Road Taxes Due Every April

You will be required to pay annual road taxes on all vehicles during the month of April in order to continue driving them. Failure to pay road tax can result in the impoundment of your vehicle. Japanese Road Tax officials come to PMO on base for a few days during the month to collect road taxes on Heavy Vehicles only (Heavy vs. Light can be determined by the vehicle's plate number; refer to the charts below). Light Vehicle and Motorcycle road taxes can only be paid off base at City Hall (telephone number 0830-1715), located across from the Police Station (parking is free; maps can be obtained from PMO Pass & Registration on base).

Procedure for Paying Road Taxes

Use the tables below to determine the cost. Obtain enough Yen to pay the full amount (road tax may only be paid in Yen). Bring the following documents to the Japanese Tax Officials (either on base during designated days/times, or off base) along with your payment: Japanese Title Secondary Insurance JCI Insurance Previous Year's Road Tax Receipt SOFA License & Armed Forces ID Card Your Vehicle(s) Once your road tax has been paid, bring all of the documents listed above to PMO Pass & Registration to receive your new base decal (an example is pictured above, left).

What Type of Plate Do I Have?

How do you know which plate is which type? It's really quite simple. Look at the photo below of a Japanese license plate. It is a typical 5-series Y plate (a 500Y to be exact). The 2008 Road Taxes on this vehicle were ¥7,500, or about $75 under the current yen rate. The plates on our vehicles will have a letter Y on them; you may notice the ones off base owned by Japanese have Japanese characters in place of our Y. Many people refer to these as "yankee" plates. When looking for a vehicle, you might take the annual taxes into consideration, and choose to purchase one with a 4-series or 5-series Y or 500E plate, instead of a more expensive 3-series Y/E or 100Y plate. You may need to budget early to save up enough money to pay your road taxes, especially if you find yourself paying income taxes in the spring along with your Japanese Road Taxes (though of course if you typically receive an income tax return and you file early, this can be very convenient timing for paying your road taxes).

Tax Rate Tables

The following tables contain the 2008 tax rates. Please realize that these rates may change each year, and that this information is only being provided as a financial planning guide. HEAVY VEHICLE: PLATE COST 100Y ¥32,000 33E, 33Y, 300Y, 300E, 329Y, 330Y, 331Y (4,501cc & over) ¥22,000 (4,500cc & below) ¥19,000 44Y, 400Y, 55Y, 500Y, 529Y, 530Y, 531Y, 500E ¥7,500 LIGHT VEHICLE: PLATE COST 50A, 40A, 480A, 580A ¥3,000 YAMA A, B ¥1,000 IWAKUNI A, B, C ¥500

Questions?
	If you have any questions, contact PMO Pass & Registration at 253-3161. Image Sources: Webmaster's personal vehicle.