Passenger vehicles
Rate based on CO₂ emissions across 20 WLTP bands from 7% to 41% of OMSP. The main case for most importers.
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Get an instant VRT estimate before you import
Use the calculator below to get a free Vehicle Registration Tax estimate for any UK, Northern Ireland or Japanese import, based on Revenue's 2026 rates, your vehicle's OMSP, CO₂ band and NOx emissions. No registration, no upsell, just the number you need before your NCTS appointment.
Calculate my VRT nowUpdated for 2026: Budget 2026 left passenger-car VRT rates unchanged. The 5 000,00€ BEV relief is extended to 31 December 2026. Category B (light commercial) rates remain at 8% / 13.3% since 1 July 2025.
What is VRT and when do you pay it?
Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT) is a one-off Irish tax due the first time a vehicle is registered in Ireland, most often when you import a car from the UK, Northern Ireland or Japan, or when you register a brand-new car bought from an Irish dealer. The bill must be settled within 30 days of the vehicle entering the country, at an NCTS (National Car Testing Service) centre.
Before diving into the calculator itself, you need to know which Revenue category your vehicle falls into, the rate depends on it:
Light commercial vehicles (≤ 3,500 kg)
Since 1 July 2025: 8% of OMSP up to 120 g/km CO₂, 13.3% above. Replaces the old flat 13.3% rate.
Larger commercial vehicles
Agricultural tractors, buses, and vehicles over 30 years old at registration. Flat 200,00€.
Exempt from VRT
Ambulances, fire engines, refuse carts, sweeping machines, road rollers.
Motorcycles and e-mopeds
Calculated on engine capacity (2,00€/cc up to 350cc, then 1,00€/cc), with age-based reductions up to 100%. Series-production electric motorcycles were exempt until 31 December 2025, check the latest Finance Act for any extension.
A handful of legitimate reliefs reduce or remove VRT entirely, most notably transfer of residence (moving to Ireland from abroad with a vehicle you've owned for ≥ 6 months), the Disabled Drivers and Disabled Passengers Scheme, vintage status (over 30 years old, flat 200,00€ in Category C), and the BEV relief of up to 5 000,00€ for fully electric vehicles registered before 31 December 2026.
How to use a VRT calculator: step-by-step
To get a reliable VRT estimate, you need four pieces of information about the vehicle: its registration number (or Statistical Code), year and month of first registration, WLTP CO₂ and NOx emissions, and odometer reading. Getting any of these wrong is the most common source of an estimate that misses Revenue's final figure.
Gather the vehicle registration or Statistical Code
Open the UK V5C logbook (or Japanese export certificate) and copy the registration number exactly. If you've been given a Statistical Code by a dealer or by a previous Revenue lookup, use it, it pre-populates make, model, version and variant in one go, eliminating the most common mismatch errors. The Statistical Code is a unique Revenue identifier (e.g. 40287323) that ties your specific vehicle to a single OMSP entry in Revenue's database.
If you don't have a Statistical Code, you'll need to navigate Revenue's Make -> Model -> Version -> Variant cascade manually. A "BMW 320d" matches more than a dozen variants, pick the wrong one and your estimate can be off by 1 000,00€+.
Year and month of first registration
This drives depreciation, the older the vehicle, the lower the OMSP Revenue assigns to it. Use the date of first registration anywhere in the world, not the date the vehicle entered Ireland. A vehicle first registered in May 2018 will be valued very differently from one first registered in May 2020, even if both arrive in Ireland today.
WLTP CO₂ emissions and NOx (mg/km)
Since January 2021, Revenue uses WLTP (Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicles Test Procedure) values exclusively for new and previously-WLTP-registered vehicles. NEDC figures from older UK paperwork get converted automatically using Revenue's official formulas:
- Diesel (Cat A): (NEDC CO₂ × 1.1405) + 12.858
- Other than diesel (Cat A): (NEDC CO₂ × 0.9227) + 34.554
You'll find the WLTP figure on the V5C or in the manufacturer's official Certificate of Conformity (CoC). For NOx, check section V.3 of the CoC. If WLTP is unavailable, Revenue defaults to the highest CO₂ band.
Run the calculation and save the result
Enter the inputs into the calculator (we'll compare options in a moment), then screenshot or download the result. You'll need it for your appointment at the NCTS. Re-run the same calculation on a second calculator if the number surprises you, the gap between two estimates almost always flags a wrong input rather than a calculator bug.
How VRT is actually calculated in Ireland
For a passenger car (Category A), the formula is:
VRT = (OMSP × CO₂ rate) + NOx levy − any applicable relief
Knowing the formula lets you spot when an estimate looks wrong.
OMSP - Revenue's value, not yours
OMSP (Open Market Selling Price) is Revenue's view of the vehicle's market value in Ireland, not the price you paid abroad, not what's on the UK invoice. Revenue maintains a depreciated valuation per make / model / version / variant / year / mileage / condition, refreshed regularly.
This is the single most common source of estimate-vs-final mismatch: importers expect VRT to be calculated on what they paid, but Revenue uses its own number. If you disagree with the OMSP, you can lodge an appeal within 30 days of the VRT assessment, first to Revenue, then if rejected to the Tax Appeals Commission. Provide market evidence (UK Auto Trader prices, dealer invoices for comparable Irish vehicles).
CO₂ rate table - Category A (passenger cars)
In force since 1 January 2022. These 20 WLTP bands have been unchanged in Budget 2026 and apply to almost every imported car:
| WLTP CO₂ (g/km) | VRT rate | Minimum VRT |
|---|---|---|
| 0 – 50 | 7% of OMSP | 140,00€ |
| 51 – 80 | 9% | 180,00€ |
| 81 – 85 | 9.75% | 195,00€ |
| 86 – 90 | 10.5% | 210,00€ |
| 91 – 95 | 11.25% | 225,00€ |
| 96 – 100 | 12% | 240,00€ |
| 101 – 105 | 12.75% | 255,00€ |
| 106 – 110 | 13.5% | 270,00€ |
| 111 – 115 | 15.25% | 305,00€ |
| 116 – 120 | 16% | 320,00€ |
| 121 – 125 | 16.75% | 335,00€ |
| 126 – 130 | 17.5% | 350,00€ |
| 131 – 135 | 19.25% | 385,00€ |
| 136 – 140 | 20% | 400,00€ |
| 141 – 145 | 21.5% | 430,00€ |
| 146 – 150 | 25% | 500,00€ |
| 151 – 155 | 27.5% | 550,00€ |
| 156 – 170 | 30% | 600,00€ |
| 171 – 190 | 35% | 700,00€ |
| 191+ | 41% | 820,00€ |
The minimum charge kicks in only on very low-value vehicles, otherwise the percentage governs.
CO₂ rate table - Category B (light commercial)
Since 1 July 2025:
| WLTP CO₂ (g/km) | VRT rate | Minimum VRT |
|---|---|---|
| 0 – 120 | 8% of OMSP | 160,00€ |
| 121+ | 13.3% of OMSP | 266,00€ |
Some N1 vans with fewer than 4 seats and a high laden-to-service mass ratio are charged a flat 200,00€ instead. Since 1 January 2025, electric N1 vans qualify for this 200,00€ rate when laden mass exceeds 125% of mass in service (previously 130%).
Electric vehicle relief
Fully electric passenger cars and commercial vehicles qualify for a VRT relief of up to 5 000,00€ deducted from the CO₂-based VRT. Relief tapers:
- OMSP up to 40 000,00€ → full 5 000,00€ relief
- OMSP between 40 000,00€ and 50 000,00€ → relief tapers to zero
- OMSP above 50 000,00€ → no relief
The relief is capped at the VRT actually due, any unused portion is lost, not refunded. This relief is extended to 31 December 2026 under Budget 2026.
The NOx surcharge, where diesels pay more
The NOx levy is a separate charge layered on top of the CO₂-based VRT, calibrated to the vehicle's NOx emissions in mg/km on a progressive scale:
First band5,00€ / mg/km
Middle band15,00€ / mg/km
Top band25,00€ / mg/km
The total is capped by fuel type. In practice, the surcharge hits older diesels hardest, easily adding 200,00€ to 1 000,00€+ for a high-emission unit. Petrol vehicles built to recent Euro 6d standards typically pay a small NOx charge or none at all. Pre-2020 diesels almost always trigger the top band.
Make sure you enter the correct NOx figure from the V5C or CoC; defaulting to zero gives an artificially low estimate that Revenue will correct upwards at the NCTS.
Worked examples
Importing a 2019 Audi A4 2.0 TDI from the UK
WLTP CO₂
124 g/km
NOx
58 mg/km
OMSP (Revenue valuation)
18 500,00€
Calculation
- CO₂ band 121 – 125 g/km → 16.75% of OMSP
- CO₂ VRT = 18 500,00€ × 16.75% = 3 098,75€
- NOx levy (diesel, ~58 mg/km, mid-band estimate) ≈ 420,00€
Total VRT
≈ 3 519,00€
That's only the VRT. For a UK import in 2026 you also need to factor in:
- Customs duty: 0% if the vehicle is UK-origin under the TCA (proven via supplier's declaration of origin), up to 10% otherwise.
- VAT at 23% on the purchase price + customs duty, only if the vehicle qualifies as a "new means of transport", under 6 months old or under 6,000 km on the clock.
- For a used Northern Ireland import, customs duty usually does not apply (NI remains in the EU customs territory for goods).
Importing an electric Tesla Model 3 from the UK
WLTP CO₂
0 g/km
NOx
0 mg/km
OMSP (Revenue valuation)
33 250,00€
Calculation
- CO₂ band 0 – 50 g/km → 7% of OMSP
- CO₂ VRT = 33 250,00€ × 7% = 2 327,50€
- NOx levy = 0,00€
- BEV relief (OMSP ≤ 40 000,00€) = −2 327,50€ (capped at VRT due, the remaining 2 672,50€ is unused)
Total VRT
0,00€
The 5 000,00€ ceiling rarely applies in full because the underlying VRT is often lower. This is why "EV relief" is more accurately a VRT-killer for mid-priced EVs than a 5 000,00€ cheque.
Free VRT calculator: Revenue vs third-party tools
Revenue's calculator is the authoritative reference, it uses Revenue's own OMSP database, but it limits you to one vehicle at a time and skips customs duty and VAT entirely. Third-party tools add those layers and bulk features, in exchange for relying on derived OMSP data.
| Tool | What it does best | Limitation |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue (ros.ie) | Authoritative OMSP, official 20-band CO₂ lookup, free | One vehicle at a time, no customs/VAT layer, no bulk export, slow UI |
| VRT.ie | UK and Japanese import focus, bundles VRT + customs + VAT into a single report | Estimated OMSP may diverge from Revenue's, paid bundle for full report |
| MotorCheck.ie | Combines VRT estimate with vehicle history check (mileage fraud, write-off) | Push toward paid history upsell |
| MyVehicle.ie | Reg-plate lookup, fast UI | Less detailed customs guidance |
The pragmatic workflow: start with Revenue for the authoritative VRT baseline, then cross-check with one third-party tool to add the customs duty and VAT layers if you're importing from the UK. A 100,00€ gap between the two usually means you've mistyped an input; a 500,00€+ gap means it's time to verify the Statistical Code.
4 common mistakes that inflate your VRT bill
Four mistakes account for most of the gap between a self-run estimate and Revenue's final assessment at the NCTS.
Picking the wrong vehicle version
A "BMW 320d" exists in a dozen variants (Sport, Efficient Dynamics, M Sport, xDrive…). Each has a distinct OMSP.
Fix: use the Statistical Code rather than typing make/model manually.
Ignoring chargeable extras
Revenue adds VRT on "extras" such as upgraded wheels, panoramic roofs, advanced driver-assistance packs, premium audio. The official calculator does not include them, they get added at the NCTS appointment, sometimes surprising importers with 500,00€–2 000,00€ extra.
Fix: read Revenue's published list of chargeable extras before budgeting.
Using NEDC CO₂ instead of WLTP
UK V5Cs from before September 2019 often show NEDC values. Revenue applies a conversion formula but the result can land you in a higher band than the manufacturer's true WLTP figure would.
Fix: request a fresh Certificate of Conformity from the manufacturer if WLTP is not on the V5C.
Forgetting customs duty and VAT
Many UK importers budget only for VRT and get caught out by a stacked 10% customs duty + 23% VAT bill at the NCTS for non-UK-origin vehicles or for vehicles meeting Revenue's "new means of transport" criteria.
Fix: always run a total import cost calculation (VRT + customs + VAT), not just a VRT estimate. A 3 000,00€ UK saving can evaporate fast.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you calculate VRT on a car?
For a passenger car (Category A), multiply Revenue's OMSP for that specific vehicle by the CO₂ rate from the 20-band WLTP table (7% to 41%), then add the NOx levy (5,00€ / 15,00€ / 25,00€ per mg/km, capped by fuel type). For a fully electric car, subtract the BEV relief (up to 5 000,00€, capped at VRT due, tapering between 40 000,00€ and 50 000,00€ OMSP).
How much is VRT on a van?
It depends on emissions since 1 July 2025. Category B vans with WLTP CO₂ up to 120 g/km pay 8% of OMSP (minimum 160,00€). Above 120 g/km, 13.3% of OMSP (minimum 266,00€). Some N1 vans with fewer than 4 seats and high laden-to-service mass ratio pay a flat 200,00€. Electric N1 vans qualify for the 200,00€ rate at a lower ratio threshold (125%) since January 2025.
What is the VRT percentage in Ireland?
For passenger cars, the CO₂ component ranges from 7% of OMSP (zero-emission vehicles) to 41% of OMSP (above 190 g/km). For Category B vans, 8% or 13.3%. Category C vehicles (heavy commercial, tractors, vintage 30+ years) pay a flat 200,00€. Plus the NOx levy on top for Category A.
How can you reduce VRT legally in Ireland?
Four legitimate routes: Transfer of Residence relief (full exemption for vehicles you owned for ≥ 6 months before moving to Ireland), the Disabled Drivers and Disabled Passengers Scheme, vintage vehicle status (over 30 years old, flat 200,00€ Category C), and the BEV relief (up to 5 000,00€ for fully electric vehicles with OMSP ≤ 40 000,00€, tapering to zero at 50 000,00€, extended to 31 December 2026).
How much is VRT on a tractor?
A tractor falls into Revenue Category C, which carries a flat VRT charge of 200,00€ regardless of value or emissions. The same flat rate applies to most other heavy commercial vehicles (European categories N2, N3, M2, M3) and to all vehicles over 30 years old at the time of registration.
How accurate is the Revenue VRT calculator?
The Revenue calculator is the most accurate public estimate available because it uses Revenue's own OMSP database, but it's still an estimate, the final amount Revenue charges at the NCTS may differ if the OMSP is revised, if the vehicle has chargeable extras (alloy wheels, panoramic roof, ADAS pack), or if a legislative change has taken effect between your search and your appointment. Keep your screenshot, it documents your baseline if you later need to dispute the figure.
Can you appeal Revenue's OMSP?
Yes. If you believe Revenue's OMSP is too high, you can lodge an appeal within 30 days of the VRT assessment. The appeal goes to Revenue first; if rejected, escalation to the Tax Appeals Commission is possible. Provide market evidence: UK Auto Trader prices for an equivalent spec, Irish dealer invoices for comparable vehicles, and a clear like-for-like spec comparison.
What happens if Revenue's final VRT differs from the estimate?
The estimate is non-binding. At your NCTS appointment, Revenue runs the calculation against the inspected vehicle and confirms the final figure. If it's higher, you must pay the difference before the Vehicle Registration Certificate is issued. If it's lower, you pay the lower amount, Revenue does not pocket an overestimate. Keep your calculator screenshot for any later dispute.
Is there a free VRT calculator that uses just the reg number?
Yes, MotorCheck.ie, VRT.ie and MyVehicle.ie all let you enter a UK, NI or Irish registration number and pull back an estimate without a Statistical Code. Accuracy depends on how well the reg lookup matches Revenue's exact variant. Always cross-check with Revenue's official calculator on ros.ie before you commit to an import.