Government halves registration fee for local cars to boost demand

By Phuong Dung August 30, 2024 | 08:38 pm PT

Cars being produced and assembled at a factory of automaker Thaco in Quang Nam Province in central Vietnam. Photo by VnExpress/Duc Huy

The registration fee for locally made cars will be cut by 50% for three months starting Sept. 1, according to a new government decree.

This is for a fourth straight year that the cut is being implemented, but every time in the past it was for six months.

The original rates for cars are 12% of the vehicle’s price in Hanoi and 10% in HCMC. The rate for pickup trucks is 60% of that of passenger cars.

The cut is meant to stimulate consumption of locally made vehicles.

The auto industry is struggling with declining sales. Sales of locally made cars in the first half of this year fell by 15% year-on-year to 67,849 for members of the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers Association, which consists of most major companies except Hyundai and VinFast.

Imported cars have outsold their local counterparts by 3-14% every month since April.

The fee cut is expected to cost the government VND2.6 trillion (US$104.5 million).