Vehicle Registration and Licensing (Amendment) Regulations, Regulations 2026
Vehicle registration fees are re-set in US dollars: US$50 to register a car for the first time, US$95 to change ownership with new plates, US$15 to keep the plates, and US$2,500–US$5,000 for personalised plates.
The whole fee schedule for vehicle registration and licensing has been replaced. First-time registration of a motor vehicle, motorcycle or trailer is US$50 each. Changing ownership costs US$95 for a motor vehicle if you buy new plates and US$85 for a motorcycle or trailer, but only US$15 either way if the existing plates are retained — the cheapest route through a used-car sale by a wide margin.
Personalised plates are the outlier: US$2,500 for a vehicle up to 1,500cc and US$5,000 above that. Replacing a lost PSV number plate costs US$85 (US$80 for a PSV trailer), a duplicate third plate US$35, and a temporary identity card US$35.
Small administrative changes stay cheap: US$3 to change the address where a vehicle is kept at night, to change vehicle particulars, to cancel a registration or to advise a sale, and US$5 for a search. A duplicate registration book is US$15, authorisation of a change of ownership US$50, and a vehicle licensing booklet US$50. Garage plates and garage licences are US$50 each, as is an abnormal load plate.
The instrument replaces Part I of the Third Schedule to the 1999 regulations outright rather than adjusting individual lines, so the old schedule should not be relied on for any figure. It does not state a commencement date beyond its gazetting on 12 January 2026, and does not say how the US dollar amounts are to be tendered.
What changed
- First-time registration of a motor vehicle, motorcycle or trailer set at US$50
- Change of ownership US$95 with new plates for a vehicle, US$85 for a motorcycle or trailer, US$15 if plates are retained
- Personalised plates US$2,500 up to 1,500cc and US$5,000 above 1,500cc
- Replacement PSV number plate US$85; PSV trailer plate US$80; duplicate third plate US$35
- Administrative changes — address, particulars, cancellation, advice of sale — US$3 each; search fee US$5
- Duplicate registration book US$15; vehicle licensing booklet US$50; authorisation of change of ownership US$50
- Part I of the Third Schedule to SI 427 of 1999 is repealed and replaced in full
Who this affects
- anyone registering or licensing a vehicle with CVR
- buyers and sellers of used vehicles
- car dealerships and clearing agents
- public service vehicle operators replacing plates
- garages holding trade plates
Plain-language summary — not legal advice. Always read the full instrument.