Should you still be concerned about paying the Unique Circulation Tax (IUC) if you no longer own the car? The Tax Authority clarified through a social media post that this tax must be paid by the vehicle’s registered owner.
“I no longer have the vehicle, do I still need to pay the IUC? The IUC must be paid by the person registered as the owner,” explains the Tax Authority on the Facebook social network.
This point is crucial because the change of ownership doesn’t occur instantly. It is only finalized after these two conditions, according to the Tax Authority:
- After the transfer of ownership at an IRN service (cars and motorcycles), INAC (aircraft), or the National Maritime Authority (boats); or
- When the registration is canceled by the competent service of the IMT, INAC, or the National Maritime Authority.
When should you pay the IUC?
The Finance Department also reminds that the “IUC must be paid in the month of the registration’s anniversary, except for vehicles in category F and G (recreational boats and aircraft).”
“In the first year of registration, including imported vehicles, the IUC must be paid within 30 days after the legal registration deadline of the vehicle,” explains the Government on the public services portal of the Republic of Portugal.
Imposto deve ser pago todos os anos.
Notícias ao Minuto | 11:59 – 14/05/2025
Therefore, “if you purchased the vehicle firsthand from a car dealership, payment is made at the time of purchase.” “In other cases, the IUC must be paid during the month of the vehicle’s registration until you cease to be the owner or until the registration is canceled,” is stated on the same website.
For recreational boats and aircraft, the IUC must be paid in January.
How much will you pay this year? How is it calculated?
The calculation of tax for gasoline or diesel vehicles purchased after 2007 differs from what is applied to cars acquired before that date, as explained by a consumer protection organization. Furthermore, “diesel vehicles pay an additional tax amount, regardless of the year of purchase.”
“To know how much you will pay, verify in the vehicle’s documents whether the CO2 emissions reading was done under the NEDC system or the WLTP protocol, in effect since 2018. Then, you should add the values corresponding to the engine size and CO2 bracket and multiply this by the coefficient that varies depending on the year of acquisition. Finally, if it’s a diesel car, add the extra amount, which varies with the engine size,” according to DECO PROTeste’s website.
Examples:
- 2016 gasoline car, with 898 cc. and 86 g/km CO2 (NEDC): €111.46 = (€31.77 + €65.15) × 1.15
- 2015 diesel car, with 1461 cc. and 119 g/km CO2 (WLTP): €158.29 = (€63.74 + €65.15) × 1.15 + €10.07
Recorde as novas regras – que só chegam em 2026 – e saiba como se calcula o valor do imposto a pagar.
Notícias ao Minuto | 10:04 – 28/02/2025
