Expert answer

Hi Paul,

Revenue is likely to treat that vehicle as a company car – not a van – due to it having rear seats, a high specification and suitability for use as a regular car. That's irrelevant of what you actually do with it.

BIK is calculated using the Original Market Value (OMV), a percentage determined by the car's CO₂ emissions and the annual business mileage. In the case of the Amarok Aventura, the CO₂ is 267g/km, and the retail-on-the-road price is €76,820 before options.

Such a high emissions rating puts this vehicle into the highest band for BIK, category E, and the percentage then depends on the annual business mileage from a high of 37.5 per cent for up to 26,000km to a low of 15 per cent for over 52,001km (it's 30 per cent for 26,001-39,000km and 22.5 per cent for 39,001-52,000km). You must keep records.

Say for example you do 25,000km a year for business reasons. That means 37.5 per cent of €76,820 as the calculated “cash equivalent” (€28,807.50) and that is then added to your total pay from a tax calculation point of view.

You can bring that down by doing more business mileage or choosing a more efficient – or cheaper – vehicle.

There are plenty of other bits and pieces to take into consideration, so it's worth taking a look at Revenue's own Private use of employer provided vehicles page for up-to-date information.

Expert answer

Hi Slawek,

We've found Revenue's VRT estimator to be lacking in a lot of ways and it certainly doesn't list all makes and models for all years.

Let's break down the figures.

First up, the NOx levy quoted by vrt.ie (€2,650) is actually the maximum possible charged for a vehicle with a diesel engine. Neither of the examples you provided will emit enough NOx to warrant that, though you will need to have proof of their official figure to avoid paying the maximum. We'd estimate that a NOx levy of about €250 is more realistic in this case.

Be careful with the CO₂ figures. The 164g/km rating quoted for the second vehicle appears to be the old NEDC figure and Revenue will actually apply an “uplift” formula (see our Guide to Importing Cars from the UK feature for that) to bring it up to an equivalent WLTP rating. It comes out as 204g/km, meaning VRT at 41 per cent.

In your first example, this appears to have been done already, resulting in the 215g/km rating.

In both cases, that would mean VRT at 41 per cent of the OMSP, the Open Market Selling Price.

Now this is where things become less clear. The OMSP is not the asking price of the car, or even the price you pay for it, but the value Revenue places on it as a vehicle registered in Ireland and on sale here. It's not easy to estimate for relatively rare vehicles. For the purposes of our calculation, let's say €45,000. At 41 per cent, the VRT on that would be €18,450.

Obviously that could go up or down depending on how much Revenue believes the vehicle is worth, but we're certain of the 41 per cent VRT rate, unfortunately.

Expert answer

Hi Ed,

The only tax rate that is exactly €400 is for cars registered between 2008 and 2021 with CO₂ emissions of 141-155g/km. If the car in question actually emits 199g/km then there does appear to have been a mistake made.

Unfortunately, that has no bearing on what would happen if you imported such a car yourself. In fact, if the 199g/km rating is according to the old “NEDC” system, then Revenue will uplift it to an equivalent WLTP figure for VRT and tax calculations. It comes out as 298g/km, meaning a potential €2,400 per year motor tax bill.

If the 199g/km is actually the WLTP figure, then the annual bill is a more palatable €790.

Expert answer

Hi John,

There's no way to know for sure the exact VRT due until the car is brought for inspection at an NCT centre after importing it. Even if the car appears on Revenue's site, there are disclaimers on there indicating that it's an estimate only.

To make your own estimate, you'll need to have the CO₂ figure of the specific car you're looking at and you'll need to guess what Revenue will say the Open Market Selling Price (OMSP) is for that car.

The latter is the figure Revenue believes the car to be worth as an Irish car selling on the open market today. It's not easy to estimate for a relatively rare model such as the A3 Cabriolet. We found one from 2014 listed on Carzone for about €16,000, which is probably as good a starting point as any.

Watch out with the CO₂ figure. The official figure for a 2014 car is likely to be according to the old “NEDC” system and unless a WLTP figure is available Revenue will use its “uplifting” formula to bring the CO₂ up. You'll find that formula in our Guide to Importing Cars from the UK page (it applies no matter where the car is coming from).

Once you have your CO₂ figure you can look up the VRT band and percentage on our How Much VRT is Paid in Ireland? page. The VRT due will then be that percentage of the OMSP.

The NOx levy is separate to this calculation – though payable at the same time. It's not so easy to look the NOx emissions up and hopefully the car in question has a certificate of conformity with the information on it. There's a bit about that on the Guide to Importing Cars from the UK page mentioned above that again applies no matter where the car is coming from.

Hopefully that all helps. If you want us to assist with the calculations, come back to us with as much detail as possible on the car in question.

Expert answer

Hi there,

If the V5 shows the WLTP CO₂ emissions, or the WLTP rate is available for the car in question, then that is what the VRT band will be based on. If the WLTP rate is not shown or not available then Revenue will apply an 'uplifting' formula to the CO₂ emissions figure in a bid to bring it up to a WLTP-equivalent value.

We go into more detail on the actual uplift formula etc. in our Guide to Importing Cars from the UK feature if you're interested, but don't hesitate to come back to us for more help if you need it.

Expert answer

Hi Alexander,

We've looked those cars up. Both are BMW M140i with slightly different specification, but both powered by the same 3.0-litre petrol engine. 

Using Revenue's website to check the tax rates by reg does indeed show the discrepancy you've found and it suggests that the 171 car's emissions are in the 101-110g/km range, which is just impossible with that engine. We're not sure how that could have happened.

Someone somewhere put the wrong details in the system for that car. 

Expert answer

Hi Neil,

For cars, the motor tax band is determined by the CO₂, as you said, but for vans it works differently. When a van is used purely for commercial reasons it's a flat rate of €333, but if the van is actually to be used for any private reasons, it has to be taxed as a private vehicle.

And for some bizarre reason, the rate it is then taxed at is determined not by its CO₂ rating, but by its engine size. Hence the weird situation you've described above where the Peugeot van's engine (1,501-1,600cc in size) means it costs €514 a year to tax for private use, while the CO₂ emissions of the Rifter (141-150g/km) mean it only costs €270 a year. 

Hopefully that explains what's happening anyway, weird as it seems. 

Expert answer

Hi Paul,

As a passenger vehicle, the VRT cost will depend on the Open Market Selling Price (OMSP) and the VRT band. The latter is determined by the CO₂ rating, which for that model means the highest with emissions of well over 191g/km. VRT is therefore 41 per cent of the OMSP.

Unfortunately, the OMSP is nothing to do with the price you pay for the car. It's the figure Revenue believes the car to be worth in Ireland. That's not very easy to guess at for a rare model such as the Defender. For the purposes of our calculations let's assume it's €40,000, but you may know Irish values of these cars better so adjust the figures accordingly.

At an OMSP of €40,000, the VRT alone would be €16,400.

You will also have to pay the NOx levy on top of that. This can be up to €4,850 for diesel models and unfortunately the Defender is likely to attract the top value.

Assuming the Defender was imported into Northern Ireland and used there by someone (i.e. not just a car dealer), then you should not be liable for VAT or customs duty, but you will need to be able to prove its status to Revenue when importing it.

Motor tax in Ireland will be at the top rate of €2,400 per year.

A few useful guides for you:

Motor Road Tax Prices in Ireland Explained
Guide to Importing a Car from Northern Ireland
How Much VRT is Paid in Ireland?

Expert answer

Hi Guy,

It’s never easy to estimate the VRT on rare cars such as this, primarily because the calculation relies on what Revenue deems the car to be worth registered in Ireland. That’s referred to as the OMSP (Open Market Selling Price), and it’s very difficult to predict what value it will place on a rare model such as that Porsche. Let’s take it to be €50,000 for our calculations, but you need to be prepared for a drastically different number from Revenue.

That car’s high CO₂ emissions will place it in the highest band for VRT, at 41 per cent of the OMSP, so that works out as €20,500.

Expert answer

Hi Sean,

I'm afraid we don't yet have any pricing information on the car in Ireland. KGM has confirmed that the regular petrol model we tested will not be offered for sale on the Irish market due to high CO₂ emissions and the resultant high price.

However, a hybrid version of the Acyton is planned and that should go on sale in Ireland in early 2026. We do not have prices for it as yet.