10-day inspection drive to target luxury vehicles registered outside Maharashtra

Data with the department indicates that during the 2025-26 financial year, 5,664 vehicles worth more than ₹50 lakh each were sold by dealers in Maharashtra.

The transport department will launch a 10-day special inspection drive across the state on Wednesday to identify high-end luxury cars which are plying in Maharashtra but are registered in other states.

Officials suspect that many vehicles were registered outside Maharashtra to avail of lower motor vehicle taxes. (Praful Gangurde/ HT Photo)

Data with the department indicates that during the 2025-26 financial year, 5,664 vehicles worth more than ₹50 lakh each were sold by dealers in Maharashtra, though the vehicles were registered in other states and union territories.

Officials suspect that many of these vehicles – including luxury and sports cars, buses, trucks, cranes and other heavy vehicles – were registered elsewhere to avail of lower motor vehicle taxes, as tax rates are substantially higher in Maharashtra.

Special drive

Proof of residence or business in registered states

According to transport department sources, teams comprising four officials have been formed at every regional transport office (RTO) across Maharashtra to carry out the inspection drive. These teams will visit residential complexes, commercial hubs, industrial areas and large parking facilities, as well as examine details about luxury car sales provided by dealers.

“The purpose of the drive is to check if owners of luxury vehicles plying in Maharashtra but registered in other states actually have proof of residence or business in such states, or if they had registered their cars elsewhere merely to evade paying high taxes,” an RTO official said, requesting anonymity.

Sources said that the registration of vehicles of high-end brands, such as Lamborghini, Jaguar, McLaren, Tesla and Sany, would be scrutinised during the drive, since a large number of such vehicles plying in the state were registered in Gujarat, Daman and Diu, and Puducherry.

Teams constituted by RTOs would examine if the address proofs submitted by vehicle owners while obtaining temporary registration certificates complied with Rule 4 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989. In case of irregularities, detailed inquiries would be conducted and reports would be submitted to the department.

Compliance with Motor Vehicles Act

The inspection drive would encompass compliance with section 47 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, which mandates that a vehicle registered in one state and used in another for more than one year be re-registered in the latter state by paying the applicable motor vehicle tax, officials said.

“If owners provide valid documents establishing their residence or business outside Maharashtra, those will be duly considered. Else, necessary action will be taken,” said the official quoted earlier.

Toll records and CCTV footage from toll plazas would be used to establish how long suspected vehicles have been operating in Maharashtra. “We will check if these vehicles actually travel to the state where they are registered,” the official said.

A senior transport department official said the drive was being launched following reports about vehicle dealers in Maharashtra convincing owners to register vehicles elsewhere to save on taxes, resulting in loss of motor vehicle tax revenue for the state.

“Maharashtra levies a significantly higher tax on high-end vehicles such as luxury cars, cranes and excavators, compared to neighbouring states and union territories,” the official said.

Cranes and excavators, which were earlier taxed according to their weight, are now taxed based on their value. The tax applicable for registration in neighbouring states is around 3%, while in Maharashtra, it is around 10-11%, the official said.