By Desmond Ng

FOR the past three months, he has been thinking about retiring in Malaysia.

But there is one big road hump - the issue of car-ownership.

Retiree Mr Tan Sin Wee, 60, wants to buy a Malaysian-registered car.

Not only because it's cheaper there, he explained, but also to reduce the risk of falling prey to criminals.

The problem is Mr Tan will have to pay the car's additional registration fee (ARF) - which will come up to tens of thousands - if he wants to drive the car to visit his son in Singapore.

Mr Tan, who wrote to us last month, said this fee is on top of the $20 permit fee imposed on foreign-registered cars entering here from 2 am to 5 pm on weekdays.

No fees are levied on weekends and public holidays.

Questioned Mr Tan: 'Why is there a need to pay the ARF? I think it's an overkill. Isn't it enough that I will be paying the $20 permit fee? Why the double-standards considering that foreigners don't have to pay the ARF?'

Mr Tan, who lives in a terrace house in the Aljunied area, thinks the ARF portion should be waived, especially for those who want to retire up north yet keep their ties with their relatives in Singapore.

He wants to retire in Malaysia because of the lower cost of living, the less hectic pace and proximity to Singapore.

Mr Tan is married with a 24-year-old son.

The former oil exploration engineer is thinking of selling his $1 million house here to retire in Johor Baru, that is, if he can work around the ARF issue.

What of the option of having two cars, one Malaysian-registered and the other Singapore-registered?

'If I am able to afford two cars,' he said, 'I won't have to think about retiring elsewhere.'

LTA said Singaporeans are only allowed to drive foreign-registered vehicles in Singapore if the ARF of the vehicle's open market value (OMV) is paid.

Said an LTA spokesman: 'This is to ensure that our car ownership measures, put in place to manage congestion within Singapore, will not be circumvented.'

But Singaporeans working and residing in Malaysia who need to make home visits to Singapore occasionally are allowed to drive their Malaysia-registered cars here on a case-by-case basis.

Transport economist Mr Michael Li of the Nanyang Business School said that if the policy is removed, it may create a loophole.

'This could create a situation where Singaporeans may just register a car there to take advantage of the cost savings, and then pay the nominal $20 to drive here. It could be a cheaper option,' he said.

Mr Li said this loophole would benefit those who purchase luxury cars with higher COE and OMV, where the savings would be in the tens of thousands.

For example, a Mercedes C200 would set you back about $151,000 (plus COE) here compared to about $100,000 in Malaysia.

Said Mr Li: 'Cars in Malaysia don't expire in 10 years like our COE system. So there's potential for abuse if this policy is removed.'

He said that in Mr Tan's case, he can park his Malaysian-registered car near the Causeway, and take a taxi around Singapore.

Said Mr Li: 'If a Government policy affects many people and creates hardship, then we've to review it. But in this case, it doesn't. And the small number of people who may be affected by this policy do have choices.'