Proposed road tax for trucks expected to bring in €17 million a year
The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications is planning to introduce a time-based road tax for trucks heavier than 3.5 tons next year. The measure is expected to bring approximately €17 million a year in extra tax revenue.
The ministry’s initial plan to levy the tax on trucks weighing more than 12 tons was not supported by the European Commission. Also, several interest groups were in favor of taxing vehicles starting from a weight of 3.5 tons so as to avoid distorting the market, it appears from the proposals Minister of Economic Affairs and Infrastructure Kadri Simson (Center) submitted to the government.
The annual road tax for trucks weighing 3.5-12 tons would amount to an average €500, and for trucks heavier than 12 tons an average €1,000. The daily tax rate would fall into the range of €9 to €12. In addition to the annual and daily rates, the road tax could be paid by the week, month, and quarter.
According to the ministry’s proposal, vehicles exempt from the road tax would incluse those of the defense forces, Kaitseliit (Defence League), the Police and Border Guard Board, and rescue services. The same would apply to vehicles of local authorities, not-for-profits, foundations, and companies whose activity mainly falls in the area of rescue operations.
Payment would be checked by the Police and Border Guard Board and the Tax and Customs Board. In case of non-compliance, both the owner and the driver of a vehicle could be fined.
The resulting revenue would be distributed among different transport infrastructure accounts, and allocations to local governments would be discussed in the course of annual state budget negotiations.
Editor: Dario Cavegn
Source: BNS