A very small patch-type RFID tag antenna (UHF band) using ceramic material mountable on metallic surfaces is presented. The size of the proposed tag is 25 mm${ imes}$25 mm${ imes}$3 mm. The impedance of the antenna can be easily matched to the tag chip impedance by adjusting the size of the shorting plate of the patch and the size of the feeding loop. The measured maximum reading distance of the tag at 910 MHz was 5 m when it was mounted on a 400 mm${ imes}$400 mm metallic surface. The proposed design is verified by simulation and measurements which show good agreement.