Expert answer

Hi Dermot,

If the car is already registered, or will be before the end of 2020, then it will be taxed according to the old system, and will continue to be even after 2021. That would be in Band A3, costing €190 per annum.

If a new car is registered after 1 January 2021 with emissions of 109g/km then its annual tax will actually be a little less, at €180 per annum.

Read our Motor Road Tax Prices in Ireland Explained feature for full details.

Expert answer

Hi Dympna,

The motor tax on that Micra won't be changing due to the new tax bands announced yesterday in Budget 2021. Our information is that your car emits 99g/km of CO₂, so it's in Band A2 costing €180 per year. That is not set to change. 

Read Motor Road Tax Prices in Ireland Explained for full details

Expert answer

Hi Brian,

There's no doubt that it will be cheaper for you to get that car registered before 1 January 2021.

On that date, the CO₂ rating will be 'uplifted' to an equivalent WLTP value. For your car, for example, it will be increased from 166g/km to 202g/km, raising the VRT rate from 27 per cent now to 37 per cent in 2021. The NOx levy will also increase a little. 

In terms of motor taxation, if you register and tax the car now, its motor tax will be €570, which will increase to €600 from 2021 on. If you wait until after 1 Jan to register it, then your annual motor tax will be €1,250.

Useful relevant articles for you:

Motor Road Tax Prices in Ireland Explained

How Much VRT is Paid in Ireland?

Expert answer

Hi Larry,

You're not the only one confused, believe me!

Looking at the Toyota Ireland website, we can see that that WLTP CO₂ emissions rating for that car is 131g/km. That means it will fit into the new 131 - 140g/km band, costing €210 per annum.

Read our Motor Road Tax Prices in Ireland Explained feature to see all the tax bands and schemes.

Expert answer

Hi Terence,

It's not entirely clear as yet, as Audi has not published its new pricing, and doesn't appear to have changed its online pricing since the VAT reduction last month. 

Taking the Audi A6 40 TDI S line S tronic as an example: it's listed as €56,065 as of Jan 2020.

The NOx figure for that car is 41.9mg/km, so the NOx levy right now, within that price, is €5 x 41.9 = €209.

So, the price of the car including VAT and VRT, but without the NOx levy is €55,855.

Looking at our review of the Audi A6 40 TDI from 2018, the NEDC CO₂ rating appears to be 117g/km, which would mean 17 per cent VRT on the old system.

So, the VRT was €55,855 x 0.17 = €9,495, which makes the price of the car including VAT at €46,360.

Assuming that's at the 23 per cent VAT rate, it's €37,691 before VAT, or €45,606 at the current 21 per cent VAT rate.

So now we have the core cost of the car and can work on a 2021 price estimate.

We need the WLTP CO₂ rating. It varies according to equipment, so let's take the worst case of 158g/km. That places it in the new Band 18 for VRT (see our How Much VRT is Paid in Ireland? feature), at a rate of 26 per cent.

So the estimated cost of the car including VAT and VRT is €45,606 ÷ 0.74 = €61,630

The NOx levy calculation has changed a little as well. It works out as €238 for this car.

Hence, the estimated total retail cost of the car is €61,868 as of 2021.

With a CO₂ rating of 158g/km as used in these calculations, the annual motor tax (see our Motor Road Tax Prices in Ireland Explained feature) will be €280.

If I used the minimum CO₂ rating for this model of 145g/km, incidentally, the retail cost comes out as €56,891 so the final price is highly sensitive to that, while the motor tax would drop just €10 per year to €270.

Disclaimer: All of these figures should be taken as estimates only. We have rounded off to Euros throughout and who knows how Audi will adjust its pricing to suit the market rather than just calculate the new tax?

Expert answer

Hi Thomas, 

It certainly will.

The NOx levy calculation has been tweaked slightly, as detailed in our How Much VRT is Paid in Ireland? feature, with the €15 per mg rate starting earlier on.

The changes to the VRT bands will also likely have an effect, but the largest change is the 'uplifting' of the CO₂ rating to WLTP-equivalent values.

For a petrol car, the new CO₂ rating = (old NEDC rating x 0.9227) + 34.554g/km

For a diesel car, the new CO₂ rating = (old NEDC rating x 1.1405) + 12.858g/km

This will significantly raise the CO₂ rating, putting the imported cars into a higher VRT band, with likely much higher costs.

We did such a calculation for another reader here if you're interested: Should I register my imported Mercedes now?

Expert answer

Hi Joe,

I'm afraid Revenue is quite clear on this: "The VRT relieved becomes payable in full if you sell or dispose of the vehicle within 12 months following registration."

Expert answer

Hi Kevin,

According to the Revenue website, it does only refer to TOR applications in the singular (one vehicle) sense. It does not explicitly state that you can or cannot do this for multiple vehicles; however, my understanding is that it is a one-off thing. That said, with the age of the bike, the VRT should only amount to €185 to register it here in Ireland. Generally, trikes such as the Goldwing are registered as motorcycles. 

Expert answer

Hi Robert,

Getting insurance will probably be slightly tricky just because there aren’t many Jimnys on the ground here, so it’s not a well-known model for Irish insurers from an actuarial point of view. Then again, it’s no GTI so it shouldn’t be too bad. As for road legality, it’s fine — the Jimny was homologated for Europe, so it’s perfectly legal here.

Expert answer

Hi John,

As far as we know, there is no fuel station in Ireland selling 98 octane fuel. Circle K has a 97 octane fuel. If you really want to up the octane rating then you'll have to add aftermarket octane boosters each and every time you fill the tank, I'm afraid.