To import a vehicle to France you need an export document from the EU country the car is registered in and a CT (or equivalent from the country of expoert) that is less than 6 months old. Or you have to bring it to France on its current registration (assuming you can insure it) and then complete the process once you have brought it to France.
Does anybody have actual (not anecdotal) experience of importing a vehicle, with an EU CoC, from Spain?
I have moved around a bit in Europe and imported a vehicle five times:
from Finland via France to Sweden (used)
from Sweden to Finland (used)
from Finland to France (new)
from Finland to Luxembourg (new) and then
the same vehicle (used) from Luxembourg to France
but not from Spain to France. I don’'t think it’s much different, but maybe it is.
Each time it was just with the purchase agreement/receipt + registration documents + CoC.
The CT was done each time in the receiving country. Insurance was in place from departing country.
The “new” or “used” determines the payment of VAT or not in the receiving country.
I know that if you import from the UK a V5 (or an export document or a CoC) plus a UK MOT less than 6 months old plus a Bill of Sale means that you register the car in France before you collect it from the UK. I’ve done this myself for cars and caravans.
Looking for somebody with practical experience of importing from Spain, preferably recent practical experience.
Best, Grahame.
Grahame Pigney
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It’s late and I might be being a bit tetchy Graham, but all advice here is “anecdotal”, if you want professional advice, well talk to a professional.
I like cars and over the last few years I’ve imported several, two from the UK, one new and one used, one from Germany, one high performance one from Italy and one from Ireland. No problems. Do a bit of research (even on here) and you’ll do fine.
I don’t think you’re being tetchy, but I was asking for information/experience from somebody who had been through the process, to that extent I was not looking for anecdotal advice.
Best, Grahame.
Grahame Pigney
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You do not always need an export document if you are not the exporter. In fact, the UK no longer issues these anyway.
Importing & registering a car from another EU country is actually quite straightforward & the only complication comes if the car comes from a country where the owner owns the registration number rather than it staying with the car. In this case either export plates would need to be aquired or temporary registration applied for in France.
Spain does not do this so registration here is the same as a UK import.
