VRT - car imported from EEA

20-12-2022 4:20pm #1

Hello,

I have my VRT appointment booked for the beginning of January, but I am unsure about several requirements. I have contacted NCTS as well, but I am still waiting for a reply. Once I receive it, I will post the gist of it here, but until I do, please share if you have any experience regarding the questions listed below:

- I have just recently moved to Ireland and acquired a PPSN, my PSC card is due to arrive in the following days. Will my PSC Card be acceptable for showing my PPSN, or do I need a document from Revenue for that? (I don’t have an employment in Ireland, yet – I received the PPSN specifically for VRT purposes).

- The car I would like to register is a used VAUXHALL CORSA 1.4I 90PS 5DR. It was first registered in the UK in 2015, then once it was registered in Germany when it changed owners, and then the last registration happened under my name in another EEA country a month ago. I have (a) the last registration certificate with me, (b) a translation of it, (c) a copy of the German registration certificate (the original was retained at the most recent registration). I also received (d) the Certificate of Conformity showing the exact CO2 and NO emission rates from the previous German owner. The document is in German. I will have this with me on the test day, but do I need to provide a translation for this document, as well (I don’t speak German, but it still is perfectly comprehensible as it is)? And do I need to put in the details into the Revenue System online, or is that only required for new vehicles?

- My current registration certificate will be retained by the NCTS centre. How can I drive my car home from the test centre, then? As I cannot get third-party insurance and motor tax done before VRT happens, and those (especially motor tax) takes several days if not more than a week to be completed, how can I drive my car in the meantime? My current insurance would still be valid, so can I drive my car with my original documents and a copy of the original foreign certificate in the meantime?

- The Revenue VRT calculator online estimated that the CO2 emission of my car is 120 g/km. This is the same amount that is shown on the German CoC, as well. The Revenue calculator in the next row, however, says that the ‘Calculated WLTP CO2 emissions’ are ‘145’ and then calculates the payable amount based on this number. I don’t understand why a much bigger number is used for the final calculation, and not the official 120 g/km?

Thank you in advance for any help regarding any of the questions.

User1998 · 20-12-2022 6:20pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058276460/vrt-car-imported-from-eea

PSC card will be accepted

You don’t need to put the CoC onto the Revenue website

You can continue driving it but check with your insurance if you will still be covered

The Co2 increases to 145g because of the new WLTP formula on emissions. 120g is the old NEDC formula

Commoner · 20-12-2022 7:11pm

You should consider making a complaint to the European Commission about Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT). The EU is regularly taking the Irish Government to Court over the legality of VRT which they have long argued hinders the free movement of vehicles on the internal EU market and acts as a trade barrier in breach of EU law. VRT is levied on used pre-owned EU vehicle imports which is probably the most controversial aspect of this tax. Europe's highest court has ruled against the Irish Government over VRT in the past.

20-12-2022 7:26pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019111#Comment_120019111

No, no it isn't and no it hasn't.

mickdw · 20-12-2022 7:41pm

So it's eu registered currently and you are not looking for vrt exemption, should be reasonably straight forward.

I'd go to ncts with ppsn no, receipt of purchase, proof of address and any other standard docs they require and see how it goes.

I don't see how its worth the hassle though for a very cheap basic car. Might have been alot less hassle to sell it wherever it's registered and buy a other here.

20-12-2022 7:48pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120018914#Comment_120018914

Thank you so much!

So even if I receive the new Irish registration plates at the NCTS centre after the test and payment of VRT, I can leave the my current plates on and legally drive with those on with my current insurance (yes, I am sure that my car will still be covered under it)? - Obviously I would remove those plates and put the new ones on once my motor tax and local insurance gets sorted out.
The WLTP and NEDC comment: if the car was first registered in the UK in 2015 when NEDC was still in use, shouldn't they use that formula? I read something to this effect on the motor tax website, but I'm not sure if that's only true for the motor tax, or both the VRT and motor tax, or neither.

User1998 · 20-12-2022 7:55pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019242#Comment_120019242

The law states that you have 3 days after you register the car before you have to fit the Irish registration plates. You can usually pay motor tax 24 hours after VRT, and you can purchase new Irish insurance also. NCT will be difficult to get a booking, but Gardai are aware of this and are giving discretion

The second point is true for motor tax, but not for VRT.

User1998 · 20-12-2022 7:58pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019111#Comment_120019111

Can you provide a source that shows how the Irish government are regularly being taken to court over VRT? And tell us how the Irish government are still charging VRT if Europeans highest court has ruled against it?

20-12-2022 8:09pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019212#Comment_120019212

Thanks! Yeah, I was hoping that if I am prepared to pay the tax, they shouldn't make it too hard for me. Still, the requirements are a lot and confusing sometimes.

It was worth it because right-hand drive cars are insanely cheap in my left-hand drive country. It will be much cheaper even with the amount I paid for the transfer and what I will pay for the VRT than if I had bought a same excellent condition car here (also, it's helping me to get around right after my arrival. You cannot really get by without a car in the Irish countryside and renting for this amount of time would have been a fortune).

20-12-2022 8:16pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019276#Comment_120019276

Thank you! I have not seen the 3-day rule, that is new information to me. That makes everything a tad more difficult, but I hope the logbook arrives very quickly after I paid the motor tax.

I don't need NCT because my current EU roadworthiness certificate is valid until the end of 2024. According to VRT website, they'll accept that even with the Irish registration and I will only need to apply for local NCT when that expires.

20-12-2022 8:20pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019276#Comment_120019276

Also, thanks for clarifying the WLTP-NEDC situation, at least I will have to pay the lower amount for the motor tax, then (I hope).

Del2005 · 20-12-2022 8:24pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019357#Comment_120019357

Once you pay the VRT you will get the registration number. You can get the registration plate made in any motor factors, some dealers and printers. The documents you get from the NCTS will be enough to get the plates made, if you are even asked for anything.

walterking · 20-12-2022 8:27pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019111#Comment_120019111

My guess is that you are also the type that says a GoSafe van parked in a Garda Marked space is illegal and you can refuse to pay based on that.

When giving out "legal" advise, it is very highly recommended that you have a small but of knowledge of what you are talking about and rehashing some sh1te you heard in a pub from some drunk fool, does not qualify as knowledge

User1998 · 20-12-2022 8:32pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019357#Comment_120019357

You don’t need the logbook to arrive quickly. Just buy a set of reg plates after you VRT the car, the next day put them on the car, tax the car and insure the car

20-12-2022 8:35pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019416#Comment_120019416

But then how will I prove that the motor tax was paid in the meantime? The motor tax disc arrives along with the logbook, and if I understand correctly, it is an offence to drive without the disc on display under the windshield

bazz26 · 20-12-2022 9:10pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019111#Comment_120019111

Not this old chessnut again. VRT is by it's literal definition a tax which is charged on both new and used cars that are required to be registered. Many other EU countries have a similar registration tax. Nothing hindering anyone from bringing a car in from another EU member state. Unfairly high vrt tax rates here yes it is but that doesn't make it illegal as there is no unilateral vehicle registration tax rate across the EU. If it was indeed illegal then somebody would have successfully challenged it well before now in the courts but guess what, nobody has.

User1998 · 20-12-2022 9:15pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019428#Comment_120019428

You get an email receipt to prove the motor tax was paid. Yes technically its an offence but as long as its paid then you’ll be fine.

bazz26 · 20-12-2022 9:23pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019428#Comment_120019428

The letter of the law states you are supposed to display a valid motor tax disc in the windscreen but reality is that if you have only VRT'd a car then that's not possible and the police have some discression so wouldn't fine you once you have proof it was only just VRT'd However traffic wardons could still issue a fine for non display if you park in a public place so best park on private property or private car park.

When you VRT a car and are issued an Irish registration number it takes a few days for that to be updated on the motor tax national database. You will not be issued the logbook until you first tax the car. You should be able to tax the car online after about 48 hours of VRTing it. You can use the last 7 digits of the car's VIN as the PIN on on the motortax website to log in and tax the car. Only after you tax a newly registered car will the logbook be issued, in my experience you will probably receive the tax disc before the logbook.

20-12-2022 9:38pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019562#Comment_120019562

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019583#Comment_120019583

Very helpful, thank you both!

TipsyMcStagge · 21-12-2022 11:00am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019583#Comment_120019583

Slight correction to this it's the last 6 digits not the last 7.

L1011 · 21-12-2022 11:05am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019111#Comment_120019111

These complaints have been made and rejected before. And the rest of your post is absolute nonsense.

VRT is legal, other EU countries have equivalents - some much higher.

21-12-2022 3:42pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019562#Comment_120019562

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019583#Comment_120019583

Do any of you have an advice regarding the German Certificate of Conformity? This is the only document I've got that shows the exact CO2 and NO emission rate of my car, the current registration certificate only states that it is in the EURO 6 emission category. The CoC is the original wet-ink signed document but it is in German - the interesting parts (VIN number and emission rates) however are clearly understandable for a non-German speaker and the document has the same EU standard CoC layout as the English one. How strict are they about this sort of thing at the NCTS centre, will they accept this as proof of emission rates like this or should I have it translated? Thank you.

User1998 · 21-12-2022 3:46pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120022079#Comment_120022079

Should be fine, when importing a car from Japan all of the information is in Japanese

VRT - car imported from EEA

Comments