cl ISO 3166-2:CL
CM Cameroon 1974 .cm ISO 3166-2:CM
CN China 1974 .cn ISO 3166-2:CN
CO Colombia 1974 .co ISO 3166-2:CO
CR Costa Rica 1974 .cr ISO 3166-2:CR
CU Cuba 1974 .cu ISO 3166-2:CU
CV Cape Verde 1974 .cv ISO 3166-2:CV
CW Curaçao 2010 .cw ISO 3166-2:CW
CX Christmas Island 1974 .cx ISO 3166-2:CX
CY Cyprus 1974 .cy ISO 3166-2:CY
CZ Czech Republic 1993 .cz ISO 3166-2:CZ
DE Germany 1974 .de ISO 3166-2: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 ISO 3166-2:DJ Name changed from French Afar and Issas (AI)
DK Denmark 1974 .dk ISO 3166-2:DK
DM Dominica 1974 .dm ISO 3166-2:DM
DO Dominican Republic 1974 .do ISO 3166-2:DO
DZ Algeria 1974 .dz ISO 3166-2:DZ Code taken from name in Kabyle: Dzayer
EC Ecuador 1974 .ec ISO 3166-2:EC
EE Estonia 1992 .ee ISO 3166-2:EE Code taken from name in Estonian: Eesti
EG Egypt 1974 .eg ISO 3166-2:EG
EH Western Sahara 1974 .eh ISO 3166-2:EH Previous ISO country name: Spanish Sahara (code taken from name in Spanish: Sahara español)
ER Eritrea 1993 .er ISO 3166-2:ER
ES Spain 1974 .es ISO 3166-2:ES Code taken from name in Spanish: España
ET Ethiopia 1974 .et ISO 3166-2:ET
FI Finland 1974 .fi ISO 3166-2:FI
FJ Fiji 1974 .fj ISO 3166-2:FJ
FK Falkland Islands (Malvinas) 1974 .fk ISO 3166-2:FK
FM Micronesia, Federated States of 1986 .fm ISO 3166-2:FM Previous ISO country name: Micronesia
FO Faroe Islands 1974 .fo ISO 3166-2:FO
FR France 1974 .fr ISO 3166-2:FR Includes Clipperton Island
GA Gabon 1974 .ga ISO 3166-2:GA
GB United Kingdom 1974 .gb
(.uk)		 ISO 3166-2:GB Code taken from Great Britain (from official name: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland)[18]
.uk is the primary ccTLD of the United Kingdom instead of .gb (see code UK, which is exceptionally reserved)
GD Grenada 1974 .gd ISO 3166-2:GD
GE Georgia 1992 .ge ISO 3166-2:GE GE previously represented Gilbert and Ellice Islands
GF French Guiana 1974 .gf ISO 3166-2:GF Code taken from name in French: Guyane française
GG Guernsey 2006 .gg ISO 3166-2:GG
GH Ghana 1974 .gh ISO 3166-2:GH
GI Gibraltar 1974 .gi ISO 3166-2:GI
GL Greenland 1974 .gl ISO 3166-2:GL
GM Gambia 1974 .gm ISO 3166-2:GM
GN Guinea 1974 .gn ISO 3166-2:GN
GP Guadeloupe 1974 .gp ISO 3166-2:GP
GQ Equatorial Guinea 1974 .gq ISO 3166-2:GQ Code taken from name in French: Guinée équatoriale
GR Greece 1974 .gr ISO 3166-2:GR
GS South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands 1993 .gs ISO 3166-2:GS
GT Guatemala 1974 .gt ISO 3166-2:GT
GU Guam 1974 .gu ISO 3166-2:GU
GW Guinea-Bissau 1974 .gw ISO 3166-2:GW
GY Guyana 1974 .gy ISO 3166-2:GY
HK Hong Kong 1974 .hk ISO 3166-2:HK
HM Heard Island and McDonald Islands 1974 .hm ISO 3166-2:HM
HN Honduras 1974 .hn ISO 3166-2:HN
HR Croatia 1992 .hr ISO 3166-2:HR Code taken from name in Croatian: Hrvatska
HT Haiti 1974 .ht ISO 3166-2:HT
HU Hungary 1974 .hu ISO 3166-2:HU
ID Indonesia 1974 .id ISO 3166-2:ID
IE Ireland 1974 .ie ISO 3166-2:IE
IL Israel 1974 .il ISO 3166-2:IL
IM Isle of Man 2006 .im ISO 3166-2:IM
IN India 1974 .in ISO 3166-2:IN
IO British Indian Ocean Territory 1974 .io ISO 3166-2:IO
IQ Iraq 1974 .iq ISO 3166-2:IQ
IR Iran, Islamic Republic of 1974 .ir ISO 3166-2:IR ISO country name follows UN designation (common name: Iran)
IS Iceland 1974 .is ISO 3166-2:IS Code taken from name in Icelandic: Ísland
IT Italy 1974 .it ISO 3166-2:IT
JE Jersey 2006 .je ISO 3166-2:JE
JM Jamaica 1974 .jm ISO 3166-2:JM
JO Jordan 1974 .jo ISO 3166-2:JO
JP Japan 1974 .jp ISO 3166-2:JP
KE Kenya 1974 .ke ISO 3166-2:KE
KG Kyrgyzstan 1992 .kg ISO 3166-2:KG
KH Cambodia 1974 .kh ISO 3166-2:KH Code taken from former name: Khmer Republic
Previous ISO country name: Kampuchea
KI Kiribati 1979 .ki ISO 3166-2:KI
KM Comoros 1974 .km ISO 3166-2:KM Code taken from name in Comorian: Komori
KN Saint Kitts and Nevis 1974 .kn ISO 3166-2:KN Previous ISO country name: Saint Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla
KP Korea, Democratic People's Republic of 1974 .kp ISO 3166-2:KP ISO country name follows UN designation (common name: North Korea)
KR Korea, Republic of 1974 .kr ISO 3166-2:KR ISO country name follows UN designation (common name: South Korea)
KW Kuwait 1974 .kw ISO 3166-2:KW
KY Cayman Islands 1974 .ky ISO 3166-2:KY
KZ Kazakhstan 1992 .kz ISO 3166-2:KZ Previous ISO country name: Kazakstan
LA Lao People's Democratic Republic 1974 .la ISO 3166-2:LA ISO country name follows UN designation (common name: Laos)
LB Lebanon 1974 .lb ISO 3166-2:LB
LC Saint Lucia 1974 .lc ISO 3166-2:LC
LI Liechtenstein 1974 .li ISO 3166-2:LI
LK Sri Lanka 1974 .lk ISO 3166-2:LK
LR Liberia 1974 .lr ISO 3166-2:LR
LS Lesotho 1974 .ls ISO 3166-2:LS
LT Lithuania 1992 .lt ISO 3166-2:LT
LU Luxembourg 1974 .lu ISO 3166-2:LU
LV Latvia 1992 .lv ISO 3166-2:LV
LY Libya 1974 .ly ISO 3166-2:LY Previous ISO country name: Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
MA Morocco 1974 .ma ISO 3166-2:MA Code taken from name in French: Maroc
MC Monaco 1974 .mc ISO 3166-2:MC
MD Moldova, Republic of 1992 .md ISO 3166-2:MD ISO country name follows UN designation (common name and previous ISO country name: Moldova)
ME Montenegro 2006 .me ISO 3166-2:ME
MF Saint Martin (French part) 2007 .mf ISO 3166-2:MF The Dutch part of Saint Martin island is assigned code SX
MG Madagascar 1974 .mg ISO 3166-2:MG
MH Marshall Islands 1986 .mh ISO 3166-2:MH
MK Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of 1993 .mk ISO 3166-2:MK ISO country name follows UN designation (due to Macedonia naming dispute; official name used by country itself: Republic of Macedonia)
Code taken from name in Macedonian: Makedonija
ML Mali 1974 .ml ISO 3166-2:ML
MM Myanmar 1989 .mm ISO 3166-2:MM Name changed from Burma (BU)
MN Mongolia 1974 .mn ISO 3166-2:MN
MO Macao 1974 .mo ISO 3166-2:MO Previous ISO country name: Macau
MP Northern Mariana Islands 1986 .mp ISO 3166-2:MP
MQ Martinique 1974 .mq ISO 3166-2:MQ
MR Mauritania 1974 .mr ISO 3166-2:MR
MS Montserrat 1974 .ms ISO 3166-2:MS
MT Malta 1974 .mt ISO 3166-2:MT
MU Mauritius 1974 .mu ISO 3166-2:MU
MV Maldives 1974 .mv ISO 3166-2:MV
MW Malawi 1974 .mw ISO 3166-2:MW
MX Mexico 1974 .mx ISO 3166-2:MX
MY Malaysia 1974 .my ISO 3166-2:MY
MZ Mozambique 1974 .mz ISO 3166-2:MZ
NA Namibia 1974 .na ISO 3166-2:NA
NC New Caledonia 1974 .nc ISO 3166-2:NC
NE Niger 1974 .ne ISO 3166-2:NE
NF Norfolk Island 1974 .nf ISO 3166-2:NF
NG Nigeria 1974 .ng ISO 3166-2:NG
NI Nicaragua 1974 .ni ISO 3166-2:NI
NL Netherlands 1974 .nl ISO 3166-2:NL
NO Norway 1974 .no ISO 3166-2:NO
NP Nepal 1974 .np ISO 3166-2:NP
NR Nauru 1974 .nr ISO 3166-2:NR
NU Niue 1974 .nu ISO 3166-2:NU
NZ New Zealand 1974 .nz ISO 3166-2:NZ
OM Oman 1974 .om ISO 3166-2:OM
PA Panama 1974 .pa ISO 3166-2:PA
PE Peru 1974 .pe ISO 3166-2:PE
PF French Polynesia 1974 .pf ISO 3166-2:PF Code taken from name in French: Polynésie française
PG Papua New Guinea 1974 .pg ISO 3166-2:PG
PH Philippines 1974 .ph ISO 3166-2:PH
PK Pakistan 1974 .pk ISO 3166-2:PK
PL Poland 1974 .pl ISO 3166-2:PL
PM Saint Pierre and Miquelon 1974 .pm ISO 3166-2:PM
PN Pitcairn 1974 .pn ISO 3166-2:PN
PR Puerto Rico 1974 .pr ISO 3166-2:PR
PS Palestinian Territory, Occupied 1999 .ps ISO 3166-2:PS Consists of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip
PT Portugal 1974 .pt ISO 3166-2:PT
PW Palau 1986 .pw ISO 3166-2:PW
PY Paraguay 1974 .py ISO 3166-2:PY
QA Qatar 1974 .qa ISO 3166-2:QA
RE Réunion 1974 .re ISO 3166-2:RE
RO Romania 1974 .ro ISO 3166-2:RO
RS Serbia 2006 .rs ISO 3166-2:RS Code taken from official name: Republic of Serbia (see Serbian country codes)
RU Russian Federation 1992 .ru ISO 3166-2:RU ISO country name follows UN designation (common name: Russia)
RW Rwanda 1974 .rw ISO 3166-2:RW
SA Saudi Arabia 1974 .sa ISO 3166-2:SA
SB Solomon Islands 1974 .sb ISO 3166-2:SB Code taken from former name: British Solomon Islands
SC Seychelles 1974 .sc ISO 3166-2:SC
SD Sudan 1974 .sd ISO 3166-2:SD
SE Sweden 1974 .se ISO 3166-2:SE
SG Singapore 1974 .sg ISO 3166-2:SG
SH Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha 1974 .sh ISO 3166-2:SH Previous ISO country name: Saint Helena
SI Slovenia 1992 .si ISO 3166-2:SI
SJ Svalbard and Jan Mayen 1974 .sj ISO 3166-2:SJ Consists of two arctic territories of Norway: Svalbard and Jan Mayen
SK Slovakia 1993 .sk ISO 3166-2:SK SK previously represented Sikkim
SL Sierra Leone 1974 .sl ISO 3166-2:SL
SM San Marino 1974 .sm ISO 3166-2:SM
SN Senegal 1974 .sn ISO 3166-2:SN
SO Somalia 1974 .so ISO 3166-2:SO
SR Suriname 1974 .sr ISO 3166-2:SR
SS South Sudan 2011 .ss ISO 3166-2:SS
ST Sao Tome and Principe 1974 .st ISO 3166-2:ST
SV El Salvador 1974 .sv ISO 3166-2:SV
SX Sint Maarten (Dutch part) 2010 .sx ISO 3166-2:SX The French part of Saint Martin island is assigned code MF
SY Syrian Arab Republic 1974 .sy ISO 3166-2:SY ISO country name follows UN designation (common name: Syria)
SZ Swaziland 1974 .sz ISO 3166-2:SZ
TC Turks and Caicos Islands 1974 .tc ISO 3166-2:TC
TD Chad 1974 .td ISO 3166-2:TD Code taken from name in French: Tchad
TF French Southern Territories 1979 .tf ISO 3166-2:TF Covers the French Southern and Antarctic Lands except Adélie Land
Code taken from name in French: Terres australes françaises
TG Togo 1974 .tg ISO 3166-2:TG
TH Thailand 1974 .th ISO 3166-2:TH
TJ Tajikistan 1992 .tj ISO 3166-2:TJ
TK Tokelau 1974 .tk ISO 3166-2:TK
TL Timor-Leste 2002 .tl ISO 3166-2:TL Name changed from East Timor (TP)
TM Turkmenistan 1992 .tm ISO 3166-2:TM
TN Tunisia 1974 .tn ISO 3166-2:TN
TO Tonga 1974 .to ISO 3166-2:TO
TR Turkey 1974 .tr ISO 3166-2:TR
TT Trinidad and Tobago 1974 .tt ISO 3166-2:TT
TV Tuvalu 1979 .tv ISO 3166-2:TV
TW Taiwan, Province of China 1974 .tw ISO 3166-2:TW Covers the current jurisdiction of the Republic of China except Kinmen and Lienchiang
ISO country name follows UN designation (due to political status of Taiwan within the UN)[18]
TZ Tanzania, United Republic of 1974 .tz ISO 3166-2:TZ ISO country name follows UN designation (common name: Tanzania)
UA Ukraine 1974 .ua ISO 3166-2:UA Previous ISO country name: Ukrainian SSR
Code assigned as the country was already a UN member since 1945[17]
UG Uganda 1974 .ug ISO 3166-2:UG
UM United States Minor Outlying Islands 1986 .um ISO 3166-2: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
US United States 1974 .us ISO 3166-2:US
UY Uruguay 1974 .uy ISO 3166-2:UY
UZ Uzbekistan 1992 .uz ISO 3166-2:UZ
VA Holy See (Vatican City State) 1974 .va ISO 3166-2:VA Covers Vatican City, territory of the Holy See
Previous ISO country name: Vatican City State (Holy See)
VC Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1974 .vc ISO 3166-2:VC
VE Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of 1974 .ve ISO 3166-2:VE ISO country name follows UN designation (common name and previous ISO country name: Venezuela)
VG Virgin Islands, British 1974 .vg ISO 3166-2:VG
VI Virgin Islands, U.S. 1974 .vi ISO 3166-2:VI
VN Viet Nam 1974 .vn ISO 3166-2:VN ISO country name follows UN spelling (common spelling: Vietnam)
VU Vanuatu 1980 .vu ISO 3166-2:VU Name changed from New Hebrides (NH)
WF Wallis and Futuna 1974 .wf ISO 3166-2:WF
WS Samoa 1974 .ws ISO 3166-2:WS Code taken from former name: Western Samoa
YE Yemen 1974 .ye ISO 3166-2:YE Previous ISO country name: Yemen, Republic of
Code used for North Yemen before 1990
YT Mayotte 1993 .yt ISO 3166-2:YT
ZA South Africa 1974 .za ISO 3166-2:ZA Code taken from name in Dutch: Zuid-Afrika
ZM Zambia 1974 .zm ISO 3166-2:ZM
ZW Zimbabwe 1980 .zw ISO 3166-2:ZW Name changed from Southern Rhodesia (RH)

User-assigned code elements

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. For example:

Reserved code elements

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

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 ccTLD Notes
AC Ascension Island .ac Reserved on request of UPU for stamp issuing area
CP Clipperton Island — Reserved on request of ITU for location of certain telecommunications installations
DG Diego Garcia — Reserved on request of ITU for location of certain telecommunications installations
EA Ceuta, Melilla — Reserved on request of WCO for area not covered by European Union Customs arrangements
Part of Spanish North Africa (Spanish: África Septentrional Española)
EU European Union .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
FX France, Metropolitan — Reserved on request of France
Officially assigned before deleted from ISO 3166-1 (now assigned ISO 3166-3 code FXFR)
IC Canary Islands — Reserved on request of WCO for area not covered by European Union Customs arrangements.
Code taken from name in Spanish: Islas Canarias
SU USSR .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: Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (common name: Soviet Union)
TA Tristan da Cunha — Reserved on request of UPU for stamp issuing area
UK 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

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

Code Area name or country name Notes
AX Åland 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

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 Date of reservation ccTLD ISO 3166-2 ISO 3166-3 Notes
AN Netherlands Antilles 2010-12 .an ISO 3166-2:AN ANHH
BU Burma 1989-12 — — BUMM
CS Serbia and Montenegro 2006-09 (.yu) ISO 3166-2:CS CSXX Code taken from name in Serbian: Srbija i Crna Gora
.yu was the ccTLD of Serbia and Montenegro, as name was changed from Yugoslavia (YU)
CS previously represented Czechoslovakia (.cs never assigned to Serbia and Montengro)
NT Neutral Zone 1993-07 — — NTHH
SF Finland 1995-09 — — — Previously used in international postal codes and vehicle registration codes to represent Finland (code was not officially assigned)
Code taken from name in Finnish and Swedish combined: Suomi Finland
Finland is officially assigned the alpha-2 code FI
TP East Timor 2002-05 .tp ISO 3166-2:TP TPTL Code taken from previous ISO country name: Portuguese Timor
YU Yugoslavia 2003-07 .yu ISO 3166-2:YU YUCS Code used for the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia before 1992 and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia after 1992
ZR Zaire 1997-07 .zr — ZRCD

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 3166-2 ISO 3166-3 Notes
CS Czechoslovakia 1993-06 .cs — CSHH Code reassigned to Serbia and Montenegro

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

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 Area name or country name Notes
DY Benin [note 1]
EW Estonia [note 1]
FL Liechtenstein [note 2]
JA Jamaica [note 3]
LF Libya Fezzan [note 2]
PI Philippines [note 3]
RA Argentina [note 3]
RB Bolivia [cf. Botswana: identical code element] [note 2]
RB Botswana [cf. Bolivia: identical code element] [note 3]
RC China [note 3]
RH Haiti [note 1]
RI Indonesia [note 3]
RL Lebanon [note 3]
RM Madagascar [note 3]
RN Niger [note 4]
RP Philippines [note 4]
WG Grenada [note 1]
WL Saint Lucia [note 1]
WV Saint Vincent [note 1]
YV Venezuela [note 1]

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

Code Area name or country name Notes Code reassigned to
LT Libya Tripoli [note 2] Lithuania
ME Western Sahara [note 2] Montenegro
RU Burundi [note 2] Russian Federation
Notes
  1. ^ a b c d e f g Code notified to United Nations Secretary-General under 1949 and/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

Codes currently agreed not to use

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:

Code Organization name
AP African Regional Industrial Property Organization
BX Benelux Trademarks and Design Offices
EF Union of Countries under the European Community Patent Convention
EM European Trademark Office
EP European Patent Organization
EV Eurasian Patent Organization
GC Patent Office of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC)
IB International Bureau of WIPO
OA African Intellectual Property Organization
WO World Intellectual Property Organization

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

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:[24]

Code Formerly used country name ISO 3166-3 Notes
AI French Afar 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
FQ French Southern and Antarctic Territories FQHH
GE 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 Part of Norwegian Antarctic Territory
PC Pacific Islands, Trust Territory of the PCHH
PU U.S. 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

References

  1. ^ "ISO 3166 – FAQs – General questions". International Organization for Standardization (ISO). http://www.iso.org/iso/country_codes/iso_3166-faqs/iso_3166_faqs_general.htm. 
  2. ^ "ISO 3166-2". ISO. http://www.iso.org/iso/country_codes/background_on_iso_3166/iso_3166-2.htm. 
  3. ^ "The International Standard Recording Code". International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. http://www.ifpi.org/content/section_resources/isrc_handbook.html#Heading226. 
  4. ^ "ISO 4217 currency names and code elements". ISO. http://www.iso.org/iso/support/faqs/faqs_widely_used_standards/widely_used_standards_other/currency_codes/currency_codes_list-1.htm. 
  5. ^ "ISO6166 - an outline of the standard". Association of National Numbering Agencies. http://www.anna-web.com/neu/ISO_6166/iso_standard.php. 
  6. ^ "About BIC". Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication. http://www.swift.com/biconline/index.cfm?fuseaction=display_aboutbic. 
  7. ^ "IBAN Registry". Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication. http://www.swift.com/solutions/messaging/information_products/bic_downloads_documents/pdfs/IBAN_Registry.pdf. 
  8. ^ a b "UN/LOCODE Manual". United Nations Economic Commission for Europe. http://www.unece.org/cefact/locode/unlocode_manual.pdf. 
  9. ^ "IANA – Root Zone Database". Internet Assigned Numbers Authority. http://www.iana.org/domains/root/db/. 
  10. ^ "Standard ST.3 – Recommended standard on two-letter codes for the representation of states, other entities and intergovernmental organizations". Handbook on Industrial Property Information and Documentation. World Intellectual Property Organization. 2007-04. pp. 3.3.1–3.3.9. http://www.wipo.int/standards/en/pdf/03-03-01.pdf. 
  11. ^ "Publications Office – Interinstitutional style guide – Countries". European Union. http://publications.europa.eu/code/en/en-370100.htm. 
  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. http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:1998:335:0022:0029:EN:PDF. 
  13. ^ "Distinguishing signs used on vehicles in international traffic". United Nations Economic Commission for Europe. http://www.unece.org/trans/conventn/Distsigns.pdf. 
  14. ^ "Tags for Identifying Languages". Internet Engineering Task Force. http://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc4646. 
  15. ^ "ISO 3166-1 decoding table". ISO. http://www.iso.org/iso/iso-3166-1_decoding_table. 
  16. ^ "Country names and code elements". ISO. http://www.iso.org/iso/country_codes/iso_3166_code_lists/country_names_and_code_elements.htm. 
  17. ^ a b "Codes to history: Code for formerly used names of countries completes the trilogy of country codes". ISO Bulletin. ISO. 2000-04. pp. 10–12. http://www.iso.org/iso/codes0004-2.pdf. 
  18. ^ a b "ISO 3166 – FAQs – Specific". ISO. http://www.iso.org/iso/country_codes/iso_3166-faqs/iso_3166_faqs_specific.htm. 
  19. ^ Mark Davis. "Unicode Technical Standard #35: Unicode Locale Data Markup Language (LDML)". Unicode Consortium. http://www.unicode.org/reports/tr35/. 
  20. ^ http://ec.europa.eu/budget/inforeuro/index.cfm?fuseaction=about&Language=en
  21. ^ http://www.ezv.admin.ch/pdf_linker.php?doc=Tares_Laenderverzeichnis
  22. ^ http://www.bundesbank.de/download/meldewesen/aussenwirtschaft/schluessel/laenderverzeichnis.pdf
  23. ^ "‘XK’ country code for Kosovo". GeoNames Blog. 8 March 2010. http://geonames.wordpress.com/2010/03/08/xk-country-code-for-kosovo/. 
  24. ^ Clive Feather (2003-07-25). "Country codes in ISO 3166 (Table 2: codes withdrawn from use)". http://www.davros.org/misc/iso3166.html#disused. 

Sources and external links

ISO 3166 — Codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions
ISO 3166-1
Part 1: Country codes
Codes: alpha-2 · alpha-3 · numeric
ISO 3166-2
Part 2: Country subdivision code
Entries: AD · AE · AF · AG · AI · AL · AM · AO · AQ · AR · AS · AT · AU · AW · AX · AZ · BA · BB · BD · BE · BF · BG · BH · BI · BJ · BL · BM · BN · BO · BQ · BR · BS · BT · BV · BW · BY · BZ · CA · CC · CD · CF · CG · CH · CI · CK · CL · CM · CN · CO · CR · CU · CV · CW · CX · CY · CZ · DE · DJ · DK · DM · DO · DZ · EC · EE · EG · EH · ER · ES · ET · FI · FJ · FK · FM · FO · FR · GA · GB · GD · GE · GF · GG · GH · GI · GL · GM · GN · GP · GQ · GR · GS · GT · GU · GW · GY · HK · HM · HN · HR · HT · HU · ID · IE · IL · IM · IN · IO · IQ · IR · IS · IT · JE · JM · JO · JP · KE · KG · KH · KI · KM · KN · KP · KR · KW · KY · KZ · LA · LB · LC · LI · LK · LR · LS · LT · LU · LV · LY · MA · MC · MD · ME · MF · MG · MH · MK · ML · MM · MN · MO · MP · MQ · MR · MS · MT · MU · MV · MW · MX · MY · MZ · NA · NC · NE · NF · NG · NI · NL · NO · NP · NR · NU · NZ · OM · PA · PE · PF · PG · PH · PK · PL · PM · PN · PR · PS · PT · PW · PY · QA · RE · RO · RS · RU · RW · SA · SB · SC · SD · SE · SG · SH · SI · SJ · SK · SL · SM · SN · SO · SR · SS · ST · SV · SX · SY · SZ · TC · TD · TF · TG · TH · TJ · TK · TL (changed from TP) · TM · TN · TO · TR · TT · TV · TW · TZ · UA · UG · UM · US · UY · UZ · VA · VC · VE · VG · VI · VN · VU · WF · WS · YE · YT · ZA · ZM · ZW · Deleted: AN · CS (changed from YU)
ISO 3166-3
Part 3: Code for formerly used names of countries