SINGAPORE — The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) yesterday spelt out the criteria which physically disabled persons or their caregiver will have to meet before they can be exempted from the new restrictions on car loans announced last month.

To be considered for exemption as a physically disabled person, the MAS said one of the following three criteria will have to be met: The person qualifies for payout under the ElderShield Scheme or the Interim Disability Assistance Programme for the Elderly; or has been issued a car park label under the Centre for Enabled Living’s Car Park Label Scheme; or has been certified by a doctor appointed by the Ministry of Health to be physically disabled and unable to travel by bus and train.

The MAS said the list of doctors who can make the required certification will be available from April 15.

The tough new restrictions on car loans were introduced to tackle sky-high Certificate of Entitlement (COE) premiums and help alleviate overall inflationary pressures on the economy, said Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam when he wrapped up the debate on Budget 2013 on Thursday.

During his speech, he also said he would accede to calls from Members of Parliament to exclude physically disabled persons or their caregivers from the curbs, which restrict both new and used car loans to between 50 and 60 per cent of the purchase price and are repayable within five years.

Previously, loans of up to 100 per cent of a car’s value were allowed. The repayment period was up to 10 years.

Mr Tharman also said the curbs, which took effect on Feb 26, were not permanent.

In its statement yesterday, the MAS also said it will allow the Open Market Value (OMV) of a used car to be adjusted according to its age to allow the appropriate loan-to-value ratio allowable. To calculate depreciation, the authority will adopt a straight-line depreciation in the value of the OMV over 120 months.