The government will only put into a effect a new road tax structure for electric vehicles (EVs) after the current road tax exemption period for EVs ends, revealed transport minister Anthony Loke. In a report by The Star, Loke said this was to ensure EV users are not unnecessarily burdened.
“In 2022, the finance ministry provided a three-year road tax exemption to EV users, which will end in 2025, but many people (EV users) are worried that road tax charges will be very high once this (exemption) ends. We did a study on the road tax (charges), and we have tabled it to the EV task force for a more affordable tax,” Loke said.
“We will announce the road tax structure before the end of the year, which will only come into effect after the tax exemption period ends in 2025 unless the finance ministry wants to extend it,” he continued.
Road tax for EVs in Malaysia – click to enlarge
The road tax exemption for EVs (as well as hydrogen fuel cell vehicles) was announced back in 2022 and is currently in place from January 1, 2022 until December 31, 2025. The present road tax structure for EVs follows a kilowatt-based system, which means you pay more the more powerful your EV – find out more here.
Loke said the government wants to ensure the new EV road tax charges will be competitive and not burdensome to encourage more people to make the switch to EVs. “There are fewer than 10,000 EVs on the road nationwide. It’s not easy to shift from conventional (vehicles) to EVs. We want to encourage more people to use EVs, but we need a proper ecosystem to make this happen, such as having more charging stations. All this requires time and continuous efforts,” he said.
In addition to the road tax exemption, EVs in Malaysia also benefit from import duty and excise duty exemption. This is until December 31, 2025 for fully-imported (CBU) models, while it is until December 31, 2027 for locally-assembled (CKD) EVs. However, CBU EVs with a floor price under RM100,000 cannot be sold in Malaysia until the end of the exemption period, so there’s still a price barrier that limits those on a budget looking to make the switch.
The post New EV road tax structure will come into effect in Malaysia from 2026 – to be revealed by end of 2023 appeared first on Paul Tan’s Automotive News.
