News

Exemption in respect of fuel grant

The contents of Tax and Duty Manual Part 07-01-35 have been archived as information on the Fuel Grant is available on the Revenue website at Reliefs and Exemptions.

Overview

In some cases, you might not have to pay Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT) when you register your vehicle. Alternatively you may be entitled to relief from a certain amount of VRT.

This section provides a description of the reliefs and exemptions that are available.

More extensive VRT information is given in the Exemptions and Reliefs manual.

Customers are requested to send in applications for the reliefs outlined through MyEnquiries where possible. 

Transfer of residence (TOR)

If you are a private individual transferring normal residence permanently to the State from abroad this relief may apply. You still need to register your vehicle, but the registration may be exempt from VRT.

You will find information about relief from Customs Duty and VAT on vehicles imported from outside the EU in:

• Relief from Customs Duty and VAT on transferring residence to the EU
• and
• Relief from Customs Duty and VAT on transfer of business to the EU.

Normal residence requirements

Your normal residence generally is:

• the place where you usually live, for at least 185 days each year, because of occupational and personal ties
• if you live in two different countries due to occupational and personal ties, the country of your personal ties provided:
  • you return there regularly
  • or
  • you are working abroad carrying out a task of definite duration for less than one year.
• not affected by living abroad to study.

 To qualify, you must prove you:

• have had normal residence abroad
• and
• are taking up normal residence in the State. 

You will need evidence, both abroad and in the State, of:

• acquiring and disposing of a home (for example, rent agreements, mortgage documents and rent or mortgage payments)
• employment (for example, pay slips, tax records and social welfare records)
• day-to-day living (bank statements or transaction documents, bills or receipts for electricity, phone, service charges and other day-to-day living expenses)
• travel into and out of the country.

Vehicle requirements

The vehicle must:

• be your personal property
• have been in your possession and used by you for at least six months before transfer of residence. Any possession and use in the State, even during times when you were living abroad, does not count.
• brought into the State within 12 months of the date of your transfer of residence
• be fully tax and duty paid.

Vehicles acquired tax and duty-free may also qualify for relief in certain limited circumstances. These include vehicles supplied under diplomatic or consular arrangements or to UN missions. In such cases the vehicles must be possessed and used by you for 12 months before transfer of residence.

Evidence required in respect of the vehicle will usually consist of:

• vehicle registration document
• certificate of insurance
• purchase receipt
• ferry ticket to show when the vehicle arrived in the State
• evidence of the vehicles use abroad, for example, service and maintenance records and evidence that motor tax has been paid.

Restrictions

The VRT relieved becomes payable in full if you sell or dispose of the vehicle within 12 months following registration.

You do not qualify if:

• you have been abroad on a task of any definite duration 
• and
• granted similar relief for a vehicle in the previous five years. 

Application

If you are moving from within the EU, you must submit your application to the Central Vehicle Office via MyEnquiries where possible.  If you are not able to access Revenue’s online resources please contact the designated Revenue office.

Note

To claim the relief you must submit a Transfer of Residence (TOR) application form along with all the required supporting documentation to the Central Vehicle Office in advance of the requirement to register the vehicle. You must submit a TOR application within 7 days of bringing the car into the state and make an appointment with NCTS within the same 7 days.  You must register the vehicle within 30 days of bringing it into the state.  Further information can be found in VRT Manual Section 02 Reliefs and Exemptions.

If you are moving from outside the EU, you must apply at the customs office where you enter the State.