Responsibility for the re-registration of imported used vehicles and the collection of VRT is to be passed from the Revenue Commissioners to the company that carries out the NCT.
From September 1st, all used vehicles brought into the country will undergo a pre-registration examination, entailing the inspection of the car’s documentation against the vehicle.
If the paperwork is in order, the car will then be entered into the Revenue system and the Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT) due will be collected by Applus+. The charge for the inspection - €37.36 – will be deducted from the total VRT due.
A Revenue spokeswoman said that under the new scheme an appointment for the new test must be made within seven days of the vehicle’s arrival in Ireland and the test must be carried out within 30 days.
She said they had received assurances from Applus+ that these tests can be carried out within that time.
Despite a current backlog in the NCT system, a spokeswoman for Applus+ said that this will have no impact on the current NCT system as extra staff have been employed to carry out the pre-registration inspections.
So far this year, 25,602 cars have been imported into Ireland, mainly from the UK.
One aim of the new system is to ensure that imported vehicles match the accompanying documentation, particularly in relation to equipment and specification.
The pre-registration exam is separate from the regular NCT test and vehicle that require an NCT certificate will need to be booked for that examination separately.
Classic cars, which don’t have to complete NCT tests, will still have to undergo the pre-registration examination.