Road tax

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Road tax, known by various names around the world, is a tax which has to be paid on a wheeled vehicle to use it on a public road.

Video Road tax

National implementations

Australia

All states and territories require annual phone registration fee to be paid in order to use a vehicle on public roads; the cost of which varies from state to state and is dependent on the type of vehicle. The fee is colloquially as 'rego' (pronounced with a soft g, short for registration). Queensland road tax is based on the number of cylinders or rotors the vehicle's engine has. There is also a small traffic improvement fee. New South Wales road tax is paid based on the vehicle's tare weight.

Belgium

Passenger cars pay a registration fee based on the engine displacement and power output (degressive towards 2014 (66% in 2012, 33% in 2013, 0% in 2014) and environmental criteria such as CO₂ g/km output (increasingly towards 2014). The more CO₂ g/km the car produces, the higher the fee will be.

Every year, the plate number owner has to pay the annual road tax contribution. This tax is based on the engine displacement (0-799cc = fiscal HP 4, above 800cc each 200cc is one class higher). Due to CO₂-based regulations, diesel cars with above average displacement (>2,000cc) are favoured, and petrol cars with bigger displacements are put at a disadvantage). A supplementary annual fee has to be paid for cars that run on LPG/CNG (0-799cc: EUR84/year, 800-2,499cc; EUR148/year and >2,500cc: EUR208/year) to compensate financial loss for the state due to the absence of excise at the pump.

Brazil

In Brazil, the states may collect an annual Vehicle Licensing Fee (Taxa de Licenciamento Veicular) which has a fixed value for each vehicle category determined by each state. In addition, each state may impose a Vehicle Property Tax (Imposto sobre a Propriedade de Veículos Automotores), with a rate up to 4%.

Costa Rica

The Costa Rican car property tax, commonly referred to as Marchamo, is among the highest in Latin America, with rates that can go up to 3.5% of the fiscal value of the vehicle yearly. When compared to the Costa Rican minimum wage (?331,516.22 a month, equivalent to US$597.33), the tax on an average US$15,000 (?8,600,000) car can be ?302,000 (US$525), or 80% to 120% of a month's pay. Even though Costa Ricans receive a yearly bonus equivalent to a month's salary, the property tax negates this for most car owners, which has led to calls for tax law reform.

Opponents to the car property tax argue that common cars already pay 100% tariff when imported, meaning that a car in Costa Rica is twice as expensive as in the country of origin. Additionally, gas refills include 65% fuel tax. Owning a car that would cost US$7,500 to purchase (in the United States) for seven years can result in the owner paying up to US$29,595 in total taxes (around US$4,227.85 a year). The Ministry of Finance also has the right to step up the fiscal value of a car, effectively a negative depreciation.

France

In France, the vignette was abolished for private vehicles in 2001 and was replaced by a tax on toll-road operators at a rate of EUR6.85 per 1,000 km travelled. In addition a tax is levied on vehicles registered to companies. Since 2006 the tax is levied according to CO₂ emissions ranging from EUR2 per gramme to EUR19 per gramme.

Germany

In Germany, the Motor Vehicle tax (Kraftfahrzeugsteuer) is an annual tax on all vehicles. It ranges from EUR5 per 100cc to EUR25 per 100cc for petrol engines and EUR13 to EUR37 for diesel engines. Vehicles first registered before June 30, 2009 are taxed according to engine displacement and national/European emission class, whereas vehicles which were registered after that date are taxed solely based on CO₂ emission in grams per km (g CO₂/km). An on-line tax calculator has been made available.

Hong Kong

In Hong Kong, the license fee is according to the category (passenger cars, goods vehicles, taxis, etc.) of the vehicle first. Then, for passenger cars (known as private cars), it is calculated by the engine size. The lowest tax band is under 1500 cc, then the tax band changes at 2500cc, 3500cc and 4500cc. Due to this system of license fee, most of 1600 cc to 1800 cc car models do not sell well. Most people prefer 1500 cc for compact cars. Due to this reason, some manufacturers provide only the 1500 cc version of their compact cars to Hong Kong market such as Toyota Corolla and Nissan Tiida. Both of these two cars only have 1500 cc version available.

By engine volume:

• <= 1500 cc = HK$3,929
• 1501 cc- 2500 cc = HK$5,794
• 2501 cc- 3500 cc = HK$7,664
• 3501 cc- 4500 cc = HK$9,534
• >4500 cc = HK$11,329

Hungary

In Hungary, since 2009 this tax is based on the vehicle's engine performance and the vehicle's age. Before this so-called performance tax, this tax was based on the vehicle's weight and unofficially it was called a weight tax.

India

In India, road tax is imposed by both the central government (customs duty, central excise, and central sales tax), state government (motor vehicles tax, passengers and goods tax, state VAT, and toll taxes) and local bodies (octroi). At the time of purchase of the vehicle, the central excise duty, central sales tax and state VAT are levied at the rates of 10%, 3%, 2% and 12.5% respectively.

In India, electric cars are exempted from paying road tax, to attract buyers into buying more electric cars to reduce pollution.

The motor vehicles tax is calculated on the basis of various factors including engine capacity, seating capacity, unladen weight and cost price. It is also priced in the type of vehicle used such as trucks, vans, cars, two-wheelers etc. for toll roads.

Ireland

Motor tax is payable as an annual duty (subject to exemptions) in Ireland. Prior to 2008 the annual tax was levied on the engine size ranging from EUR199 pa for an engine under 1,000cc to EUR1,809 for cars with an engine over 3,001 cc. Since July 2008, the tax rates for new private cars are based on the vehicle's carbon dioxide emissions. The tax bands for CO2 emissions range from EUR170 pa with emissions of 0-80 g/km to EUR2,350 pa with emissions over 225g. Commercial vehicles including 5 seater large 4WD vehicles no matter what size engine or CO₂ emissions is EUR333 the highest rate is EUR2345 for passenger vehicles. All vintage vehicles are taxed at EUR56 per year; a vehicle is considered vintage 30 years after the date of first registration.

Japan

A tax is collected under the Local Tax Act of 1950 that is paid every May based on the vehicle's engine's displacement. The tax is then determined by whether the vehicle is for business or personal use, based on exterior dimensions and engine displacement as defined under dimension regulations. The tax to be paid is then based on the engine's displacement starting with engines below 1,000 cc, and increasing at 500 cc intervals to a top bracket of 6,000 cc and above.

Personal vehicles pay more than vehicles identified as business use. If the car has been certified as a low-emissions vehicle, under the Japanese low-emission vehicle certification system, the tax obligation is reduced. Kei cars (Japanese vehicles with 660 cc engines and reduced exterior dimensions) have significant tax advantages because their tax is about a quarter of that of a 1,000 cc car.

The legislation is similar to a European approach to taxing engine horsepower, while the Japanese approach taxes engine displacement.

Automobile Tax (exterior dimensions)

• Road Tax for regular 4-wheel vehicles (Metropolitan/Prefectural Tax) vehicle plates and taxes
  • 40/400 and 50/500 Japan license plates: ¥7,500
  • 33/300 license plates (4.5 liter engines and below): ¥19,000
  • 33/300 license plates (4.6 liter engines and above): ¥22,000
  • 11/100 license plates: ¥32,000

Light Motor Vehicle Tax

• Road Tax for mini-cars and motorcycles (city/ward tax)
  • Kei car: ¥3,000
  • Motorcycles up to 125 cc: ¥500
  • Motorcycles 126 cc and above: ¥1,000

Automobile Weight Tax

On May 31, 1971 until March 31, 2010, the Japanese government passed a law creating the Automobile Weight Tax (in Japanese). It was modified March 31, 2010, and again April 1, 2010 one day later. The tax is paid every year in conjunction with the engine displacement based road tax. The weight determination is made in metric tons.

As of April 1, 2010, the tax requirements are as follows. The determination of whether the vehicle is for business or personal use has been added, similar to the engine displacement regulations:

March 31, 2010 only

Road Tax increments

The following is the tax rates for passenger vehicles used for both personal and business use, incremented by 500 cc engine displacement.

The following table is the tax bracket for trucks, or vehicles built with a load carrying section without seats and a single bench seat in the front of the vehicle in an enclosed passenger compartment.

The following table is the tax bracket for buses, or vehicles designed to carry many passengers.

Latvia

The vehicle operating tax on cars first registered after January 1, 2005 that have registration certificates with information on total weight, engine volume and engine maximum power, shall be paid by summing up tax rates according to total weight, engine volume and engine maximum power of the car as follows:

• By total weight
  • <=1500 kg EUR14,23
  • 1501 kg - 1800 kg EUR29,88
  • 1801 kg - 2100 kg EUR51,22
  • 2101 kg - 2600 kg EUR65,45
  • 2601 kg - 3000 kg EUR78,26
  • 3001 kg - 3500 kg EUR91,06
  • > 3500 kg EUR102,45

• By engine volume
  • <= 1500cc EUR8,54
  • 1501cc- 2000cc EUR21,34
  • 2001cc- 2500cc EUR34,15
  • 2501cc- 3000cc EUR51,22
  • 3001cc- 3500cc EUR85,37
  • 3501cc- 4000cc EUR149,40
  • 4001cc- 5000cc EUR213,43
  • >5000cc EUR277,46

• By engine maximum power
  • <= 55 kW EUR8,54
  • 56 kW - 92 kW EUR21,34
  • 93 kW - 129 kW EUR34,15
  • 130 kW - 166 kW EUR51,22
  • 167 kW - 203 kW EUR85,37
  • 204 kW - 240 kW EUR149,40
  • 241 kW - 300 kW EUR213,43
  • > 300 kW EUR277,46

Luxembourg

An annual tax is applied to each vehicle. In 2013, as an example, the annual tax for a BMW 330D 2004 model was EUR224.

Mexico

Until 2011, the federal government charged an annual vehicle tax, Tenencia Vehicular, depending on the value and other vehicle characteristics. Although the tax was federal, the states collected the tax. This tax was created in 1961 and in 2006 represented about 1.6% of the total tax income (around 13 billion pesos).

In 2012, vehicle tax became a state matter with some states charging the tax, others charging a partial tax (mostly on cars above a certain value) and others such as Morelos and Querétaro, charging no tax.

Netherlands

In the Netherlands, a tax is applied to the vehicle based on its weight and fuel type, and the region. Electric vehicles and vehicles producing less than 88 g/km CO₂, and classic cars over forty years old are exempt from road tax.

Norway

In Norway, a registration fee is applied to all new motor vehicles when sold new. The fee is calculated by several variables such as vehicle classification, emissions (CO₂ and NOx), vehicle weight and engine power and generally rewards vehicles with smaller engines, low emissions and low weight. This fee can be in the hundreds of thousands of Norwegian kroner. In addition, there is an annual road tax applied to motor vehicles, failure of payment will generally lead to license plates being withdrawn. The road tax varies by vehicle classification, as of 2013 for ordinary passenger cars (less than 7,500 kg) it is 2,940 kr (with a slightly higher amount, 3,425 kr, for diesel cars without diesel particulate filters).

Spain

In Spain two taxes apply to motor vehicles:

1. The registration tax (impuesto de matriculacion) applies at purchase time to the purchase price. It is a national tax and the rate varies from 0% to 14.75% depending on C0₂ emissions. In some cases regions may fix their own rates.
2. The mechanical vehicle circulation tax (Impuesto sobre Vehículos de Tracción Mecánica or IVTM) is an annual tax. The tax is a municipal tax whose rate varies widely across the country. The tax is calculated according to the tax horsepower of the vehicle. In Madrid and Barcelona the rates for 2011 ranged from EUR22 for up to 8 HP to EUR224 for vehicles with over 20 HP.

United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom it is a requirement to pay Vehicle Excise Duty, which is paid to the government for a vehicle licence. Up until October 2014 vehicle licences, in the form of a paper disc, were required to be displayed on vehicles. Since October 2014 licence details are stored centrally on a database. Vehicles that are not used or kept on public roads must be the subject of a Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN) if they are not licensed.

In 1937 the direct relationship that existed between the tax and government expenditure on public roads was cut, the proceeds being treated as general taxation.

In the 2015 budget the government announced that from 2020 the revenue would be ring-fenced for expenditure on the strategic road network.

United States

Each state requires an annual registration fee which varies from state to state.

Additionally, in some states, counties and/or municipalities are allowed to also impose a vehicle tax. For example, in Illinois, Cook County taxes vehicles that are registered in unincorporated areas, and a number of municipalities have their own annual vehicle registration fee. In Massachusetts, the excise tax is billed separately from registration fees, by the town or city in which the vehicle is registered, and was set at a fixed rate of 2.5% statewide by a 1980 law called Proposition 2½. Within some states, the fees may vary from county to county, as some counties have surcharges per vehicle. An example of this is Virginia's personal property tax. The state of New York, on the other hand, charges a tax based on the vehicle's weight, rather than on its value, which is charged at the time of registration renewal.

In California and New Hampshire, the registration tax is calculated by the current value of the vehicle. As a result, older and more inexpensive vehicles will have a low registration fee, whereas newer and more expensive vehicles will have fees in the hundreds of dollars.

There is also a Federal Highway Use tax for vehicles with gross weights of 55,000 pounds or more, including trucks, truck tractors and buses. Generally, vans, pickup trucks, panel trucks and the like are not subject to this tax. The tax does not apply to vehicles that are used for 5,000 miles or less (7,500 miles or less for agricultural vehicles) on public highways during a tax period.

Maps Road tax

See also

• Car costs
• Congestion pricing
• Taxation in Germany#Tax on benefits in kind, taxation of company cars used privately
• Toll road

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References

Source of the article : Wikipedia