Customs and Excise Department, Environmental Protection Department and Transport Department will be involved separately in the importation to and registration of a pure electric vehicle (PEV) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) in Hong Kong. The following guidelines explain the relevant necessary procedures.
Step 1 : Compliance with the Vehicle Construction Requirements
For PEV and PHEV, additional official documentations from the manufacturers or testing reports from international testing bodies will be required to demonstrate compliance with the approval requirements, and that the vehicle is suitable for use in Hong Kong. Please refer to the latest notice on vehicle construction requirement for PEV / PHEV at our website . Application for approval should be made, together with the required documentary evidence, to the Type Approval Section of the Transport Department:
Type Approval Section |
1M/F, Transport Department Vehicle Examination Complex, |
18 Sai Tso Wan Road, Tsing Yi, N.T |
Step 2 : Compliance with the Exhaust and Noise Emission Standards
Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle
Similar to other motor vehicles, you are advised to obtain the necessary approval/ exemption from the Environmental Protection Department before shipping your PHEV into Hong Kong.
You are required to prove your PHEV is fully compliant with the emission standards in the Air Pollution Control (Vehicle Design Standards)(Emission) Regulation and Noise Control (Motor Vehicles) Regulation where applicable. Proof of emission compliance can be documents issued by vehicle manufacturers or emission testing report issued by a recognised test laboratory. You should submit application form to the Environmental Protection Department for approval together with all supporting documents (See "Procedures for Importation and Registration of Motor Vehicles and Motor Cycles" for details).
Subject to the fulfillment of exemption criteria, certain categories of vehicles may be exempted from complying with the emission standards. You may apply to the Environmental Protection Department for the exemption. Enquiries on recognised testing laboratories, emission standards and exemption criteria can be made to telephone numbers: (852)2877 0448 (Exhaust emission); (852)2411 9689 (Noise emission) or fax number: (852)2824 9361.
Applicants can download the application forms from the following webpage:
https://www.epd.gov.hk/epd/english/application_for_licences/applic_froms/forms.html
Step 3 : Importation
Vehicles, no matter what class it is, imported into Hong Kong are not subject to any Customs tax, but in general, an importer is required to lodge with the Customs and Excise Department an accurate and complete declaration within 14 days of importation. For enquiries on Import and Export Declaration, please refer to the following link
[http://www.customs.gov.hk/en/cargo_clearance/declaration/index.html].
Following the submission of your Import Return, you will receive a "Notification of Motor Vehicle Provisional Taxable Value" of your vehicle from the Customs and Excise Department. You should produce the Notification upon the first registration of your vehicle in the Transport Department.
Step 4 : Vehicle Examination
Upon the arrival of your imported vehicle in Hong Kong, you should approach the Vehicle Examination Centre to arrange for the vehicle examination. You are required to bring along i) the referral letter issued by the Transport Department and ii) the approval or exemption letter (as applicable) issued by the Environmental Protection Department to show that your vehicle has complied with the vehicle exhaust emission and noise emission standards, and pay the appropriate fee for vehicle examination (if applicable).
Your car will be issued with a certificate for registration and licensing purposes by the Vehicle Examination Centre if it can pass the vehicle examination.
Step 5 : Vehicle Registration and Licensing
When applying for first registration of your vehicle, you should submit a completed application form (Form No.: TD22) to the Hong Kong Licensing Office of Transport Department (Tel No.: (852) 2804 2637 or Fax No.: 2804 2599) together with the supporting documents as prescribed in the application form. Upon the verification of your submitted documents, you are required to pay first registration tax and registration fee for the registration of your vehicle, and pay vehicle licence fee and levy for Traffic Accident Victim Assistance Fund for licensing of the vehicle.
Step 6 : Calculation of First Registration Tax
In general, the first registration tax of a vehicle will be derived from the taxable value times the appropriate tax rates as shown below:
Class of Motor Vehicle | Rate of Tax | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Private cars | ||||
|
46% | |||
|
86% | |||
|
115% | |||
|
132% | |||
Motor cycles and motor tricycles | 35% | |||
|
15% | |||
|
||||
|
35% | |||
|
65% | |||
|
85% | |||
|
17% | |||
Taxis, Light buses, Buses and Special purpose vehicles | 3.7% |
For enquiries on First Registration Tax concessions for electric vehicles, please refer to the link.
Notes for attention
You may also refer to relevant sections of the "Procedures for Importation and Registration of Motor Vehicles and Motor Cycles" for general information on importation & registration of motor vehicle.
Application for the registration and licensing of a left hand drive vehicle will not be accepted unless there are special circumstances.
Additional Information
For additional information and guidelines on charging facilities for electric vehicles, please visit the websites of the Environmental Bureau and the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department.