According to the National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company, Keramat Veis-Karami rejected reports claiming that, in addition to new-number vehicles, cars that change their license plates would also lose access to the 1,500- and 3,000-toman quotas and would be required to purchase gasoline at the 5,000-toman rate. He said that under the Cabinet’s approved directive, a new-number domestic vehicle is defined as a zero-kilometer car leaving the factory that is being registered for the first time, not a vehicle undergoing a plate change.

He reiterated that the vehicles whose first- and second-tier fuel quotas are being removed — and must therefore buy gasoline at 5,000 tomans — are unused, factory-new cars seeking first-time registration. He added that anyone who previously did not own a car and purchases a used vehicle will not be affected, because the term “new-number vehicle” applies only to brand-new cars that have never been registered.