Motor Tax Arrears

Motor tax discs are only issued on a 'whole-month' basis. They do not take account of individual days at all. You are liable to pay motor tax from the month in which you became the registered owner (even if you bought the vehicle on the last day of the month).

Motor tax arrears are a liability for motor tax arising from a period in which a vehicle was used by you on a public road without having a valid tax disc. Since motor tax discs are only issued on a 'whole-month' basis (i.e. they always start from the first day of a month, and end on the last day), there are 3 circumstances in which this may happen:

1. In the case of a new or imported vehicle, motor tax is due from (the beginning of) the month the vehicle is registered in Ireland (regardless of what day of the month it was registered). Arrears are due from the month of registration, if you do not obtain a motor tax disc until the following month (or any subsequent month).
2. In the case of a renewal of an existing motor tax disc, arrears will arise if the disc is not renewed during the month in which it is due.
3. In the case of a second-hand vehicle, where the tax disc has expired before you became the registered owner, you are liable to pay motor tax from the (beginning of) the month in which the sale happened (regardless of what day of the month that was). Therefore, if the vehicle is not taxed during the month of sale, arrears are due from the month of sale to the beginning of the month in which it is taxed.

Declarations of Non-Use:

If you did not use your vehicle during a period in which motor tax arrears are due, you must obtain a "declaration of non-use" from your local Garda Station. This is a signed declaration that you did not use the vehicle for the period in question, and it is witnessed (i.e. signed and stamped) by a Garda.

This declaration can be used to cancel the arrears due, but it will only be accepted by the Motor Tax Office if it is valid. This means:

1. It must not be visibly altered or tampered with after completion (whether that be by you, the Garda who witnessed it, or anybody else). Therefore, if you make a mistake (such as inserting the wrong period on it), do not change it. Scrap it, and get a new one.
2. It must be legible. If it is smudged or obscured in any way, it may not be considered valid.
3. It must be retrospective. Since, as mentioned above, tax discs are only issued on a 'whole month' basis, you cannot declare non-use of a vehicle for a particular period until that period has fully elapsed. In other words, you can't declare that a vehicle hasn't been used this month until the first day of next month at the earliest. (If you make the declaration on the last day of this month, it won't be valid.)
4. It must cover the correct period. If a period of time for which arrears are due is not included in your declaration, you will be charged arrears for that period (unless you obtain a new declaration covering the correct period).
5. It must be complete. A valid declaration requires your signature, the signature of the Garda who witnessed it, a Garda Siochana date stamp, and the period for which the delcaration applies to.