Owning a car in Singapore isn’t just about the freedom of getting from point A to B—it also comes with a fair share of paperwork and payments. Between renewing car insurance, keeping up with servicing, and making sure you’ve got a parking solution that won’t drain your wallet, it can feel like you’ve suddenly taken on a part-time admin job.
Road tax, in particular, is one of those recurring tasks that you can’t afford to forget. Luckily, it’s also one of the simplest things to stay on top of once you know where and how to do it. Here’s a step-by-step guide to checking and paying your road tax
How much is your road tax going to cost?
The amount of road tax you have to pay varies depending on:
- Engine capacity
- Age of the vehicle
- Whether your vehicle uses diesel or petrol
- The Power Rating (PR) of your electric car
- Your vehicle scheme
To cite a run-of-the-mill example, a 1,839cc Toyota Corolla would attract $1,024 road tax per year.
If your vehicle is more than 10 years old, you will also have to pay an annual road tax surcharge which is added to your total road tax bill. Using the above example, the Toyota Corolla owner would have to pay an annual surcharge of $104 if the car is above 10 years old but under 11 years old. If the car is aged 14 and above, the annual surcharge rises to $512.
Rather than trying to figure it all out, you can simply use the OneMotoring road tax enquiry service. Enter your vehicle number and you'll find out how much road tax you need to pay.
How much are the road tax rebates for 2025?
When it comes to renewing your road tax, not all cost savings are created equal. For example, road tax rebates are applied directly to your annual bill, while others are government incentives that reduce your overall car ownership costs (but not the yearly tax itself). Here’s the breakdown:
1. Direct road tax rebates
These apply straight to your annual road tax:
Classic & Vintage Vehicle Schemes
- Classic scheme: S$280 per year (cars)
- Vintage scheme: S$160 per year (cars)
- These flat rates are heavily discounted compared to the thousands you’d pay for a normal-use car, but come with restrictions like limited mileage or day licences.
Special One-Off Rebates (if announced)
- The government has, in past years, introduced temporary rebates (e.g. 15–30% discounts during the COVID-19 period).
- As of 2025, no new blanket road tax rebates have been announced, but it’s always worth checking LTA updates at renewal time.
2. Other incentives affecting vehicle costs
These aren’t road tax rebates, but they reduce the total cost of car ownership:
Vehicular Emissions Scheme (VES) rebates
- Band A1: S$25,000 rebate (applied upfront at registration)
- Band A2: S$15,000 rebate
- Rebates offset the Additional Registration Fee (ARF), not road tax.
Electric Vehicle (EV) early adoption incentive
- Covers 45% of ARF, capped at S$20,000, also applied upfront.
- EVs do, however, enjoy lower annual road tax tiers compared to petrol/diesel vehicles.
Hybrid cars
- Often qualify for VES rebates at purchase.
- Pay 10–30% lower road tax annually compared to similar petrol models, thanks to emissions-based tax calculations.
When does your road tax expire?
Each time you renew your road tax, you can choose to do so for a period of 6 or 12 months. Your road tax will expire at the end of the 6- or 12-month period.
Your road tax expiry date will be printed on the road tax disc mailed to you by the LTA.
When can you renew your road tax?
Thinking of renewing your road tax for a few years at a time to save yourself some admin work? Unfortunately, you cannot just renew your road tax whenever you feel like it. You can only renew road tax when it expires.
Renewal of road tax can be done up to 3 months before it expires. You will receive a reminder letter from the LTA one month before your road tax expires reminding you to renew it.
Timeline | What Happens | Key Action |
3 months before expiry | Receive inspection notice. This is also the earliest date you can renew your road tax. | Prepare documents and complete vehicle inspection (if required). |
1 month before expiry | Receive road tax reminder from LTA. | Ensure prerequisites (insurance, inspection, fines) are ready. |
Before expiry | Must fulfil all renewal prerequisites at least 1 working day in advance before payment. | Complete prerequisites early to avoid payment delays. |
On expiry date | Road tax is due. | Make sure payment is made on or before this date. |
1 day after expiry | Late renewal fees apply; vehicle cannot be used. | Pay immediately to avoid further penalties. |
More than 6 months after expiry | Case may be prosecuted in court. | You risk legal action—renew before reaching this stage. |
You must also fulfil certain prerequisites before paying your road tax, which are covered below.
What must you do before paying road tax?
Before the LTA will accept your attempts to pay your road tax, there are certain prerequisites that must be met, namely the following:
- Car insurance: Your vehicle must be insured for the period of road tax
- Vehicle inspection: You must have passed any upcoming vehicle inspection
- Fines: You must clear any outstanding fines
You should fulfil all the above requirements at least 3 working days before you wish to pay your road tax as the system takes some time to update. If the system cannot be updated in time, you might get an error message when you try to pay your road tax online.
For car insurance, you need not renew with the same provider every year.
As for vehicle inspections, these are typically required when the car reaches 3 years of age, and are subsequently required every 2 years until the car reaches the age of 10. After age 10, they must be inspected yearly. (You will receive a letter from the LTA whenever an inspection is due.)
Try not to go for your vehicle inspection at the last minute in case you fail and have to go back another day, as this could cause you to be late in paying your road tax.
How do you pay road tax?
You can pay your road tax in the following ways:
- Online on LTA's OneMotoring website
- At AXS machines
- At SAM kiosks or via SAM online
- By GIRO
- In person at Road Tax Collection Centres
The LTA OneMotoring website accepts payment by credit card. However, most credit cards exclude tax payments from their cashback/air miles/rewards programmes. Some credit cards offer an income tax payment facility in exchange for a fee, but there doesn’t seem to be such a programme for road tax.
That said, you might still want to use a credit card to pay your road tax if you’re trying to meet the minimum spending requirements on any particular card in order to qualify for their perks.
Do check the T&Cs to make sure that tax payments are not excluded from counting towards the minimum spend.
What if you miss the road tax expiry date?
Pay your road tax late and you’ll get slapped with a late payment charge, which varies depending on your vehicle and how late you are.
Engine Capacity (cc) | Late by 1 month or less | Between 1 to 2.5 months late | More than 2.5 months late | More than 3 months late |
1,000 and below | $10 | $60 | $80 | $230 |
1,001 to 1600 | $20 | $70 | $90 | $240 |
1,601 to 2,000 | $30 | $80 | $100 | $250 |
2,001 to 3,000 | $40 | $90 | $110 | $260 |
3,001 and above | $50 | $100 | $120 | $270 |
In addition, it is an offence to drive a car whose road tax has not been paid. Get caught and you could be fined up to $2,000. Moral of the story: Go for vehicle inspection early and renew your road tax on time!
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