Government to charge annual fees for whoever owns a car

The government has proposed an amendment to the Traffic and Road Safety ACT, introducing a section that makes it a crime for any Ugandan to own a car minus paying annual licence fees for that car.

The amendment proposed by Minister of Finance Matia Kasaijja intends to amend section 14 of the ACT to make it criminal for anyone to own a motor vehicle that is not licenced.

“A person shall not own or possess a motor vehicle, trailer or engineering plant or use it on the road unless the motor vehicle, trailer or engineering plant is licenced under this Act,” the amendment suggests.

According to the Act, the licences will be obtained by application to the Chief Licencing Officer of government and such licence shall be valid until revoked.

Should one contravene the rules, they are liable to a fine of one hundred currency points or imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year.

The amendments also suggest an introduction of annual licence fees per vehicle to be borne by the car owners.

“A person who possesses a motor vehicle, trailer or engineering plant or uses it on the road, shall pay an annual fee on or before the 31st day of January of every year as may be prescribed by the minister of regulations,” the amendment suggests.

“Where a person fails to pay a prescribed annual fee before or on the date specified in subsection (1) shall pay a penalty of ten currency points for each day on which the contravention continues and the unpaid fee shall be a debt to the government by the defaulter,” it continues.

Ugandans already pay an annual third-party insurance fee on each motor vehicle owned.