COE rebate: the value of the unused months
When a car is deregistered before its COE expires, LTA refunds the unused part of the certificate. Rules read on 24 October 2026.
COE rebate at deregistration
$39,601
36.0 of 120 months unused
| Value of one month of COE | $1,100 |
| Share of the COE left | 30% |
| Cap if exported within 2 years (80%) | $105,603 |
Unused period: whole calendar months from the day after deregistration, then the days left counted as 30ths of a month.
Prepared by Radif Partners · Method · COE results read on 24 October 2026 (latest: 2nd exercise of October 2026)
The COE rebate is the premium you paid for a ten year certificate, multiplied by the unused months and divided by 120. A COE bought at the latest Category A premium of $132,004 and given up with five years left returns $66,002; with two years left, $26,400. LTA counts the unused period in whole calendar months from the day after deregistration, then adds the remaining days as thirtieths of a month. In LTA’s own worked example, a certificate bought for $16,897 and given up with 29.1 months left returns $4,097. For a renewed COE the base is the PQP paid; for a car registered on a Category E COE, it is the lower of the Category E premium and that of the car’s own category in the same exercise. A car exported within two years of registration gets at most 80 percent of the premium. Rebates must be used within 12 months.
Rebate by months left, at the latest Category A premium
| Months left | COE rebate | If exported within 2 years |
|---|---|---|
| 96 months (8 years) | $105,603 | $105,603 |
| 72 months (6 years) | $79,202 | $79,202 |
| 60 months (5 years) | $66,002 | $66,002 |
| 48 months (4 years) | $52,801 | $52,801 |
| 36 months (3 years) | $39,601 | $39,601 |
| 24 months (2 years) | $26,400 | $26,400 |
| 12 months (1 years) | $13,200 | $13,200 |
The rebate falls in a straight line: every month of use costs one hundred and twentieth of the premium. With the latest Category A premium, that is $1,100 a month or $13,200 a year. Unlike the PARF rebate, there are no steps: a few weeks more or less change the rebate by a few hundred dollars, not by thousands, so there is no single best date to deregister.
How the months are counted
LTA starts counting the day after deregistration. It first counts whole calendar months up to the expiry date, then turns the days that remain into a fraction of a month, thirty days making a month. In LTA’s example, a car deregistered on 2 January 2013 with a COE expiring on 5 June 2015 has 29 whole months and a few days left, 29.1 months in all, and its $16,897 certificate returns $4,097. The engine behind this site reproduces that example to the dollar in its tests.
Add the PARF rebate
PARF rebate
$2,000
| Up to 5 years | $12,000 |
| Over 5 to 6 years | $10,000 |
| Over 6 to 7 years | $8,000 |
| Over 7 to 8 years | $6,000 |
Special cases
For a COE that was renewed, the base is the PQP paid at renewal rather than the original premium. For a car registered with an open Category E certificate, the base is the lower of the Category E premium and the premium of the car’s own category in the same exercise, so using an expensive E certificate does not raise the rebate. A car deregistered for export within two years of its registration has its rebate capped at 80% of the premium. Off peak cars have their rebate computed on the premium net of their upfront off peak rebate. Motorcycles get a COE rebate on the same formula, which is the only refund they receive since they have no PARF.
The rebate as a floor under the car’s value
A used car is rarely worth less than what LTA would pay to take it off the road. Dealers call the sum of the PARF and COE rebates the paper value, and it is the starting point of most trade in offers for older cars. Because the COE rebate shrinks every month, the paper value of a car falls steadily until the COE expires, faster for a car registered when premiums were high. Checking both rebates before you negotiate tells you the lowest price that makes sense: below it, deregistering the car yourself returns more. The calculator at the top gives the COE part; the mini calculator above adds the PARF.
Getting the money
The COE rebate is granted once the car has been properly disposed of, scrapped at an LTA appointed yard, placed in an export processing zone or exported, and once dues to LTA and any loan are cleared. It is valid for 12 months from deregistration. You can encash it online, use it to offset the COE premium or PQP of another vehicle you own, or transfer it, for a fee of $20. If you use part of it, divide it first, for $21.80, because an unused balance left in an offset is lost. The scrapping guide lists the steps, and the PARF rebate page covers the other refund paid at the same time.