Help with VRT please!!!!!

Guy:Incognito

Anyone no the full situation with VRT. i am in the process of buying a 2nd hand BMW and was considering buying one from the north Looking through the prices on Auto trader the prices seem fairly similar to the prices down here. Since the government have VRT so people importign cheap cars have to pay the same price as here (and so they can make money off it) if i buy a car from a garage up the north and get a receipt saying the price I paid and its the same as the retail value down here will i pay little or no VRT or is it tough ad will i end up paying about 1.5 - 2 times what ill pay down here if i do end up paying the same price. The toruble with buying a car down here is that because im 22 im limited to buying a 316 or 318 because i cant insure anything bigger so that greatly reuces the selection i have to choose from. Id appreciate any advice, Cheers

Silent Bob

I believe you will have to pay VRT regardless of how much you pay for the car. Just because you pay close to the price over here won't mean the VRT is reduced.

I think that to avoid paying VRT you have to have possessed the car in another country for over a year.

If you buy a second-hand car here than the VRT has already been paid.

Apparently over 70% of what we spend on a new car is tax...

padraigmyers

The situation is that irelivant of what you pay for the car, the goverment will add on 25% for cars up to 1.8L and 30% for cars over that, that % will be calculated on what they value the car at. I was looking at bringing in a BMW last year, a 99 one, it was costing me 16K euros, but the VRT was 8K because they valued it much higher than I had paid.

In fact I remember on car that was costing me 8K euros and the VRT was 5K!!!! Basically unless the car is pretty old, over 5 years, it really dosn't save any money to get them from the north in general.

However, I do happen to be selling a lovely 96 318 in this other thread!!
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?s=&threadid=97244

ButcherOfNog

You can just ring them and ask them how much VRT would you have to pay on the car .. just ring whatever customs post you'll be taking the car thru.

I imported my last car from the UK. It normally works out about the same cost wise, but you get a much better choice of models/options on cars in the UK.

padraigmyers

Yeah, thats true, espiscally for BMW, almost all the cars up there are SE spec.


Here are some VRT links you might find useful:

Phone numbers:
http://www.revenue.ie/cont_main.htm

An online for for calculating VRT:
http://www.revenue.ie/services/vrt/vrt_quot.htm

GristlyEnd

Like the others have said it does not matter how much you paid for the car. Your local vehicle registration office will determine the VRT based on a number of factors including the year of first registration and the mileage.

I got a VRT quote today for a car I'm looking to buy from the UK and it came to €2724. Based on the same used car being sold in Ireland at the moment, I'm saving approx €3000.

Just give the VRO office a ring and they will give you a quote over the phone.

Scottish

I know this is probably a stupid question, but is this not anti the common EU market (you can't be taxed twice for the same goods within the EU), and if it is, why are the government getting away with it?

Da Man

Not really. The common market is about being able to source a product anywhere in the EU. VRT applies to all cars whether bought abroad or in Ireland, so it's a fair system from that perspective.

However... The VRT is the percentage of the open market value of the car (typically 10% less than RRP). RRP is set by the official importer who also then sets the VRT for every other person who wants to import a car. So if you can source a new car cheaper somewhere else in the EU (likely if it's a Honda for instance), you will still need to pay the VRT based on the price set by the official importer. If that's not anti-competitive, I don't know what is.

I suppose with the stronger euro there could well be UK bargains to be had.

Silent Bob

Originally posted by Scottish
I know this is probably a stupid question, but is this not anti the common EU market (you can't be taxed twice for the same goods within the EU), and if it is, why are the government getting away with it?

You aren't paying VRT in the foreign country that you buy the car from so you are only being taxed (from a VRT perspective) once.

Calibos

Thats why its known as a 'Stealth' tax as officially its not a tax. Double taxation would be where the original foreign buyer buys a car and pays vat. Then you buy it from him and import it. If you had to then pay the Irish government vat on your purchase of the now second hand car. That would be double tax.

The VRT you pay. ie 25-30% of the value of the car is to pay all those civil servants who have to process all that nasty red tape on your behalf and to pay the guy that prints the registration plates:rolleyes: :rolleyes:

I cannot understand how the EU let the Irish government away with it. Though if you think we're bad you should see the cost of cars in Denmark who operate a similar stealth VRT motor tax system.

Ireland actually has the one of the lowest pretax car prices in Europe cause the manufacturers know that if pretax was at average EU levels, with our vat and vrt, most cars would be thousands dearer. Off course the EU have decided to force harmonisation of pretax prices across Europe which is great for the countries who's pretax price was high but unfortunatley for us our pretax will now rise to the EU average, meaning cars will be 10-20% dearer here next year.

Da Man

Have you listened to SIMI or have you checked pre-tax prices in Europe? You will be surprised. In any event, block exemption has been removed and price harmonisation is here. I don't know, did prices go up 10-20%? One effect that this has is that the Irish importers are being removed and the manufacturers will distribute directly in Ireland. BMW is in the process of making this change and they are phasing in identical pre-tax pricing in the euro zone. That will be good-ish news here, particularly on options as they are about 30% overpriced in Ireland pre-tax.

There is a double-taxation angle on VRT on used cars, but I can't be arsed figuring it out. A guy went to court against the government a few years ago but I presume he lost because I didn't hear anything about it since. I think the issue is that VRT is based on a price that includes VAT and if you're importing a used car you have already paid VAT on that car.

Victor

Originally posted by Calibos
Thats why its known as a 'Stealth' tax as officially its not a tax.

And so are bus fares, like my taxes paid for buying the bus didn't they? :rolleyes: You will end up paying for government psending whether it's via VRT or something else (likely a hike in excise on petrol). With the current arrangment, our lifestyles are subsidised by the UK (via our exports of cars and fuels). If you want that to change, then fair enough.

Originally posted by Da Man
BMW is in the process of making this change and they are phasing in identical pre-tax pricing in the euro zone.

Are they identical ex-factory prices or identical (national) ex-storage lot prices?