Duty is not chargeable on the grant of a vehicle licence to a person if the vehicle was last licensed or registered in that person’s name in another jurisdiction. However, if the vehicle was licensed or registered outside Western Australia in order to avoid or reduce duty, duty will be applied and must be paid within one month after the date of an assessment notice.
Certain caravans must be registered but are not subject to vehicle licence duty.
How duty is applied
Show moreThe rate of duty differs depending on the type of vehicle.
Use our online calculator to calculate your vehicle licence duty.
Non-heavy vehicle (gross mass of 4.5 tonnes or less)
| Dutiable value | Value rate |
|---|---|
| Up to $25,000 | 2.75% of dutiable value |
| $25,000 - $50,000 | R% of the dutiable value, where R = [2.75 + ((dutiable value - 25,000)/ 6,666.66)] rounded to 2 decimal places |
| Over $50,000 | 6.5% of dutiable value |
Heavy vehicle (over 4.5 tonnes)
3% of Dutiable Value (capped to a maximum of $12,000)
When to pay
Show moreThe purchaser (transferee) is liable for duty as of the date the licence is granted or transferred. This is generally when the Notification of Change of Ownership Form is received and processed by the Department of Transport.
| Pay the Department of Transport | Pay RevenueWA |
|---|---|
| Pay the Department of Transport when the vehicle licence is transferred. | Pay RevenueWA if a reassessment of vehicle licence duty is made. |
A liability may exist within the Indian Ocean Territories as if they were Western Australia. See details of the arrangement between Western Australia and the Commonwealth.
Nominal duty
Show moreYou may be eligible for nominal duty of $20.
| Apply to RevenueWA | Apply to the Department of Transport |
|---|---|
Lodge Form FDA39 if the licence is transferred because of:
| Apply to the Department of Transport if the licence is transferred as a result of:
|
Non-dealer exemptions
Show moreYou may be eligible for an exemption from vehicle licence duty.
| Apply to RevenueWA | Apply to the Department of Transport |
|---|---|
Lodge the relevant form if:
| Apply to the Department of Transport if:
|
Dealer exemptions
Show moreA dealer is a person who:
- carries on the business of selling new vehicles or
- holds a dealer’s licence issued under the Motor Vehicle Dealers Act 1973 or
- carries on the business of acquiring new or used vehicles for resale or disposal under hire purchase or leasing agreements or
- in the course of their business, takes possession of vehicles under mortgages, charges, hire purchases or leasing agreements, and resells them.
An exempt purpose is:
- selling a new vehicle in the ordinary course of business or demonstrating it to prospective buyers
- reselling a used vehicle in the ordinary course of business
- loaning a vehicle
- to a charitable organisation to be used solely for providing assistance to underprivileged or disadvantaged persons or for providing emergency assistance
- to a school to be used solely for student driver training
- to an individual solely for a philanthropic purpose approved by the Commissioner of State Revenue or
- solely for a purpose prescribed by regulation.
See the Minor Incidental Purpose ruling for information about when a vehicle may be used for minor incidental purposes without affecting the dealer’s exemption from duty.
If the dealer's certificate is not provided when the vehicle is registered, the dealer cannot request a refund of the vehicle licence duty.
Charitable purposes or school driver education
A vehicle will be exempt from duty if it will be used to provide direct relief to persons in need of assistance by an organisation that has been endorsed by the Australian Taxation Office as a charitable or public benevolent institution.
This exemption applies as if the vehicle were directly owned and licensed by the charitable organisation.
- Provide the Dealer’s Certificate to the Department of Transport along with the application for the grant or transfer of the vehicle licence. You don't need to do this if the vehicle is already in your name and is exempt for other purposes.
- Provide the Loan Vehicle Dealer’s Declaration form to RevenueWA and retain a copy for your records. If you loan a vehicle to a school for student driver training, the school must fit the description provided in the School Education Act 1999.
Philanthropic purposes
A vehicle will be exempt from duty if it is loaned to an individual to be used solely for philanthropic purposes.
The purpose must be consistent with the charitable purposes exemption in that the vehicle must be used to provide assistance to underprivileged or disadvantaged persons or for emergency assistance.
An example of a philanthropic purpose that would be generally approved is if a dealer loans a vehicle to the parents of a child who has severe physical or cognitive disabilities and requires an appropriate vehicle for transport to medical facilities.
Change of use
You must pay duty if the use of the vehicle changes from an exempt to a non-exempt purpose.
If the use of the vehicle changes to a non-exempt purpose after an exemption has been granted, duty will be assessed on the dutiable value of the vehicle at the time of the change of use.
Submit the Change of Use - Exempt to Non-Exempt Purpose form to RevenueWA within one month after the day on which the use of the vehicle changed.
The Commissioner will assess the duty payable on the grant or transfer of the licence and issue an assessment notice.
Dutiable value of vehicles
Show moreDuty is applied to the dutiable value of vehicles.
Used vehicles
The purchaser must estimate the dutiable value on the Notification of Change of Ownership Form (available from the Department of Transport). See Commissioner’s Practice DA 50 ‘Vehicle Licence Duty – Dutiable Value of Used Vehicles’ for more information.
New vehicles
The dutiable value is the retail selling price in Western Australia set by the manufacturer. This includes the optional features of a particular type of transmission (such as automatic or manual) or engine size (such as 1.8L or 2.0L).
To be a new vehicle, it must be of a class prescribed in the Duties Regulations 2008. This includes motor vehicles and motorcycles, but does not include heavy vehicles (with a gross vehicle mass of more than 4.5 tonnes or accommodating more than 9 passengers).
To be a new vehicle, the vehicle must not have been used or have only been used for the purpose of selling it in the ordinary course of business, for demonstration purposes, for certain charitable purposes or for minor incidental purposes.
- A new vehicle that is used for the purpose of selling it in the ordinary course of business, for demonstration purposes or for certain charitable purposes must be used for more than two months before it can be treated as a used vehicle. This prevents situations such as a new vehicle being licensed as a demonstrator for a short period of time, allowing a transfer to occur to a purchaser with duty paid on a potentially lower dutiable value.
- A vehicle used as a static demonstration display only (remaining in the showroom and not actually driven) is considered to have never been used, regardless of how long it remains on display. This would be sold as a new vehicle and duty would be calculated on the recommended retail selling price. .
If the manufacturer includes a delivery fee or order fee in the fixed price of a vehicle, including an electric vehicle, it will form part of the dutiable value. Charges that are made by a third party, such as a dealer, and added to the price fixed by the manufacturer, will not form part of the dutiable value.
Commercial and heavy vehicles
The dutiable value of
- a light commercial vehicle or
- a heavy vehicle (over 4.5 tonnes or more than 9 passengers)
is the amount for which the vehicle might reasonably be sold, free of encumbrances, in the open market on the date of the transfer. The Redbook website is used as a general guide to the market value of a vehicle. The dutiable value includes additional features attached to the vehicle at time of licensing.
If the selling price is higher than the open market price, then the selling price is the dutiable value.
Vehicles with specialised equipment
Apply for an exemption if the grant or transfer of a licensed vehicle includes specialised equipment. An explanation and examples are provided on the application form.
The dutiable value will be reduced by the value of the specialised equipment if the criteria outlined in the application form are met.
Retail selling price
Show moreThis price is structured on the basis that GST is payable on every vehicle (as is the Luxury Car Tax where applicable) regardless of whether GST is payable or not.
The fixed price doesn't generally include dealer delivery charges, registration fees, premiums for insurance and/or extended warranty, and financing charges. Duty is not payable on these amounts.
The dutiable value does not include the price of other features or accessories that are not set out by the manufacturer, importer or principal distributor. This includes such things as window tinting, DVD player, sound system speakers, mag wheels, paint, fabric and rust protection and rear spoilers.
Optional features
An optional feature is any kind of transmission, engine or other feature in or of a prescribed vehicle that is not a standard feature of that make and model.
Generally, the value of the optional feature (inclusive of GST) is added to the price fixed by the manufacturer, importer or principal distributor.
Imported vehicles
If a retail selling price is available, duty for new imported vehicles (other than heavy vehicles) is calculated on the retail selling price fixed by the manufacturer, importer or principal distributor for the vehicle.
If a retail selling price is not available, duty is calculated on the amount the vehicle might reasonably be sold for, free of encumbrances, in the open market (including accessories and delivery charges).
Promotional periods
Duty is assessed on the retail selling price at the time a vehicle licence is granted or transferred.
If the retail selling price for a new vehicle differs from the official manufacturer's price list during a promotional period, the price must be specified through an advertisement or pricing bulletin. Dealers should keep a copy of the advertisement or pricing bulletin for each promotional period. If these records are unavailable, duty will be assessed on the recommended retail selling price at the time the vehicle is licensed.
The new retail selling price must be fixed during the specified period. This includes vehicles promoted at a fixed 'drive away' price. If a promotional price is broken down by the manufacturer to detail the new retail selling price, duty, licensing and dealer delivery fees, then duty will only be charged on the new retail selling price.
If a promotion ends before a vehicle license is granted or transferred, duty will be calculated on the non-promotional recommended retail selling price.
If duty was paid based on the recommended retail selling price but a lower price was specified in an advertisement or pricing bulletin at that time, the purchaser must provide evidence of the promotional price with their request for a reassessment of duty.
See the Special Promotions on New Vehicles ruling for details of when a special promotion price will be accepted as the retail selling price of a vehicle.
Record keeping
Show moreDealers must keep records for five years.
For each sale of a vehicle, you must keep a record of the date of the grant or transfer of the licence.
For each loan of a vehicle, you must keep a record of:
- the date the loan of the vehicle commenced and ceased
- the name of the charitable organisation, school or individual to which the vehicle is loaned • the purpose for which the vehicle is loaned
- a description of the vehicle, including type, make and model, licence plate number and engine number
- if the vehicle is loaned to an individual for a philanthropic purpose - a copy of the Commissioner’s approval.
You must keep copies of the following records that the Commissioner will use to determine your duty liability:
- contracts of sale/offers to purchase
- licence/transfer papers
- relevant retail selling price lists
- price bulletins and promotional advertisements issued by the manufacturer, importer or principal distributor, where applicable and
- for used vehicles and heavy vehicles, any additional contracts for the purchase of accessories/aftercare, special builds etc.
Objecting to your assessment
Show moreWe may apply penalty tax if you don't pay your Transfer of Vehicle Licence Invoice by the due date. We will refund any vehicle licence duty overpaid as a result of a successful objection.
If you believe you're entitled to an exemption that you haven't been granted, or consider the dutiable value of the vehicle determined by the licensing authority is too high, you can object to your assessment:
- within 60 days of the date of issue shown on the licensing authority's notice
- in writing with OBJECTION clearly written at the top of the letter
- with a full and detailed explanation of the grounds of your objection and a copy of the relevant transfer or vehicle licence.
Contact us before lodging an objection as we may be able to resolve your enquiry.
Lodge your objection with:
Commissioner of State Revenue
RevenueWA
GPO Box T1600
Perth WA 6845
See information about the objection and review process.
Penalties
Show moreThe seller must declare the purchase price and estimated dutiable value of the vehicle. Failure to do so is an offence with a maximum penalty of $20,000.
Understating the purchase price or dutiable value is providing false and misleading information. The seller will be jointly and severally liable with the purchaser for payment of the amount of any shortfall of duty to the extent of the amount understated, together with penalty tax of up to 100% of that duty.
See information about RevenueWA's compliance programs.
Video: Understanding vehicle licence duty
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