Ho Chi Minh City may hike first-time car registration fee by 5 times   Cars travel on the Ho Chi Minh City-Long Thanh-Dau Giay Expressway, which links the city to neighboring Dong Nai Province, on September 2, 2014. Tuoi Tre Police in Ho Chi Minh City have proposed the municipal authorities increase fees for registering vehicles for the first time, with the new fee for under-10-seat cars to be over five times higher than the current rate, a senior official has said.    Under the proposal, the fee for first-time registration for under-10-seat cars in the city will be raised to VND11 million (US$513) from the current rate of VND2 million ($93), Senior Lieutenant Colonel Tran Van Thuong, from the Police Department, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on Tuesday. The new rate has been put forward on the basis of the Ministry of Finance’s Circular 127, which stipulates that the fee for first-time registration in Zone 1 for under-10-seat automobiles that are not used for passenger transportation shall be from VND2 million to VND20 million ($932), Thuong said, adding that Zone 1 covers Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. The VND11 million charge is the average number between the lowest and highest rates specified in the circular, the official explained. This rate serves the policy on limiting the use of personal vehicles and is suitable for the living conditions of Ho Chi Minh City residents, he said. “As for vehicles used for public transportation, the city police have proposed the lowest fee rate be applied to them as an encouragement for the development of such vehicles,” Thuong said. City police have also suggested hiking fees for first-time registration for motorbikes, explaining that additional proceeds from the hikes will be used to sponsor activities that help improve road safety. The city police coordinated with other agencies to draft the proposal, which has been passed by the local Finance Department and is under consideration by the Justice Department before being submitted to the People’s Council for approval, Sr. Lt. Col. Thuong said. TUOI TRE NEWS