OMSP = Open Market Selling Price — Revenue's current Irish second-hand retail value for a specific vehicle. VRT is calculated as OMSP × CO₂ band rate (Cat A) or flat / banded rate (Cat B / C / M), plus the NOx levy. OMSP is set by Revenue's internal valuation database (built from trade guides, dealer feeds, Carzone / DoneDeal listings and Revenue history) and finalised at NCTS inspection. Look it up for any specific car at ros.ie/evrt-enquiry — free, no account. To challenge a figure you disagree with, pay the VRT first, then appeal via Form VRT14 in MyEnquiries within 2 months. OMSP is distinct from OMV — that's used for company-car BIK and is the vehicle's original new-Irish retail price.
What OMSP actually is
The Open Market Selling Price is defined in Section 133 of the Finance Act 1992 (as amended) as "the price, inclusive of all taxes and duties, which the vehicle might reasonably be expected to fetch on a first arm's-length sale thereof in the State on the open market." In everyday English: what would this car sell for on the Irish market today, second-hand, in normal condition, at a normal dealer?
Three things follow from that definition that trip people up:
- OMSP is gross. It includes all VAT and any other duties already absorbed into the second-hand market price. VRT is then a percentage of that gross figure. Economically this is "tax on a tax" — politically and legally it's the law as it stands.
- OMSP is Irish. The reference market is the Irish second-hand market, not the UK, not Japan, not Germany. A car that sells for £14,000 in the UK has whatever OMSP the Irish market actually pays for the same year/spec/mileage — nothing more, nothing less.
- OMSP is "as you find it". Mileage, condition, spec and modifications all factor in. Same year, same model, same trim — but 200,000 km vs 80,000 km is a meaningful OMSP gap.
For new cars sold by Irish dealers, OMSP is the recommended retail price (RRP) on the day of registration — effectively, the price you'd pay in the showroom. For used imports, OMSP is what the same year / spec / mileage would fetch from an Irish dealer today, regardless of what the importer paid abroad.
How Revenue actually sets OMSP
Revenue maintains an internal valuation database with roughly 30,000+ make/model/variant entries covering the Irish-market vehicle population. The database is built and maintained from a blend of inputs:
- Trade guides — Cap, Glass's, and others Revenue subscribes to, providing baseline trade values.
- Dealer-sales feeds — Carzone, DoneDeal listings (asking prices), supplemented by motor-trade sale-price data.
- Auction data — Irish-market trade auction results (Aviva Auctions, Merlin, Hutton).
- Revenue's own historical valuations — what was registered last week / month / year for the same model.
- Manufacturer data — for new cars, the Irish RRP from the importer.
The database is keyed on:
- Make, model, variant (e.g. "BMW 320d M-Sport" — variant matters a lot)
- Date of first registration (year / month)
- Fuel type and transmission
- Engine size
- Estimated mileage at registration (with adjustments)
- Spec / options where reliably knowable from VIN
When you query the e-VRT enquiry tool or when an NCTS inspector enters a vehicle into the system, the database returns the OMSP for that exact match, applying mileage and condition adjustments at the inspection stage.
For high-volume Irish-market models (Toyota Corolla, VW Golf, Hyundai Tucson, BMW 3 Series, Ford Focus, Nissan Qashqai), Revenue's OMSP tracks the live market closely — usually within €500–€1,000 of comparable Irish dealer listings. For low-volume models, JDM imports, modified cars and unusual specs, the figure can drift further; this is where Stage 1 appeals tend to succeed.
Looking up OMSP at ros.ie — step by step
Revenue's e-VRT enquiry system is the authoritative free OMSP lookup. No account, no payment, no scraping — entirely public. The URL is ros.ie/evrt-enquiry/vrtenquiry.html.
Step 1 — Open the form
Navigate to the URL. The form is plain HTML; it works on mobile and desktop. No login.
Step 2 — Pick category
Most users want "Passenger Vehicle (Cat A)". Vans go under Cat B. The form gates the next steps based on category.
Step 3 — Make / model / variant
Cascading dropdowns. The "variant" choice matters — a "320d M-Sport" and a "320d SE" can have meaningfully different OMSPs. If your variant isn't on the list, choose the closest (typically same trim level), and note that NCTS may adjust at inspection.
Step 4 — Fuel, transmission, engine
Tick boxes for fuel (petrol / diesel / hybrid / PHEV / BEV), transmission (manual / automatic) and engine size. Get this right — wrong fuel returns wildly wrong OMSP.
Step 5 — Date of first registration
Month and year. For UK imports, use the date the car was first registered in the UK (the V5C "Date of first registration" field), not the date it'll be Irish- registered.
Step 6 — Read the result
The output is OMSP plus an estimated VRT including NOx. For most use cases the OMSP is the figure you care about — plug it into our VRT Calculator for a what-if breakdown on different specs.
If the form accepts a VIN (it usually does for popular EU-market models), entering it locks the result to the exact build — including factory options that can affect OMSP. For UK imports, the VIN is the most reliable identifier and reduces the chance of NCTS-bay surprises at inspection.
What moves OMSP up or down
Up
- Low mileage for the year (e.g. 5-year-old car at 40,000 km)
- Higher trim level (M-Sport vs SE, R-Line vs Comfort)
- Desirable factory options — panoramic roof, premium audio, leather, larger wheels
- Automatic transmission (small premium on most models in Ireland)
- Hybrid / PHEV / BEV drivetrains on hybrid-friendly models (Toyota in particular)
- Service history at brand main dealer
Down
- High mileage — the single biggest downward factor on used cars
- Manual transmission on automatics-dominated segments
- Older NEDC-era diesels — Irish demand has softened
- Unusual JDM specs with smaller resale audiences
- Modifications — body kits, lowered suspension, performance tunes, non-standard wheels
- Cosmetic damage visible at inspection
- Open-recall items not closed out
OMSP vs OMV — why they're different
The most common confusion in Irish vehicle taxation is between OMSP and OMV. They sound similar; they are calculated differently and used for different things.
| Concept | OMSP | OMV |
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Open Market Selling Price | Original Market Value |
| What it represents | Current Irish second-hand retail value | Irish new retail price on day of first manufacture |
| Changes over time? | Yes — moves with the second-hand market | No — fixed for the life of the vehicle |
| Used for | VRT at registration; export refund | BIK on company cars; VRT for new cars (RRP) |
| Lookup tool | ros.ie/evrt-enquiry | Manufacturer's original Irish RRP |
In practice, for a brand-new car from an Irish dealer, OMSP and OMV are the same number — the showroom price. For a used car they diverge: OMV stays at the original new-Irish RRP forever; OMSP depreciates with age. For company-car BIK, the OMV figure is what matters; for VRT and export refund, OMSP is what matters. See our company car BIK guide for the BIK side.
Real OMSP examples — 2026 figures
Approximate OMSPs from Revenue's e-VRT enquiry tool in May 2026. Round numbers; treat as illustrative — your specific car's OMSP depends on exact spec / mileage / date.
| Vehicle | Year | ~OMSP (May 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| VW Golf 1.5 TSI Life (new) | 2026 | €33,500 |
| Toyota Corolla Hybrid 1.8 Luna (used) | 2022 | €22,500 |
| BMW 320d M-Sport saloon | 2019 | €26,000 |
| Hyundai Tucson 1.6 CRDi MHEV Executive | 2023 | €31,500 |
| Tesla Model 3 Standard Range RWD | 2023 | €32,000 |
| Hyundai Kona Electric (used) | 2021 | €19,500 |
| Ford Transit Custom 280 Trend (van) | 2022 | €22,000 |
| Nissan Qashqai Mild Hybrid SV | 2024 | €29,000 |
| Skoda Octavia 1.0 TSI Ambition | 2020 | €17,500 |
| Audi A4 2.0 TDI S-Line | 2018 | €18,000 |
Notice the gradient: newer / hybrid / popular Irish-market models hold OMSP well; older diesels with high NOx are softer; BEVs depreciate steeply on the second-hand market (which is why the export refund on a BEV is often underwhelming — see our VRT export refund calculator).
How to appeal an OMSP you disagree with
The OMSP appeal process is two-stage. Stage 1 is to Revenue directly via MyEnquiries; Stage 2 is the independent Tax Appeals Commission. Most successful appeals end at Stage 1 on the strength of comparable Irish-market evidence.
- Pay the VRT in full at NCTS. Critical — no appeal can proceed until VRT is paid. The appeal is for refund of any over-payment, not a hold on payment.
- Within 2 months of registration, log in to Revenue's MyEnquiries via myAccount or ROS. Open a new enquiry classified as "VRT — OMSP appeal" or similar.
- Submit Form VRT14 with the following evidence:
- 3–5 comparable Irish-market listings — DoneDeal, Carzone, dealer websites — for cars of the identical year, model, variant, trim, mileage band and condition. Screenshots with dates.
- Photos of the actual vehicle's condition — exterior all sides, interior, dashboard mileage, any visible damage or wear.
- Trade-guide extract if you have access to Cap or Glass's.
- Original invoice as supporting context (not as the basis — Revenue values on Irish market, not on what you paid abroad).
- Service history if it materially supports the value claim.
- Wait 4–8 weeks for Revenue's response. The reply will be either an upheld OMSP, an adjusted OMSP with a partial refund, or a request for further information.
- If Stage 1 is rejected and you still disagree, escalate within 30 days to the Tax Appeals Commission at taxappeals.ie. This is an independent statutory body. Stage 2 is rare; cases that escalate are typically those where Revenue and the appellant differ by €3,000+ on OMSP and there's a documentable Irish-market comparator.
What works: directly comparable Irish listings (same year, mileage, trim) consistently showing 10–25% below Revenue's OMSP. What doesn't: arguing that you paid less abroad, citing UK or German prices, or pointing at one outlier Irish listing. Revenue values on the central tendency of Irish-market sales, not on the lowest-priced ad.
Common pitfalls when OMSP matters most
- Treating ros.ie as final. The online figure is indicative. NCTS can adjust at inspection. Don't commit to a UK import on a thin OMSP margin.
- Picking the wrong variant. Variant has a bigger effect on OMSP than most people expect. M-Sport vs SE, S-Line vs SE, GT-Line vs L Plus — these matter.
- Forgetting NEDC-vs-WLTP conversion. OMSP doesn't depend on this, but the VRT rate applied to OMSP does. See the main VRT guide for the conversion formulae.
- Assuming purchase price = OMSP. Independent of OMSP. Doesn't help in any direction.
- Skipping the appeal because it "feels too late". You have 2 months from registration. Document the case and submit.
- Conflating OMSP with OMV. OMV is for company-car BIK and is the original new-Irish retail. Don't quote OMV when arguing OMSP.
Got the OMSP. Now run the full VRT.
With a confirmed OMSP from Revenue's e-VRT enquiry, plug it into our 2026 VRT Calculator alongside CO₂ and NOx for a complete VRT estimate — including BEV relief and the Cat B 8% / 13.3% split. odo.iealso tracks everything that comes after registration — NCT, motor tax, insurance, services. Solo free forever for one car, Family €4/mo for three.
Sources
- Section 133, Finance Act 1992 (as amended) — statutory definition of OMSP.
- Revenue's VRT Manual — OMSP methodology, NCTS inspection process, appeal procedure.
- Revenue's e-VRT enquiry system — the authoritative free OMSP lookup at ros.ie/evrt-enquiry.
- Form VRT14 — the OMSP appeal form, lodged via MyEnquiries.
- Tax Appeals Commission at taxappeals.ie — Stage 2 escalation route.
- citizensinformation.ie — VRT and OMSP overview pages.