New diesel cars and taxis will no longer be registered from 2025 onwards as part of the government's vision for all vehicles to run on cleaner energy by 2040.

With cleaner energy alternatives now widely available, the proportion of new diesel car and taxi registrations has remained below one per cent since 2021, according to the Land Transport Authority (LTA) on Jul. 10.

Diesel cars registered before Jan. 1, 2025 can renew their Certificate of Entitlement, but will be subject to higher road taxes as a disincentive to discourage renewal.

This is due to an existing policy to charge a road tax surcharge of 10 to 50 per cent for vehicles over 10 years old.

These restrictions will not apply to the import and registration of cars under the Classic Vehicle Scheme and Vintage Vehicle Scheme.

Under the Classic Vehicle Scheme, vehicles must be at least 35 years old from their original registration date and meet specific registration and technical requirements.

Vintage vehicles are well-preserved, heritage-rich cars, motorcycles or scooters manufactured before 1940.

The plan, first announced at the Ministry of Transport's 2021 Committee of Supply debate, will soon require all new car and taxi registrations to be of cleaner-energy models from 2030 onwards.

Top photo via Kylie Pangan/Unsplash