The base value Singapore Customs assesses for an imported vehicle, covering its purchase price, freight, insurance, and other costs of bringing it into Singapore. OMV is the figure on which taxes like ARF and excise duty are calculated, so it largely determines a car's final cost.
Example: A car with a higher OMV attracts proportionally more ARF, which is why luxury vehicles cost far more on the road than their OMV alone would suggest.
OMV is the basic value of a vehicle assessed by Singapore Customs before any local taxes, covering the actual purchase price plus freight, insurance and all charges to bring the car to Singapore. It is the figure on which ARF, and historically other duties, are computed.
ARF is charged as a rising percentage of OMV: 100% on the first S$20,000, 140% on the next S$20,000, 190% on the next S$20,000, 250% on the next S$20,000, and 320% on any OMV above S$80,000. A higher OMV pushes more of the car's value into the steeper tiers, so total tax climbs faster than the OMV itself.
Not necessarily for value. A higher OMV does give a larger PARF rebate base, but for cars registered from the second February 2026 COE bidding exercise the PARF rebate is far smaller and capped at S$30,000, so the extra tax paid on a high-OMV car is no longer largely recovered at scrapping.
OMV is published on the LTA OneMotoring portal and is shown by most dealers and listing sites; for a registered car you can also check it via your vehicle log card. Comparing OMV against the asking price shows how much of the price is tax and COE rather than the car itself.