As announced by Minister for Finance Heng Swee Keat in the Budget Statement 2017, the existing flat Additional Registration Fee (ARF) rate of 15 per cent for motorcycles will be replaced with a tiered structure. This will improve the progressivity of the vehicle tax system, following the tiering of the ARF for cars, taxis and goods-cum-passenger vehicles in 2013.
2. The new ARF tax rates for motorcycles will continue to be based on the Open Market Value (OMV). The ARF rate for motorcycles with OMV below $5,000 will remain at 15%. Based on historical patterns, more than half of new motorcycle registrations will fall into this tier. The top ARF rate for motorcycles will be set at the same rate as the lowest ARF rate for cars, i.e. 100% of the OMV, given that motorcycles in the top ARF tier have OMVs comparable to small cars.
New tiered ARF rates for motorcycles
| Motorcycle OMV | ARF Rate |
| First $5,000 of the OMV | 15% of OMV |
| Next $5,000 of the OMV (i.e. $5,001 to $10,000) | 50% of Incremental OMV |
| Remaining OMV Above $10,000 | 100% of Incremental OMV |
3. The new ARF rates will apply to all motorcycles registered with COEs obtained from the second bidding exercise in February 2017 onwards. The new rates will also apply to imported used motorcycles and motorcycles registered under the Vintage (Normal) Vehicle Scheme[1]. For owners of motorcycles that do not need to bid for a COE, such as motorcycles registered under the Classic Vehicle Scheme[2], the new ARF rates will apply upon registration of the motorcycle on or after 21 February 2017. Please refer to the Annex for examples of computation of the tiered ARF payable.
Revised COE Bidding Schedule for March, April and May 2017
4. To provide the public and the industry with more time to adjust to these changes, the second COE bidding exercise in February will be deferred by two days, and the first COE bidding exercise in March 2017 will be deferred by one week. The schedule for the following bidding exercises in March, April and May 2017 will also be adjusted, as shown in the table below:
| Bidding Exercise | Exercise Start Date | Exercise End Date |
| 2nd Exercise, February 2017 | 22 February 2017 | 24 February 2017 |
| 1st Exercise, March 2017 | 13 March 2017 | 15 March 2017 |
| 2nd Exercise, March 2017 | 27 March 2017 | 29 March 2017 |
| 1st Exercise, April 2017 | 10 April 2017 | 12 April 2017 |
| 2nd Exercise, April 2017 | 24 April 2017 | 26 April 2017 |
| 1st Exercise, May 2017 | 8 May 2017 | 11 May 2017* |
| 2nd Exercise, May 2017 | 22 May 2017 | 24 May 2017 |
* 10 May (Wednesday) is a public holiday. The exercise will close on 11 May (Thursday) instead.
5. There will be no change to the COE bidding schedule from June 2017 onwards.
[1] Owners of well-preserved, heritage-rich motorcycles manufactured prior to 1940 are allowed to register them under the Vintage (Normal) Vehicle Scheme. Owners will need to obtain a Category D COE to register a motorcycle under this scheme.
[2] Owners of motorcycles which are at least 35 years old from its original registration date are allowed to register them under the Classic Vehicle Scheme. Owners will need to pay 10% of the relevant Prevailing Quota Premium to register a motorcycle under this scheme. Vehicles registered under this scheme are only allowed on the roads for up to 45 days a year.
