askST: What are deregistered vehicles?

However, past court cases provide some idea.

In 2021, a man was jailed for selling and renting deregistered cars which were used to commit crime. The scheme involved buying cars with COEs close to expiry, and grinding off their chassis and engine numbers.

The licence plates of these cars were replaced with clones of existing registered cars of similar colour, make and model.

Their in-vehicle units were also replaced with those of other registered vehicles.

Documents that made the vehicles appear to have been exported or about to be exported were submitted to the authorities.

The modified cars were touted as untraceable, and were sold and rented on a no-questions-asked basis.

No checks were conducted on whether the buyers were even legally allowed to drive.

Deregistered cars sold and rented by the man were used in at least six other criminal cases, including those involved in road traffic violations and in a case of unlicensed moneylending-related harassment.

There have also been instances of rogue exporters failing to properly dispose of or export deregistered vehicles.

Q: What sort of activities have deregistered vehicles been used for?

Many of them were involved in hit-and-run accidents and criminal activities, including drug trafficking.

In 2024, a deregistered car was found abandoned in the middle of the PIE after it collided with four other vehicles.

There were 40 cases of deregistered vehicles being used on roads in 2022, and 39 in 2023. The figure jumped to 75 in 2024 and 245 in 2025.

In the first five months of 2026, LTA investigated 122 cases.

These cases included a dramatic car chase in Geylang in January that led to the arrest of a teen driving a deregistered car while under the influence of drugs.

In the following month, the police caught two 16-year-old girls riding a deregistered motorcycle on the ECP.

Q: How are the authorities dealing with the problem?

It is difficult to identify deregistered cars just by looking at them, even when they go through gantries or pass through the land checkpoints.

The authorities have been clamping down on deregistered vehicles in recent years, running targeted operations and enforcement checks.

Following an islandwide crackdown in September, the authorities found 91 deregistered vehicles that they then impounded.

In addition, new laws have been introduced to tighten the deregistration process and to impose heavier penalties for non-compliance.

In February, the Land Transport and Related Matters Bill was passed, raising the maximum penalties for keeping or using unregistered or deregistered vehicles.

Previously, those caught keeping or using a deregistered vehicle could be fined up to $2,000 and jailed for up to three months for a first offence, while repeat offenders could be fined up to $5,000 and jailed for up to six months.

The punishment was increased to up to two years’ jail and a $20,000 fine for first-time offenders, and double that for repeat offenders.

In October, the Land Transport and Related Matters (No. 2) Bill was passed.

This shifts responsibility for deregistered vehicles from their owners to authorised exporters via the new Authorised Exporter Scheme.

Under the scheme, deregistered vehicles must be exported through LTA-authorised exporters.

It also introduced a new offence for people who sell or supply deregistered vehicles knowing, or without considering whether, the vehicles will be kept or used on Singapore roads.

The penalties mirror those for keeping or using a deregistered vehicle.