West Bengal Waives Off Registration Fee, Motor Vehicle and Additional Taxes For Electric, CNG vehicles

"For those vehicles which were registered between April 1, and the date of issuance of the notification on May 25, the financial incentive will be in the form of an extension of tax validity for the exact number of days for which tax has been paid between April 1, 2022 to March 31, 2024," the order signed by transport department secretary Rajesh Sinha said.

Kolkata: The West Bengal on Friday announced the exemption of registration fees, motor vehicle and additional taxes for two and four-wheeled electric vehicles, and all categories of CNG-operated vehicles. The new rule will be applicable to vehicles registered between April 1, 2022, to March 31, 2024. As per the state government, the move will decrease the on-road prices of several categories of green energy operated vehicles.

“For those vehicles which were registered between April 1, and the date of issuance of the notification on May 25, the financial incentive will be in the form of an extension of tax validity for the exact number of days for which tax has been paid between April 1, 2022, to March 31, 2024,” the order signed by transport department secretary Rajesh Sinha said.

The order exempting motor vehicle and additional taxes, along with registration fees, for two and four-wheeled battery-operated electric vehicles, and all categories of CNG-operated vehicles is as per the state finance minister’s budget announcement for 2022-23. “It is felt necessary to give some kind of financial relief/exemption to incentivise investment in battery-operated electric vehicles and also to incentivise reduction in carbon footprint and to reduce dependence on petrol/diesel,” the order said.

Industry watchers said that the exemption of registration fees and motor vehicle tax will act as a boost for increased demand for clean energy-run vehicles.