Commencement of Import Control Regime for Power-Assisted Bicycles (PABs) and Motorised Personal Mobility Devices (PMDs)
From 28 June 2021, under the Small Motorised Vehicles (Safety) Act 2020 (SMVA), all importers of Power-Assisted Bicycles (PABs) and motorised Personal Mobility Devices (PMDs) are required to obtain approval from the Land Transport Authority (LTA) before importing these devices into Singapore.
What does this mean?
From 28 June 2021 onwards, there will be import permit fees for PABs or motorised PMDs, excluding other customs fees that may apply.
Import permit fees:
Compliant devices – $30 per device
Non-compliant devices – $90 per device
Who will pay for this fee?
This fee will be paid by the importers of PABs and PMDs (retailers, distributors).
‘Compliant device’ meaning?
“Compliant” refers to:
(1) PABs that comply with technical requirements such as having a maximum unladen weight of 20kg, and not having a throttle or start-up assistance feature, among others. From 1 July 2021, PABs must also comply with the revised EN15194:2017 standard, and not the old EN15194:2009+A1:2011 standard.
(2) PMDs that comply with the device criteria for use on public paths, i.e. maximum unladen weight of 20kg, maximum width of 70cm, maximum motorised device speed of 25km/h, and certification to the UL2272 fire safety standard. Refer to the LTA and OneMotoring websites for more information.
Okay... So how does it affect us, the consumers?
As mentioned above, the import permit fees are charged directly to importers. However, the additional costs of the import permit fees, custom fees and other paperwork will be indirectly passed on to consumers.
Given that PABs are effectively becoming a controlled good, the supply may be restricted in time to come as well. This will most definitely result in a price increase across the ebike market.
Huh, then how?
Get yourself an ebike now, before the import control regime kicks in and prices shoot up!
For more information on these new regulations, you may refer to this link.