All vehicles in Singapore must be registered and have their licence plates prominently displayed before they can be driven on public roads.

At a glance

Understanding standard vehicle registration

All vehicles in Singapore must be registered with LTA and have their licence plates prominently displayed before they can be driven on public roads.

Registering a vehicle

When you buy a vehicle, your motor dealer can register it for you.

You can also choose to register a vehicle yourself.
 

Self-registering a vehicle

You can register a vehicle yourself. Follow these steps: 

Step 1: Apply for a Vehicle Approval Code (VAC) through VITAS

Before applying for a VAC, you must have the documents for importing and registering each vehicle type stated in the guides linked below:

• Car
• Motorcycle or Scooter
• Goods Vehicle
• Bus
• Engineering Plant

To apply for a VAC, submit the required documents in person to:

Land Transport Authority (LTA)
Vehicle Approval & Control Division
10 Sin Ming Drive
Singapore 575701

Opening hours:

8.00 am to 4.30 pm, Mondays to Fridays
8.00 am to 12.00 pm, Saturdays

You need to pay an application fee for the VAC:

• $89.88 for motorcycles, scooters and mopeds
• $256.80 for other vehicles, except no charge for trailers

Once in-principle approval has been given, you will be notified to send the vehicle for inspection at an LTA-Authorised Inspection Centre (AIC). After your vehicle has passed the inspection, the VAC will be issued to you.
 

Step 2: Submit the prerequisite documents

Submit these documents to LTA:

• Form R01 (for normal vehicles) or Form R01A (for off-peak cars)
• Identification documents of the new vehicle owner:
  
  
  • For individual owners:
    
    
    • Original NRIC (for Singaporeans and PRs) or Employment/Immigration pass card issued by MOM/ICA (for foreigners).
  • For companies:
    
    
    • Original Accounting & Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) printout. This printout is valid up to 14 days from the date of issue.
    • Original NRIC (for Singaporeans and Singapore PRs) or Employment/Immigration pass card issued by MOM/ICA (for foreigners) of the authorised person from the company.
    • Original authorisation letter, signed by at least a Manager or above, if the authorised person of the company is not listed in the ACRA printout.
  • For organisations:
    
    
    • Original Registry of Societies certificate printout or a certificate issued by the relevant regulating authority.
    • Original NRIC (for Singaporeans and Singapore PRs) or Employment/Immigration pass card issued by MOM/ICA (for foreigners) of the authorised person from the organisation.

• VAC approval notice
• A Temporary COE (TCOE)
• Proof of valid motor insurance cover
• Your Vehicle Registration Number, if you wish to bid for a customised number or retain the number from an existing vehicle
• Notice of PARF/COE rebates (if any)
• Approval letter from the relevant authorities, if the vehicle is to be registered under a special scheme (if any)
• A valid Vehicle Parking Certificate (VPC), if registering a goods vehicle that is:
  • a Heavy Goods Vehicle with maximum laden weight (MLW) exceeding 5,000kg;
  • a trailer and low loader with MLW exceeding 5,000kg; or
  • a mobile crane and recovery vehicle with unladen weight (ULW) exceeding 2,500kg
• A valid hawker’s licence issued by the National Environment Agency or farmer’s licence issued by the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority, if registering a Light Goods Vehicle or bus that carries 9 passengers or fewer (excluding driver) under an individual
• Inward Cargo Clearance Permit (CCP)*

* Contact Singapore Customs for more information on customs clearance, valuation of imported vehicles and CCP.

Go to the LTA Customer Service Centre at 10 Sin Ming Drive Singapore 575701 to submit your documents.

Opening hours:

8.00 am to 4.30 pm, Mondays to Fridays
8.00 am to 12.00 pm, Saturdays

Step 3: Pay registration fees and charges

At the LTA Customer Service Centre, you will need to pay the registration fee and other charges in cash, cashier's order or NETS:

You will receive the following on the spot, if all your documents are in order:

• Notification of registration
• Paper Day Licences (for vehicles registered under the Classic Vehicle Scheme and Vintage Vehicle Scheme)

Step 4: Affix your registration number plates

Affix the registration number plates on your vehicle within 3 days of registration.  Use the number assigned to your vehicle, unless you have a retained or bid number.

Step 5: Seal your registration number plates (if required)

If your vehicle is registered under the Revised Off-Peak Car Scheme, Classic Vehicle Scheme or Revised Vintage Vehicle Scheme, you must seal your registration number plates at an LTA-Authorised Inspection Centre (AIC) within 7 days of registration.

Step 6: Display your side markings (if required)

If your vehicle is a Light Goods Vehicle or bus that carries 9 passengers or fewer (excluding driver), display this information on both sides of the vehicle within 7 days of registration:

• Name of registered vehicle owner
• Company or business registered address
• Company or business registration number or hawker/farmer licence number
• Passenger capacity of the vehicle

Vehicle Licence Plate

Vehicle licence plates must be prominently displayed at the front and back of all vehicles, so that vehicles can be easily identified for regulation, enforcement, and emergency purposes.

The vehicle licence plates must display the vehicle registration number clearly, where all the letters and digits can be easily seen. The vehicle registration number is made up of:

• A prefix that is assigned according to the vehicle’s type
• A number of up to 4 digits
• A suffix that is made up of one letter

An example of a vehicle registration number for a bus is “PA1234Y”, where PA is a prefix for buses.

There should be no other decoration, fittings or markings near the vehicle registration number on the vehicle licence plate, as they may make the vehicle registration number difficult to see. If the vehicle licence plate is blocked by bicycles or a bicycle rack carried at the rear of a vehicle, or any other fittings such as wedding decorations, motorists must hang an additional licence plate on the vehicle.

Permitted Colours for Vehicle Licence Plate

The vehicle registration number should be in white lettering on a black background.

However, if the vehicle licence plate is made of a reflective material:

• For the front, the licence plate should have black lettering on a white background
• For the back, the licence plate should have black lettering on a yellow background

If your vehicle is on a special scheme that requires a different colour for your licence plate, refer to the examples below for the lettering and background colours that you are required to have.

Lettering Dimensions

The requirements for the lettering dimensions are as follows:

• Letters and digits are 70 mm high, 50 mm wide, and 10 mm broad
• The space between adjoining letters or between adjoining digits is 10 mm
• The space between a letter and a digit next to each other is 20 mm
• The space from the nearest part of each letter and digit to the top or bottom of the vehicle licence plate is 10 mm
• The space from the nearest part of each letter and digit to the side of the vehicle licence plate is 20 mm

For motorcycles, the lettering dimensions of the front licence plate can be halved due to the curvature of the mudguard. However, the rear licence plate of the motorcycle must meet these requirements:

• Letters and digits are 50 mm high, 30 mm wide, and 5 mm broad
• The space between adjoining letters or between adjoining numbers is 10 mm
• The space between a letter and a digit next to each other is 20 mm
• The space from the nearest part of each letter and digit to the top, bottom and side of the vehicle licence plate is 10 mm