The statistical code is Revenue's eight-digit link between your exact car and the OMSP your VRT is charged on — but for a Japanese-domestic-market import, the more useful question is what happens when that code simply does not exist.
When ROS draws a blank: the "vehicle not listed" route
Run a JDM Toyota through the ROS VRT enquiry and you will often get nothing back. Ireland never sold that precise grade — a right-hand-drive turbo built for the Japanese market — so there is no entry to match and no OMSP on file. This is normal, not a fault, and Revenue has a defined answer for it: the "vehicle not listed" procedure. You contact the National VRT Service with the car's Certificate of Conformity and full specification; Revenue then either assigns a statistical code or determines the OMSP and technical details directly at the NCTS inspection.
The single most important part is timing: start this before the car ships. A third-country import from Japan clears customs and pays 23% VAT and any duty on arrival, and if Revenue cannot value the car you cannot complete registration inside the deadline. Get the determination moving early and the inspection becomes a formality rather than a scramble. This same not-listed route is the through-line for every rare Toyota below — and it is exactly what an importer of a low-volume badge like Infiniti, or premium imports such as Bentley or Rolls-Royce, ends up using when the database has never seen the car.
MR2 and Supra: EU codes that don't fit a JDM turbo
The MR2 runs across three generations — the AW11 Mk1, the SW20 Mk2 and the ZZW30 Mk3 — and Ireland saw the naturally aspirated versions. Import a JDM SW20 Turbo and it comes back "not listed", because the EU MR2 codes describe a car without that forced-induction drivetrain; picking the nearest EU entry understates the specification and invites a re-assessment. The Supra is the same story with bigger numbers: a 1992 car is a Mk3 JZA70, the Mk4 is the JZA80, and a JDM twin-turbo JZA80 is precisely the sort of car where you should expect a manual determination rather than a code lookup. Present the documents, let the National VRT Service value it, and treat any cheap ROS "match" with suspicion — it is almost certainly a different car. One consolation for the oldest examples: an AW11 or an early Supra over 30 years old can register as a vintage vehicle in Category C, a flat €200 charge that sidesteps the CO₂ and NOx tables entirely.
The EU-market exception: C-HR
Not every Toyota fights you. The C-HR is a mainstream European model, so it lists cleanly in ROS the way any Golf or Corolla would. The split here is ordinary: the 1.2T petrol and the 1.8 hybrid carry separate statistical codes, and trim moves the OMSP within each. You still want the right WLTP CO₂ figure and the correct grade, but there is a code waiting for you — no National VRT Service letter, no inspection-bench valuation. It is the clean counter-example that shows the JDM problem is about market availability, not the Toyota badge: a car Ireland actually sold behaves like every other EU import.
Toyota & JDM code splits at a glance
Where the codes split, and which cars send you down the "vehicle not listed" route before your NCTS appointment:
| Model | Variants with separate codes | Import note |
|---|---|---|
| C-HR | 1.2T petrol vs 1.8 hybrid, trim grade | EU model — lists cleanly in ROS, pick the exact code |
| MR2 | AW11 / SW20 / ZZW30; NA vs JDM turbo | JDM SW20 Turbo = "not listed"; over 30 yrs may be Category C (€200) |
| Supra | JZA70 (Mk3) vs JZA80 (Mk4), NA vs twin-turbo | JDM twin-turbo JZA80 → expect manual determination |
| Honda Civic EK4 (JDM) | SiR B16 grade, JDM-only spec | Almost never in the ROS list — expect "not listed" |
| Honda S660 (JDM) | Kei roadster, 660cc turbo | Kei class never sold here — National VRT Service determination |
Toyota & JDM VRT questions
My JDM Supra isn't in the ROS VRT enquiry — how is the VRT worked out?
Through the "vehicle not listed" route. You contact the National VRT Service with the Certificate of Conformity and full specification before the car ships; Revenue then assigns a statistical code or determines the OMSP and details at the NCTS inspection. A JDM twin-turbo JZA80 almost always needs this manual determination because the EU Supra entries do not match it.
Can I use the EU MR2 code for a Japanese-import SW20 Turbo?
No. The EU MR2 codes describe the naturally aspirated cars Ireland received, so a JDM SW20 Turbo is treated as "not listed". Selecting the nearest EU code understates the specification and risks a re-assessment; the correct path is to let Revenue determine the car from its documents and at inspection.
Does a 30-year-old MR2 or Supra get a cheaper VRT?
It can. A vehicle over 30 years old registered as a vintage car falls into VRT Category C, a €200 flat charge, rather than the CO₂ and NOx tables. An AW11 MR2 or an early Mk3 Supra can qualify on age, but the car still has to be presented and confirmed at the NCTS — the vintage rate is not automatic.