ISO 3166-1 alpha-2

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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, 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.

[edit] 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.

[edit] Perfect implementations

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

ISO 3166-2 — Country subdivision code^[2]
ISO 3901 — International Standard Recording Code (ISRC)^[3]
ISO 4217 — Currency code^[4]
ISO 6166 — International Securities Identifying Number (ISIN)^[5]
ISO 9362 — Bank Identifier Codes (BIC), or also known as SWIFT codes^[6]
ISO 13616 — International Bank Account Number (IBAN)^[7]
UN/LOCODE — United Nations Code for Trade and Transport Locations, implemented by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe^[8]

[edit] 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 (UK is currently exceptionally reserved 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.^[10] For these additional codes, see the section Codes currently agreed not to use.

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, the codes on the oval stickers used to identify foreign road vehicles.^[13] For some of these additional codes, see the section Indeterminate reservations.

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

[edit] Current codes

[edit] Decoding table

The following is a colour-coded decoding table of all ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes (click on a cell to see the definition of the 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`
Color 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 maintained transitionally
		Indeterminately reserved: used in coding systems associated with ISO 3166-1
		Not used at present stage: not used in ISO 3166-1 at the present stage
		Un-assigned: free for assignment by the ISO 3166/MA only

[edit] Officially assigned code elements

The following is a complete list of the current officially assigned ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes, with four columns (first three columns can be sorted by clicking on their respective buttons):

Alpha-2 — ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code
Country name — English short country name officially used by the ISO 3166 Maintenance Agency (ISO 3166/MA)
Year included — Year when first officially included in ISO 3166-1; 1974 if included since the first edition of ISO 3166
Notes — Any unofficial notes

Alpha-2	Country name	Year included	Notes
`AD`	Andorra	1974
`AE`	United Arab Emirates	1974
`AF`	Afghanistan	1974
`AG`	Antigua and Barbuda	1974
`AI`	Anguilla	1983	`AI` previously represented French Afar and Issas
`AL`	Albania	1974
`AM`	Armenia	1992
`AN`	Netherlands Antilles	1974
`AO`	Angola	1974
`AQ`	Antarctica	1974	Territories south of 60° south latitude Code taken from name in French: Antarctique
`AR`	Argentina	1974
`AS`	American Samoa	1974
`AT`	Austria	1974
`AU`	Australia	1974
`AW`	Aruba	1986
`AX`	Aland Islands Åland Islands	2004
`AZ`	Azerbaijan	1992
`BA`	Bosnia and Herzegovina	1992
`BB`	Barbados	1974
`BD`	Bangladesh	1974
`BE`	Belgium	1974
`BF`	Burkina Faso	1984	Name changed from Upper Volta (`HV`)
`BG`	Bulgaria	1974
`BH`	Bahrain	1974
`BI`	Burundi	1974
`BJ`	Benin	1977	Name changed from Dahomey (`DY`)
`BL`	Saint Barthélemy	2007
`BM`	Bermuda	1974
`BN`	Brunei Darussalam	1974
`BO`	Bolivia	1974
`BR`	Brazil	1974
`BS`	Bahamas	1974
`BT`	Bhutan	1974
`BV`	Bouvet Island	1974
`BW`	Botswana	1974
`BY`	Belarus	1974	Code taken from previous ISO country name: Byelorussian SSR (1974–1992)
`BZ`	Belize	1974
`CA`	Canada	1974
`CC`	Cocos (Keeling) Islands	1974
`CD`	Congo, the Democratic Republic of the	1997	Name changed from Zaire (`ZR`)
`CF`	Central African Republic	1974
`CG`	Congo	1974
`CH`	Switzerland	1974	Code taken from name in Latin: Confoederatio Helvetica
`CI`	Cote d'Ivoire Côte d'Ivoire	1974	i.e., Ivory Coast
`CK`	Cook Islands	1974
`CL`	Chile	1974
`CM`	Cameroon	1974
`CN`	China	1974
`CO`	Colombia	1974
`CR`	Costa Rica	1974
`CU`	Cuba	1974
`CV`	Cape Verde	1974
`CX`	Christmas Island	1974
`CY`	Cyprus	1974
`CZ`	Czech Republic	1993
`DE`	Germany	1974	Previous ISO country name: Germany, Federal Republic of (1974–1990) Code taken from name in German: Deutschland
`DJ`	Djibouti	1977	Name changed from French Afar and Issas (`AI`)
`DK`	Denmark	1974
`DM`	Dominica	1974
`DO`	Dominican Republic	1974
`DZ`	Algeria	1974	Code taken from name in Berber: Ledzayer
`EC`	Ecuador	1974
`EE`	Estonia	1992	Code taken from name in Estonian: Eesti
`EG`	Egypt	1974
`EH`	Western Sahara	1974	Previous ISO country name: Spanish Sahara (1974–?) Code taken from former name in Spanish: Sahara español
`ER`	Eritrea	1993
`ES`	Spain	1974	Includes Canary Islands, Ceuta and Melilla Code taken from name in Spanish: España
`ET`	Ethiopia	1974
`FI`	Finland	1974
`FJ`	Fiji	1974
`FK`	Falkland Islands (Malvinas)	1974
`FM`	Micronesia, Federated States of	1986	Previous ISO country name: Micronesia (1986–1992)
`FO`	Faroe Islands	1974
`FR`	France	1974	Includes Clipperton Island
`GA`	Gabon	1974
`GB`	United Kingdom	1974	Code taken from official name: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland `UK` also exceptionally reserved on request of the United Kingdom
`GD`	Grenada	1974
`GE`	Georgia	1992	`GE` previously represented Gilbert and Ellice Islands
`GF`	French Guiana	1974	Code taken from name in French: Guyane française
`GG`	Guernsey	2006
`GH`	Ghana	1974
`GI`	Gibraltar	1974
`GL`	Greenland	1974
`GM`	Gambia	1974
`GN`	Guinea	1974
`GP`	Guadeloupe	1974
`GQ`	Equatorial Guinea	1974	Code taken from name in French: Guinée équatoriale
`GR`	Greece	1974
`GS`	South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands	1993
`GT`	Guatemala	1974
`GU`	Guam	1974
`GW`	Guinea-Bissau	1974
`GY`	Guyana	1974
`HK`	Hong Kong	1974
`HM`	Heard Island and McDonald Islands	1974
`HN`	Honduras	1974
`HR`	Croatia	1992	Code taken from name in Croatian: Hrvatska
`HT`	Haiti	1974
`HU`	Hungary	1974
`ID`	Indonesia	1974
`IE`	Ireland	1974
`IL`	Israel	1974
`IM`	Isle of Man	2006
`IN`	India	1974
`IO`	British Indian Ocean Territory	1974	Includes Diego Garcia
`IQ`	Iraq	1974
`IR`	Iran, Islamic Republic of	1974
`IS`	Iceland	1974	Code taken from name in Icelandic: Ísland
`IT`	Italy	1974
`JE`	Jersey	2006
`JM`	Jamaica	1974
`JO`	Jordan	1974
`JP`	Japan	1974
`KE`	Kenya	1974
`KG`	Kyrgyzstan	1992
`KH`	Cambodia	1974	Code taken from previous ISO country name: Kampuchea (1974–1990)
`KI`	Kiribati	1979
`KM`	Comoros	1974	Code taken from name in Comorian: Komori
`KN`	Saint Kitts and Nevis	1974	Previous ISO country name: Saint Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla (1974–1983)
`KP`	Korea, Democratic People's Republic of	1974	i.e., North Korea
`KR`	Korea, Republic of	1974	i.e., South Korea
`KW`	Kuwait	1974
`KY`	Cayman Islands	1974
`KZ`	Kazakhstan	1992	Previous ISO country name: Kazakstan (1992–2002)
`LA`	Lao People's Democratic Republic	1974
`LB`	Lebanon	1974
`LC`	Saint Lucia	1974
`LI`	Liechtenstein	1974
`LK`	Sri Lanka	1974
`LR`	Liberia	1974
`LS`	Lesotho	1974
`LT`	Lithuania	1992
`LU`	Luxembourg	1974
`LV`	Latvia	1992
`LY`	Libyan Arab Jamahiriya	1974
`MA`	Morocco	1974	Code taken from name in French: Maroc
`MC`	Monaco	1974
`MD`	Moldova, Republic of	1992	Previous ISO country name: Moldova (2008–2009)
`ME`	Montenegro	2006
`MF`	Saint Martin (French part)	2007
`MG`	Madagascar	1974
`MH`	Marshall Islands	1986
`MK`	Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of	1993	Designated as such due to naming dispute Code taken from name in Macedonian: Makedonija
`ML`	Mali	1974
`MM`	Myanmar	1989	Name changed from Burma (`BU`)
`MN`	Mongolia	1974
`MO`	Macao	1974	Previous ISO country name: Macau (1974–2002)
`MP`	Northern Mariana Islands	1986
`MQ`	Martinique	1974
`MR`	Mauritania	1974
`MS`	Montserrat	1974
`MT`	Malta	1974
`MU`	Mauritius	1974
`MV`	Maldives	1974
`MW`	Malawi	1974
`MX`	Mexico	1974
`MY`	Malaysia	1974
`MZ`	Mozambique	1974
`NA`	Namibia	1974
`NC`	New Caledonia	1974
`NE`	Niger	1974
`NF`	Norfolk Island	1974
`NG`	Nigeria	1974
`NI`	Nicaragua	1974
`NL`	Netherlands	1974
`NO`	Norway	1974
`NP`	Nepal	1974
`NR`	Nauru	1974
`NU`	Niue	1974
`NZ`	New Zealand	1974
`OM`	Oman	1974
`PA`	Panama	1974
`PE`	Peru	1974
`PF`	French Polynesia	1974	Code taken from name in French: Polynésie française
`PG`	Papua New Guinea	1974
`PH`	Philippines	1974
`PK`	Pakistan	1974
`PL`	Poland	1974
`PM`	Saint Pierre and Miquelon	1974
`PN`	Pitcairn	1974
`PR`	Puerto Rico	1974
`PS`	Palestinian Territory, Occupied	1999	Consisting of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip
`PT`	Portugal	1974
`PW`	Palau	1986
`PY`	Paraguay	1974
`QA`	Qatar	1974
`RE`	Reunion Réunion	1974
`RO`	Romania	1974
`RS`	Serbia	2006	Code taken from official name: Republic of Serbia
`RU`	Russian Federation	1992
`RW`	Rwanda	1974
`SA`	Saudi Arabia	1974
`SB`	Solomon Islands	1974	Code taken from former name: British Solomon Islands
`SC`	Seychelles	1974
`SD`	Sudan	1974
`SE`	Sweden	1974
`SG`	Singapore	1974
`SH`	Saint Helena	1974	Includes Ascension Island and Tristan da Cunha
`SI`	Slovenia	1992
`SJ`	Svalbard and Jan Mayen	1974	Consisting of Svalbard and Jan Mayen
`SK`	Slovakia	1993	`SK` previously represented Sikkim
`SL`	Sierra Leone	1974
`SM`	San Marino	1974
`SN`	Senegal	1974
`SO`	Somalia	1974
`SR`	Suriname	1974
`ST`	Sao Tome and Principe	1974
`SV`	El Salvador	1974
`SY`	Syrian Arab Republic	1974
`SZ`	Swaziland	1974
`TC`	Turks and Caicos Islands	1974
`TD`	Chad	1974	Code taken from name in French: Tchad
`TF`	French Southern Territories	1979	Covers the jurisdiction of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands except Adélie Land Code taken from name in French: Terres australes françaises
`TG`	Togo	1974
`TH`	Thailand	1974
`TJ`	Tajikistan	1992
`TK`	Tokelau	1974
`TL`	Timor-Leste	2002	Name changed from East Timor (`TP`)
`TM`	Turkmenistan	1992
`TN`	Tunisia	1974
`TO`	Tonga	1974
`TR`	Turkey	1974
`TT`	Trinidad and Tobago	1974
`TV`	Tuvalu	1979
`TW`	Taiwan, Province of China	1974	Covers the jurisdiction of the Republic of China except Kinmen and Lienchiang Designated as such due to its political status within the UN
`TZ`	Tanzania, United Republic of	1974
`UA`	Ukraine	1974	Previous ISO country name: Ukrainian SSR (1974–1992)
`UG`	Uganda	1974
`UM`	United States Minor Outlying Islands	1986	Consisting of Baker Island, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Islands, Navassa Island, Palmyra Atoll, and Wake Island
`US`	United States	1974
`UY`	Uruguay	1974
`UZ`	Uzbekistan	1992
`VA`	Holy See (Vatican City State)	1974	Territory of the Holy See Previous ISO country name: Vatican City State (Holy See) (1974–1996)
`VC`	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	1974
`VE`	Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of	1974	Previous ISO country name: Venezuela (1974–2009)
`VG`	Virgin Islands, British	1974
`VI`	Virgin Islands, U.S.	1974
`VN`	Viet Nam	1974
`VU`	Vanuatu	1980	Name changed from New Hebrides (`NH`)
`WF`	Wallis and Futuna	1974
`WS`	Samoa	1974	Code taken from former name: Western Samoa
`YE`	Yemen	1974	Previous ISO country name: Yemen, Republic of (1990–1993)
`YT`	Mayotte	1993
`ZA`	South Africa	1974	Code taken from name in Dutch: Zuid-Afrika
`ZM`	Zambia	1974
`ZW`	Zimbabwe	1980	Name changed from Southern Rhodesia (`RH`)

[edit] 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 them 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:

UN/LOCODE assigns XZ to represent Installations in International Waters.^[8]
ISO 4217 uses codes starting with X for non-country-specific currencies, such as XCD for the East Caribbean dollar.^[4]

[edit] Reserved code elements

Reserved code elements are codes which have recently become obsolete, or are in use for some applications in conjunction with the official ISO 3166-1 codes. The ISO 3166/MA therefore reserves them, so that they are not used for new official codes during a limited or indeterminate period of time, thereby avoiding any transitional problems or conflicts between the ISO 3166-1 standard and those applications. The list of ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 reserved code elements is divided into the following four categories.

[edit] Exceptional reservations

Exceptionally reserved code elements are codes reserved permanently at the request of national ISO member bodies, governments and international organizations because they are needed for particular purposes. The ISO 3166/MA only authorizes their use for the particular purpose for which they were established. The following alpha-2 codes are currently exceptionally reserved:

Alpha-2	Area name or country name	Notes
`AC`	Ascension Island	Reserved on request of UPU Currently used for the ccTLD .ac
`CP`	Clipperton Island	Reserved on request of ITU
`DG`	Diego Garcia	Reserved on request of ITU
`EA`	Ceuta and Melilla	Reserved on request of WCO to represent area outside EU customs territory
`EU`	European Union	Originally reserved on request of ISO 4217/MA to provide country code for Euro Extended for use in ISO 6166 "Securities – International securities identification numbering system (ISIN)" in 1998-03 Extended for any application needing to represent the name European Union in 1999-08 Currently used for the ccTLD .eu
`FX`	France, Metropolitan	Officially assigned 1993-06-18–1997-07-14 Reserved on request of France
`IC`	Canary Islands	Reserved on request of WCO to represent area outside EU customs territory
`SU`	USSR	Officially assigned 1974–1992-08-30 Transitionally reserved 1992-09–2008-06 Currently used for the ccTLD .su
`TA`	Tristan da Cunha	Reserved on request of UPU
`UK`	United Kingdom	Reserved on request of the United Kingdom Currently used for the ccTLD .uk, and by the European Commission

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

Alpha-2	Area name or country name	Notes	Date of official assignment
`AX`	Åland	Reserved on request of Finland	2004-02-13
`GG`	Guernsey	Reserved on request of UPU Used for the ccTLD .gg when reserved	2006-03-29
`IM`	Isle of Man	Reserved on request of UPU Used for the ccTLD .im when reserved	2006-03-29
`JE`	Jersey	Reserved on request of UPU Used for the ccTLD .je when reserved	2006-03-29

[edit] Transitional reservations

Transitional reserved code elements are codes which were withdrawn from ISO 3166-1, but maintained during a transitional period of at least five years, for the sake of users who still need to refer to the former entity or whose systems have not yet been updated to refer to the new codes that may have replaced them. The following alpha-2 codes are currently transitionally reserved:

Alpha-2	Formerly used country name	Date of reservation	Notes
`BU`	Burma	1989-12
`CS`	Serbia and Montenegro	2006-09	`CS` previously represented Czechoslovakia
`NT`	Neutral Zone	1993-07
`SF`	Finland	1995-09	Finland officially uses the code `FI` Previously used in international postal codes and vehicle registration codes Code stands for Suomi Finland (Suomi is the Finnish name of the country)
`TP`	East Timor	2002-05	Currently used for the ccTLD .tp
`YU`	Yugoslavia	2003-07	Currently used for the ccTLD .yu
`ZR`	Zaire	1997-07

[edit] Indeterminate reservations

Indeterminately reserved code elements are codes used to identify vehicles under the 1949 and 1968 United Nations Road Traffic Conventions. These codes differ from those used in ISO 3166-1. The ISO 3166/MA hopes that these codes will eventually be phased out and that ISO 3166-1 codes will be used instead; but in the meantime they are reserved, to avoid conflicts between ISO 3166-1 and the Conventions, and to facilitate any transition from the Convention codes to ISO 3166-1 codes. However, they can be reassigned at any time by the ISO 3166/MA. The following alpha-2 codes are currently indeterminately reserved:

Alpha-2	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 indeterminately reserved, but have been reassigned:

Alpha-2	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

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Code notified to United Nations Secretary-General under 1949 and/or 1968 Road Traffic Conventions
^ ^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
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Code under 1949 Road Traffic Convention
^ ^a ^b Code under 1968 Road Traffic Convention

[edit] Codes currently agreed not to use

In addition, the ISO 3166/MA has undertaken, for the time being, not to use the following alpha-2 codes from WIPO Standard ST.3; however, these codes are not classified as either exceptional, transitional, or indeterminate reservations, since they represent international intellectual property organizations, instead of the names of countries, territories, or areas of geographical interest:

Alpha-2	Organization name
`AP`	African Regional Intellectual 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 to represent the Eurasian Patent Organization. However, The ISO 3166/MA has stated it cannot guarantee to reserve EA from use, since it is already used to represent Ceuta and Melilla for customs purposes (EA is currently exceptionally reserved). 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.

[edit] Withdrawn codes

Besides the codes currently transitionally reserved, and FX and SU (currently exceptionally reserved), the following alpha-2 codes have also been withdrawn from ISO 3166-1:

Alpha-2	Formerly used country name	Code reassigned to
`AI`	French Afar and Issas	Anguilla
`BQ`	British Antarctic Territory
`CS`	Czechoslovakia	Serbia and Montenegro
`CT`	Canton and Enderbury Islands
`DD`	German Democratic Republic
`DY`	Dahomey
`FQ`	French Southern and Antarctic Territories
`GE`	Gilbert and Ellice Islands	Georgia
`HV`	Upper Volta
`JT`	Johnston Island
`MI`	Midway Islands
`NH`	New Hebrides
`NQ`	Dronning Maud Land
`PC`	Pacific Islands, Trust Territory of the
`PU`	U.S. Miscellaneous Pacific Islands
`PZ`	Panama Canal Zone
`RH`	Southern Rhodesia
`SK`	Sikkim	Slovakia
`VD`	Viet-Nam, Democratic Republic of
`WK`	Wake Island
`YD`	Yemen, Democratic

After an alpha-2 code is withdrawn, an entry for the corresponding former country name will be added to ISO 3166-3.

[edit] See also

List of FIPS country codes, from Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 10-4, developed by the federal government of the United States

[edit] References

^ ISO 3166 FAQs – General questions, International Organization for Standardization (ISO).
^ ISO 3166-2, ISO.
^ The International Standard Recording Code, International Federation of the Phonographic Industry.
^ ^a ^b ISO 4217 currency names and code elements, ISO.
^ ISO6166 - an outline of the standard, Association of National Numbering Agencies.
^ About BIC, Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication.
^ IBAN Registry, Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication.
^ ^a ^b UN/LOCODE Manual, United Nations Economic Commission for Europe.
^ IANA – Root Zone Database, Internet Assigned Numbers Authority.
^ Standard ST.3 – Recommended standard on two-letter codes for the representation of states, other entities and intergovernmental organizations, from Handbook on Industrial Property Information and Documentation, p. 3.3.1–3.3.9, 2007-04. World Intellectual Property Organization.
^ Publications Office – Interinstitutional style guide – Countries, European Union.
^ 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, from Official Journal of the European Communities, L 335, p. 22–29, 1998-12-10. European Union.
^ Distinguishing signs used on vehicles in international traffic, United Nations Economic Commission for Europe.
^ Tags for Identifying Languages, Internet Engineering Task Force.

[edit] Sources and external links

ISO 3166 Maintenance Agency, International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
- Official ISO list of countries and the corresponding ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code elements
  - Text file
  - XML zipped file
- Official ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 decoding table
Appendix D – Cross-Reference List of Country Data Codes, from The World Factbook (public domain), Central Intelligence Agency
Country codes, Statoids.com
- ISO 3166-1 Change History
Country codes in ISO 3166 (last modified: 2003-07-25)
Reserved code elements under ISO 3166-1 "Codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions – Part 1: Country codes", published by the ISO 3166 Maintenance Agency (2002-06-10)

[note1-14] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Code notified to United Nations Secretary-General under 1949 and/or 1968 Road Traffic Conventions

[note2-15] ^ ^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

[note3-16] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Code under 1949 Road Traffic Convention

[note4-17] Code under 1968 Road Traffic Convention

[0] ISO 3166 FAQs – General questions, International Organization for Standardization (ISO).

[1] ISO 3166-2, ISO.

[2] The International Standard Recording Code, International Federation of the Phonographic Industry.

[iso4217-3] ISO 4217 currency names and code elements, ISO.

[4] ISO6166 - an outline of the standard, Association of National Numbering Agencies.

[5] About BIC, Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication.

[6] IBAN Registry, Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication.

[unlocode-7] UN/LOCODE Manual, United Nations Economic Commission for Europe.

[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, from Handbook on Industrial Property Information and Documentation, p. 3.3.1–3.3.9, 2007-04. World Intellectual Property Organization.

[10] Publications Office – Interinstitutional style guide – Countries, European Union.

[11] 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, from Official Journal of the European Communities, L 335, p. 22–29, 1998-12-10. European Union.

[12] Distinguishing signs used on vehicles in international traffic, United Nations Economic Commission for Europe.

[13] Tags for Identifying Languages, Internet Engineering Task Force.

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ISO 3166-1 alpha-2

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Contents

[edit] Uses and applications

[edit] Perfect implementations

[edit] Imperfect implementations

[edit] Current codes

[edit] Decoding table

[edit] Officially assigned code elements

[edit] User-assigned code elements

[edit] Reserved code elements

[edit] Exceptional reservations

[edit] Transitional reservations

[edit] Indeterminate reservations

[edit] Codes currently agreed not to use

[edit] Withdrawn codes

[edit] See also

[edit] References

[edit] Sources and external links

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