The ETCB will issue retroactive tax notices for approximately 17,000 vehicles whose temporarily deleted or suspended traffic register entries were reinstated between 1 January and 30 June. For such vehicles, the ETCB calculates the annual tax in proportion to the number of days remaining until the end of the year, starting from the day following the day of registration. “For example, if a vehicle was temporarily deleted from the motor register on 25 December 2024 and the registration entry was restored on 20 January 2025, the motor vehicle tax is calculated not for the whole calendar year, but for 20 days less. The tax is calculated on the vehicle from 21 January until the end of the year,” said Madis Laas, Head of the ETCB’s Income Tax Department.
Joel Jesse, Director of the Traffic Division of the Transport Administration, points out that if a vehicle has been temporarily deleted from the register and vehicle owner does not want to start using the vehicle yet, the temporary deletion of the vehicle must be extended before the deletion expires.
“If the temporary deletion expires within the specified term and has not been extended beforehand, the ETCB will send a tax notice for the tax period remaining until the end of the year as of the day following the date on which the entry in the register is restored. Vehicle data can be checked and temporary deletion extended in the e-services environment of the Transport Administration,” said Jesse.
Within 15 working days following 15 July, the annual tax notice will be issued to the owner or authorised user of a vehicle the motor register entry of which has been restored and the tax must be paid by 15 December. If the vehicle registration is temporarily deleted or suspended again in 2025, the amount of tax will not change according to the law and the tax will not be refunded.
As of 1 July and under certain conditions, it is possible to apply for a partial refund of the registration fee administered by the Transport Administration. This is the case when vehicle registration fee has been paid, the vehicle has later been sold from Estonia to another country and it has been deleted from the Estonian motor register.
The last registered owner of a vehicle can apply for a refund of the registration fee in the e-services environment of the Transport Administration if the passenger car or van belonging to the owner was deleted from the motor register for the purpose of putting it into use outside Estonia. The Transport Administration checks whether the registration fee has been paid for the deleted vehicle and a refund is justified. If a person has a right to a partial refund of the registration fee, the Transport Administration will send a notification to the person.
Applications for partial refund of the registration fee can be submitted to the Transport Administration within 60 days as of the date of deletion of the vehicle from the motor register. If the application is not submitted within 60 days, it is not possible to request a partial refund of the registration fee for the vehicle later. The registration fee of less than 300 euros will not be refunded.
“For vehicles deleted from the register in the first half of 2025, the 60-day time limit will start to run from 1 July 2025. The amount to be refunded will be received in the bank account specified by the applicant usually within 5 working days,” Jesse explained.
Answers to the frequently asked questions can be found on the websites of the ETCB and the Transport Administration
