Vol. 535 No. 4
160 Mr. McCormack asked the Minister for Finance if he has any proposals to change Statutory Instrument No. 59 of 1993 in relation to extending the length of time which a person can keep an imported vehicle here without being liable for excise duty from 185 days to a longer period; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12721/01]
A State resident is not allowed to use an unregistered or foreign registered vehicle in the State and all such vehicles must be registered in the State by the end of the next working day following importation. The Vehicle Registration Tax (Permanent Reliefs) Regulations, 1993, S.I. No. 59 of 1993, provide for the registration of motor vehicles in the State, in certain particular circumstances, without the payment of vehicle registration tax, VRT. In order to qualify for relief from VRT under the above regulations, it is a requirement that, inter alia, the person concerned must have been normally resident outside the State prior to the importation of the vehicle and it is in this context that the 185 days referred to in the question is relevant. “Normal residence” is defined for the purposes of the regulations as the place where a person lives for at least 185 days in each year because of personal or occupational ties.
The rules governing the relief from VRT as set out in S.I. No. 59 of 1993 are based on the rules governing the movement of motor vehicles and goods into and within the European Union, and any change would require an equivalent change in the relevant EU legislation. I have no proposals to change the provisions of Statutory Instrument No. 59 of 1993 at this time.
