Nearly 10,000 right-hand drive (RHD) vehicles have been registered as the July 31 deadline passed, according to Pha Engveng, deputy head of the General Department of Customs and Excise (GDCE).

The owners of more than 3,000 of these RHD vehicles have already paid taxes, Engveng said at a recent press conference on the achievements of the Ministry of Economy and Finance over the past five years.

Citing a GDCE report, Engveng said more than 9,800 RHD vehicle owners had registered, with more than 3,000 having fulfilled their tax obligations, while the remaining 6,000 were yet to do so.

“The government set July 31 as the deadline for vehicle registration, and the owners have until October 8 to fulfil their tax obligations,” he said.

He reiterated that after the July 31 deadline, all unregistered RHD vehicles would be considered illegal.

Since August 1, customs and excise units have been carrying out rigorous checks for all types of untaxed vehicles, he said.

San Chey, executive director of the NGO Affiliated Network for Social Accountability, said the move is desired by the public and will contribute to national income.

“Equality of duty before the law is inevitable, but at the same time we want to see a coordination of procedures involved in paying import duty on cars.

“The relevant authorities should avoid complicated procedures for vehicle owners who have not paid the taxes so they can fulfil their obligations,” he said.

According to the GDCE, the owners of untaxed vehicles, both left- and right-hand drive, had fulfilled their tax obligations as of June 30 this year, with the government raking in $76 million.

Left-hand drive vehicles without duty having been paid, which had been used under specific licence plates such as Police or Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF), have until October 8 to fulfil their obligations without penalty.