The much-discussed car tax and registration fee that are set to come into force next year are both based on a vehicle's CO2 emission reading. However, on Monday, Estonian news outlet Delfi reported that not all cars have this reading on their registration certificate.

Some car dealerships sell vehicles that have a CO2 reading on their registration certificate, while others sell vehicles that do not.

According to the Estonian Ministry of Finance, which developed the car tax, the biggest difference in this regard is seen between vehicles produced for the EU market, which have a CO2 emissions value calculated according to the WLTP (Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicle Test Procedure) method, and those produced for the U.S. market, for example, which do not. Vehicles produced for the EU domestic market more than 20 years ago, typically also lack a CO2 reading, as car manufacturers were not obliged to measure or publish such information at that point in time.

The car tax for vehicles without a CO2 emissions reading is calculated according to a formula, which takes into account the vehicle's power, weight and age. The Transport Administration says there is nothing illegal about selling these kinds of vehicles.

Delfi calculated that for a 2020 Dodge Challenger, the presence of a CO2 emissions reading on its registration certificate would mean an annual tax of €1,722 along with a registration fee of €10,608, according to the car tax calculator. Meanwhile, for the same vehicle without the CO2 indicator on its certificate, the annual tax would be €750 and registration fee €3,804.

Jürgo Vahtra, head of the technical department at the Transport Administration, said that the more the vehicle's data differs from the average, the greater the difference will be in taxes. He added that as the difference from the average could go in either direction, some will win out while others lose.

The Ministry of Finance also admitted that although the method of establishing a reference value for vehicles without a CO2 reading is not perfect, the differences have to be accepted.

According to the Transport Administration, there are currently 136,766 vehicles without a CO2 emissions readings on the Estonian traffic register (Liiklusregister), which is around 21 percent of all vehicles registered. Of those, 132,989 are more than ten years old.

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