Importing from the UK - definitive guide (Q&A)

bazz26 · 04-01-2019 4:54pm

Unfortunately there is no direct way and Revenue will tell you to just present the car for VRT inspection by which time you have already bought it. Is it a rare car that's not on the vrt website or just a trim level that's not there but there are similar trim levels on there. If it's the latter then I'd add a grand or two to the VRT price of those just to be covered.

gaillimh · 04-01-2019 5:37pm

Quick question on the NCT for an imported car lads.
If I import a car that was first registered in the Uk in January 2016 - does that mean that its first NCT is due here in January 2020?
Or is the date of the NCT related to the date of the cars first registration in Ireland (i.e. date of the VRT inspection)?
Thanks

Old diesel · 04-01-2019 5:52pm

gaillimh wrote: »

Quick question on the NCT for an imported car lads.
If I import a car that was first registered in the Uk in January 2016 - does that mean that its first NCT is due here in January 2020?
Or is the date of the NCT related to the date of the cars first registration in Ireland (i.e. date of the VRT inspection)?
Thanks

I suspect date of first registration in the UK - so Jan 2020 first NCT as I've heard before of UK imports having to do two NCTs in a short period of time.

1st one because it needed one ASAP due to being over 4 years old.

And then a 2nd one a few months later as the date it got the first time was only to match it's date of first registration.

So it did an NCT at 5 years 7 months old - only got a date until it's 6th birthday (ie when first registered in UK) and then needed a new test at that 6th birthday date

mgn · 04-01-2019 7:52pm

gaillimh wrote: »

Quick question on the NCT for an imported car lads.
If I import a car that was first registered in the Uk in January 2016 - does that mean that its first NCT is due here in January 2020?
Or is the date of the NCT related to the date of the cars first registration in Ireland (i.e. date of the VRT inspection)?
Thanks

Correct.first NCT due when the car is 4 years old from when the car was first registered in UK.

cranefly · 04-01-2019 9:42pm

If anyone can help with me buying a car in northern ireland, its a 4 year old car, their are so many articles from the revenue service to motoring mags telling you what you need to do this correctly, sometimes they differ on what exactly needs to be done, which forms to bring to the dealer who is selling the car, to which forms are needed when paying VRT.

1 which forms do i need signed from the seller in the north to fill out, i have form VRTVPD2 i think the seller fills out section 1 and 2 and i am guessing i fill out section 3 as the person who will register the car in the south.

2 VAT411 I downloaded 4 pages for this document because one motoring magazine said i would need this, even though it is a used car that i am buying, this was downloaded from the UK gov site. Am i right in thinking i do not need this document as i think it is for new cars only.

3 V5C is this the log book that the dealer has for the car, i think it is, am i right in thinking their is a section for the dealer to fill out to send to swansea saying the car is going to be exported, if so, do i need to get a copy of the part the dealer sends off, or will swansea send me some document in the post confirming this, again i am not sure what to expect here.

4 Bill of sale from the dealer with amount paid and the date.

5 proof of when the car entered the state, other than getting a petrol receipt in newry to show at the NCT centre when paying VRT I am not sure how to get around that one.

6 Certificate of export, i was thinking this is the same as the V5C that the dealer selling the car will fill out, once he has filled out this section, as well as getting the log book, i will ask the dealer to copy his section to be filled out, just in case i need it for VRT.

Also, as the car i am buying is 6 or so months shy of the full four years, and as the CO2 emissions are only 98gms so it does not need any road tax in the UK. Plus it would not need its first MOT in the UK til august. Would this be a problem when i go to VRT this car, as the road tax would be 180 euro down here.

If their is anything i have left out to complete this procedure, first with the dealer in the north, and when producing documents for the VRT. also this e-coc that i read about on the revenue website has me scratching my head. Any help would be welcome.

darragh o meara · 04-01-2019 10:48pm

cranefly wrote: »

If anyone can help with me buying a car in northern ireland, its a 4 year old car, their are so many articles from the revenue service to motoring mags telling you what you need to do this correctly, sometimes they differ on what exactly needs to be done, which forms to bring to the dealer who is selling the car, to which forms are needed when paying VRT.

1 which forms do i need signed from the seller in the north to fill out, i have form VRTVPD2 i think the seller fills out section 1 and 2 and i am guessing i fill out section 3 as the person who will register the car in the south.

2 VAT411 I downloaded 4 pages for this document because one motoring magazine said i would need this, even though it is a used car that i am buying, this was downloaded from the UK gov site. Am i right in thinking i do not need this document as i think it is for new cars only.

3 V5C is this the log book that the dealer has for the car, i think it is, am i right in thinking their is a section for the dealer to fill out to send to swansea saying the car is going to be exported, if so, do i need to get a copy of the part the dealer sends off, or will swansea send me some document in the post confirming this, again i am not sure what to expect here.

4 Bill of sale from the dealer with amount paid and the date.

5 proof of when the car entered the state, other than getting a petrol receipt in newry to show at the NCT centre when paying VRT I am not sure how to get around that one.

6 Certificate of export, i was thinking this is the same as the V5C that the dealer selling the car will fill out, once he has filled out this section, as well as getting the log book, i will ask the dealer to copy his section to be filled out, just in case i need it for VRT.

Also, as the car i am buying is 6 or so months shy of the full four years, and as the CO2 emissions are only 98gms so it does not need any road tax in the UK. Plus it would not need its first MOT in the UK til august. Would this be a problem when i go to VRT this car, as the road tax would be 180 euro down here.

If their is anything i have left out to complete this procedure, first with the dealer in the north, and when producing documents for the VRT. also this e-coc that i read about on the revenue website has me scratching my head. Any help would be welcome.

All in the above thread but here ya go.

From the dealer/seller you will need :

The full V5C and not just the new owner part.
Receipt of sale/invoice etc.

If the car is a NI reg then you won’t have a proof of import so make sure you have the receipt and that will do. The rest of the stuff you mentioned is not needed, you will however need personal documentation for the VRT, all of which is listed on the VRT site. The VRTPD2 form you fill in and add the sellers information, no need for them to fill it out.

Hope this helps.

cranefly · 04-01-2019 11:16pm

darragh o meara wrote: »

All in the above thread but here ya go.

From the dealer/seller you will need :

The full V5C and not just the new owner part.
Receipt of sale/invoice etc.

If the car is a NI reg then you won’t have a proof of import so make sure you have the receipt and that will do. The rest of the stuff you mentioned is not needed, you will however need personal documentation for the VRT, all of which is listed on the VRT site. The VRTPD2 form you fill in and add the sellers information, no need for them to fill it out.

Hope this helps.

This helps alot, thanks for that, that puts my mind to rest about forgetting something that the seller would need to do.
So when i do get the date for the VRT at the NCT as well as the documents i need to prove my identity, which are listed on the revenue site, It seems the two main documents i need, are the VRTVPD2 which i can fill in myself, no need for the seller to do this, and as you say, the full V5C is that the old logbook, i have downloaded the VRT calculator with the make and model of the car, with an estimated amount due, and also the official CO2 listing for the same make and model. is their anything else i would need, thanks for your quick reply. The receipt for the sale with the amount and the date, i nearly forgot that.
When you say the full V5C do you mean everything in that document, does the seller need part of that to fill out to send to swansea
Also the certificate of de-registration or permanent exportation, do i need this also, and where do i get it from, sorry for all these questions

PaddyCar · 04-01-2019 11:37pm

Anyone recommend a website for looking up cars in the uk?

darragh o meara · 05-01-2019 12:04am

cranefly wrote: »

This helps alot, thanks for that, that puts my mind to rest about forgetting something that the seller would need to do.
So when i do get the date for the VRT at the NCT as well as the documents i need to prove my identity, which are listed on the revenue site, It seems the two main documents i need, are the VRTVPD2 which i can fill in myself, no need for the seller to do this, and as you say, the full V5C is that the old logbook, i have downloaded the VRT calculator with the make and model of the car, with an estimated amount due, and also the official CO2 listing for the same make and model. is their anything else i would need, thanks for your quick reply. The receipt for the sale with the amount and the date, i nearly forgot that.
When you say the full V5C do you mean everything in that document, does the seller need part of that to fill out to send to swansea
Also the certificate of de-registration or permanent exportation, do i need this also, and where do i get it from, sorry for all these questions

The V5C is 2 A4 pages and in the case you were changing ownership to another UK or NI address the seller would forward the majority of the document to the DVLA and give you one of the year off parts on the back, however when exporting the seller needs to give you the whole document or at the very least the first page. If you leave without it and they send it to the DVLA it’s unlikely you will have it within the 30 days you have to VRT the car. Most dealers in the UK and NI will be familiar with the process but some private sellers may be wary so get them to check the guidelines for exporting a vehicle on the DVLA website. Deregistration and permanent export is done between the DVLA and Revenue. Apart from the VRTPD form there is another form you need to fill in, again this is on the VRT site.

The list of personal documents you need are on the VRT site and they are pretty particular about what they take so make sure you have what they want or they could send you away to get them and rebook.

elperello · 05-01-2019 12:09am

PaddyCar wrote: »

Anyone recommend a website for looking up cars in the uk?

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/

Try this to get started.
To get a postcode for the area you want to buy in look up a business ad in the area and use theirs.

cranefly · 05-01-2019 1:26am

darragh o meara wrote: »

The V5C is 2 A4 pages and in the case you were changing ownership to another UK or NI address the seller would forward the majority of the document to the DVLA and give you one of the year off parts on the back, however when exporting the seller needs to give you the whole document or at the very least the first page. If you leave without it and they send it to the DVLA it’s unlikely you will have it within the 30 days you have to VRT the car. Most dealers in the UK and NI will be familiar with the process but some private sellers may be wary so get them to check the guidelines for exporting a vehicle on the DVLA website. Deregistration and permanent export is done between the DVLA and Revenue. Apart from the VRTPD form there is another form you need to fill in, again this is on the VRT site.

The list of personal documents you need are on the VRT site and they are pretty particular about what they take so make sure you have what they want or they could send you away to get them and rebook.

Could you tell me what that other document is on the VRT website that i need to download, i thought i had everything i needed. I have checked the website

Gadgie · 05-01-2019 2:52am

I've imported a used car from the UK, and I have my VRT appointment tomorrow and have a couple of questions about the forms. Hopefully one of you could answer them for me:

I have the full V5C form that the dealer gave me. Only sections 9 (sale to dealer) and 11 (export) are missing, as expected. The registered keeper is still listed as the previous owner - I assume this won't be a problem? Or should I enter my details in section 6?
The VRT form ("Declaration Form for the Registration of a used Vehicle/ Motorcycle")
- Section A 10 ("EU Type Approval Directives") - what are they looking for here?
- Section B 1 ("Country of Origin") - is this the country of manufacture? It doesn't say on the V5C, but I think based on the VIN that it is Germany.
- Section B 2 ("Country whence consigned") - I assume this is UK?
- Section B 3 ("Month and Year of Manufacture") - how can I find out the month? I believe 10th character is year.

Thanks!

Isambard · 05-01-2019 2:57am

darragh o meara wrote: »

The V5C is 2 A4 pages and in the case you were changing ownership to another UK or NI address the seller would forward the majority of the document to the DVLA and give you one of the year off parts on the back, however when exporting the seller needs to give you the whole document or at the very least the first page. If you leave without it and they send it to the DVLA it’s unlikely you will have it within the 30 days you have to VRT the car. Most dealers in the UK and NI will be familiar with the process but some private sellers may be wary so get them to check the guidelines for exporting a vehicle on the DVLA website. Deregistration and permanent export is done between the DVLA and Revenue. Apart from the VRTPD form there is another form you need to fill in, again this is on the VRT site.

The list of personal documents you need are on the VRT site and they are pretty particular about what they take so make sure you have what they want or they could send you away to get them and rebook.

i'd print out the info off the website where it says they should give you the whole V5C and take it with me.

darragh o meara · 05-01-2019 4:08pm

Gadgie wrote: »

I've imported a used car from the UK, and I have my VRT appointment tomorrow and have a couple of questions about the forms. Hopefully one of you could answer them for me:
I have the full V5C form that the dealer gave me. Only sections 9 (sale to dealer) and 11 (export) are missing, as expected. The registered keeper is still listed as the previous owner - I assume this won't be a problem? Or should I enter my details in section 6?

The VRT form ("Declaration Form for the Registration of a used Vehicle/ Motorcycle")
Section A 10 ("EU Type Approval Directives") - what are they looking for here?

Section B 1 ("Country of Origin") - is this the country of manufacture? It doesn't say on the V5C, but I think based on the VIN that it is Germany.

Section B 2 ("Country whence consigned") - I assume this is UK?

Section B 3 ("Month and Year of Manufacture") - how can I find out the month? I believe 10th character is year.

Thanks!

Once you have the front page of the V5 that’s all you need, the rest is just the tear off bits for new owners, export etc. the front page has all the details of the car on it.

[*]Section A 10 ("EU Type Approval Directives") - Never filled this is, the NcT will have this information unless it’s in the V5C

[*]Section B 1 ("Country of Origin") UK

[*]Section B 2 ("Country whence consigned") UK

[*]Section B 3 ("Month and Year of Manufacture") - I always use the registration date, Never had an issue. I’m sure it’s more to do with people registering kit cars etc.

oodles19 · 05-01-2019 6:19pm

Well lads, this thread was a great help to me a few years ago when bringing my own car over from the UK. I'm looking at going over again in the next few weeks for my mother (fingers crossed on Brexit tanking sterling a bit more!) for an i3, I've seen a few offered as "manufacturer approved" with a 12 month BMW warranty, does anyone have any experience with this transferring over here? Also, with that UK warranty would it be possible to buy an extended warranty or service pack with BMW over here to top it up?

Additionally, I'll be going over to pick the car up, what should be done with th V5? The car will be my mothers so I dont want to sign it into my name, whats the best procedure for taking care of that issue?

Any help is, as always, greatly appreciated!

Gadgie · 05-01-2019 7:39pm

darragh o meara wrote: »

Once you have the front page of the V5 that’s all you need, the rest is just the tear off bits for new owners, export etc. the front page has all the details of the car on it.

[*]Section A 10 ("EU Type Approval Directives") - Never filled this is, the NcT will have this information unless it’s in the V5C

[*]Section B 1 ("Country of Origin") UK

[*]Section B 2 ("Country whence consigned") UK

[*]Section B 3 ("Month and Year of Manufacture") - I always use the registration date, Never had an issue. I’m sure it’s more to do with people registering kit cars etc.

Thanks. I didn't need this declaration form in the end - I was told that it was obsolete. The VRTVPD2 form was sufficient. I will ask NCTS to update the FAQ section on their website.

Isambard · 05-01-2019 8:54pm

oodles19 wrote: »

Well lads, this thread was a great help to me a few years ago when bringing my own car over from the UK. I'm looking at going over again in the next few weeks for my mother (fingers crossed on Brexit tanking sterling a bit more!) for an i3, I've seen a few offered as "manufacturer approved" with a 12 month BMW warranty, does anyone have any experience with this transferring over here? Also, with that UK warranty would it be possible to buy an extended warranty or service pack with BMW over here to top it up?

Additionally, I'll be going over to pick the car up, what should be done with th V5? The car will be my mothers so I dont want to sign it into my name, whats the best procedure for taking care of that issue?

Any help is, as always, greatly appreciated!

you don't need to fill in anything on the V5C, you just hand it in to the NCT people.Just re-reg it in her name.

oodles19 · 05-01-2019 10:17pm

Isambard wrote: »

oodles19 wrote: »

Well lads, this thread was a great help to me a few years ago when bringing my own car over from the UK. I'm looking at going over again in the next few weeks for my mother (fingers crossed on Brexit tanking sterling a bit more!) for an i3, I've seen a few offered as "manufacturer approved" with a 12 month BMW warranty, does anyone have any experience with this transferring over here? Also, with that UK warranty would it be possible to buy an extended warranty or service pack with BMW over here to top it up?

Additionally, I'll be going over to pick the car up, what should be done with th V5? The car will be my mothers so I dont want to sign it into my name, whats the best procedure for taking care of that issue?

Any help is, as always, greatly appreciated!

you don't need to fill in anything on the V5C, you just hand it in to the NCT people.Just re-reg it in her name.

Thanks for that, good to know, I know taxing it for the journey home is easier now as well, just need to figure insurance for the day and what the position is with the warranty out and I'll be good to go!

Horse1920 · 06-01-2019 2:28am

oodles19 wrote: »

Thanks for that, good to know, I know taxing it for the journey home is easier now as well, just need to figure insurance for the day and what the position is with the warranty out and I'll be good to go!

Went from Cardiff to Pembroke today passed at least 5 traffic cops and didn't get pulled. I had insurance cert with me from ireland and taxed in dealership to make sure but I dont know why none of them pulled me to check insurance.. I thought the ANPR would flash up for no insurance? Honestly might chance the tax the next time

oodles19 · 06-01-2019 2:55am

Horse1920 wrote: »

oodles19 wrote: »

Thanks for that, good to know, I know taxing it for the journey home is easier now as well, just need to figure insurance for the day and what the position is with the warranty out and I'll be good to go!

Went from Cardiff to Pembroke today passed at least 5 traffic cops and didn't get pulled. I had insurance cert with me from ireland and taxed in dealership to make sure but I dont know why none of them pulled me to check insurance.. I thought the ANPR would flash up for no insurance? Honestly might chance the tax the next time

The tax isn't really a worry as it would be minimal anyway, I'll need to figure out getting some form of "one day" insurance or something like that though, as the car will be in a bit of a nebulous state as I'm not buying it for myself so I don't think I'll be able to transfer my own insurance over to it for the day, and it won't be insured under someone else's policy, just want to make sure I'm not pulled or out on a limb as the car will be for someone else..

oodles19 · 06-01-2019 2:56am

Horse1920 wrote: »

oodles19 wrote: »

Thanks for that, good to know, I know taxing it for the journey home is easier now as well, just need to figure insurance for the day and what the position is with the warranty out and I'll be good to go!

Went from Cardiff to Pembroke today passed at least 5 traffic cops and didn't get pulled. I had insurance cert with me from ireland and taxed in dealership to make sure but I dont know why none of them pulled me to check insurance.. I thought the ANPR would flash up for no insurance? Honestly might chance the tax the next time

The tax isn't really a worry as it would be minimal anyway, I'll need to figure out getting some form of "one day" insurance or something like that though, as the car will be in a bit of a nebulous state as I'm not buying it for myself so I don't think I'll be able to transfer my own insurance over to it for the day, and it won't be insured under someone else's policy, just want to make sure I'm not pulled or out on a limb as the car will be for someone else..

oodles19 · 06-01-2019 2:56am

Horse1920 wrote: »

oodles19 wrote: »

Thanks for that, good to know, I know taxing it for the journey home is easier now as well, just need to figure insurance for the day and what the position is with the warranty out and I'll be good to go!

Went from Cardiff to Pembroke today passed at least 5 traffic cops and didn't get pulled. I had insurance cert with me from ireland and taxed in dealership to make sure but I dont know why none of them pulled me to check insurance.. I thought the ANPR would flash up for no insurance? Honestly might chance the tax the next time

The tax isn't really a worry as it would be minimal anyway, I'll need to figure out getting some form of "one day" insurance or something like that though, as the car will be in a bit of a nebulous state as I'm not buying it for myself so I don't think I'll be able to transfer my own insurance over to it for the day, and it won't be insured under someone else's policy, just want to make sure I'm not pulled or out on a limb as the car will be for someone else..

darragh o meara · 06-01-2019 3:33am

Horse1920 wrote: »

Went from Cardiff to Pembroke today passed at least 5 traffic cops and didn't get pulled. I had insurance cert with me from ireland and taxed in dealership to make sure but I dont know why none of them pulled me to check insurance.. I thought the ANPR would flash up for no insurance? Honestly might chance the tax the next time

You could’ve been lucky enough that it didn’t register on the ANPR or that the car may have actually still been taxed by the previous owner, the refund doesn’t go back to them until the ownership is transferred. Same as if you bought a car privately which had been taxed by the last owner, technically the tax does not transfer to the new owner but in the same vein the car does not flag on ANPR for a few days/weeks, so if you were doing a quick scoot to the ferry you wouldn’t show up as having no tax.

darragh o meara · 06-01-2019 3:39am

oodles19 wrote: »

The tax isn't really a worry as it would be minimal anyway, I'll need to figure out getting some form of "one day" insurance or something like that though, as the car will be in a bit of a nebulous state as I'm not buying it for myself so I don't think I'll be able to transfer my own insurance over to it for the day, and it won't be insured under someone else's policy, just want to make sure I'm not pulled or out on a limb as the car will be for someone else..

3rd time lucky eh??

One day insurance generally only covers UK residents as they will require your UK address to process it.

Best thing I’ve found is to buy the car in your name and insure it as such, if your unfortunate to have an incident then technically the car is yours.. When you get home get whoever the car is from to VRT it in their name. The name on the invoice shouldn’t make any difference, I’ve registered a few cars over the years that had different names on the invoice to that of the person VRTing the car and it never was a problem.

peaceboi · 06-01-2019 8:53am

I bought a Toyota yaris hybrid 2017 model few weeks ago from an authorised Toyota dealer in Leicester. Before hitting the roads, the dealer insisted that I should purchase the road tax online, which I did. He mentioned that I could reclaim the road tax back later on. Has anyone here done this? Now that I have the new Irish plates, is it possible to claim the UK road tax paid?
Thanks

kuro68k · 06-01-2019 12:06pm

peaceboi wrote: »

I bought a Toyota yaris hybrid 2017 model few weeks ago from an authorised Toyota dealer in Leicester. Before hitting the roads, the dealer insisted that I should purchase the road tax online, which I did. He mentioned that I could reclaim the road tax back later on. Has anyone here done this? Now that I have the new Irish plates, is it possible to claim the UK road tax paid?
Thanks

Yeah, you need to fill in the part of the form for exporting the vehicle and send it in. You will then get a refund, less the months you have already used, rounded up.

Isambard · 06-01-2019 6:00pm

kuro68k wrote: »

Yeah, you need to fill in the part of the form for exporting the vehicle and send it in. You will then get a refund, less the months you have already used, rounded up.

no, that section isn't going to help as they won't have your address to send the refund to. You'll need to apply in writing, there may be a form for it.

Gumbo · 06-01-2019 6:45pm

Horse1920 wrote: »

Went from Cardiff to Pembroke today passed at least 5 traffic cops and didn't get pulled. I had insurance cert with me from ireland and taxed in dealership to make sure but I dont know why none of them pulled me to check insurance.. I thought the ANPR would flash up for no insurance? Honestly might chance the tax the next time

We drove London to hollhead on Friday in 2 F10’s but our dealer met us leave without paying the tax.

cranefly · 06-01-2019 7:36pm

darragh o meara wrote: »

The V5C is 2 A4 pages and in the case you were changing ownership to another UK or NI address the seller would forward the majority of the document to the DVLA and give you one of the year off parts on the back, however when exporting the seller needs to give you the whole document or at the very least the first page. If you leave without it and they send it to the DVLA it’s unlikely you will have it within the 30 days you have to VRT the car. Most dealers in the UK and NI will be familiar with the process but some private sellers may be wary so get them to check the guidelines for exporting a vehicle on the DVLA website. Deregistration and permanent export is done between the DVLA and Revenue. Apart from the VRTPD form there is another form you need to fill in, again this is on the VRT site.

The list of personal documents you need are on the VRT site and they are pretty particular about what they take so make sure you have what they want or they could send you away to get them and rebook.

What is the other form i need to fill in, i must have missed something.

Gumbo · 06-01-2019 8:26pm

cranefly wrote: »

What is the other form i need to fill in, i must have missed something.

NCTS website.
It lists the forms and they are hyperlinked so you click them and they open.

Importing from the UK - definitive guide (Q&A)

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