Buying a Car From Another EU Country: VAT, Import and Registration

The four rules behind every cross-border purchase

1. Register where you live. Your Europe, the EU's official guide, explains that there is no EU-wide registration law; you generally register in the country of your normal residence.
2. VAT follows the new/used test. New cars are taxed where they are registered; used cars are not taxed again on export.
3. Registration and road taxes are national. EU rules abolished import duties between member states, but countries may charge registration tax on first registration in their territory.
4. Consumer protection depends on the seller. A professional seller owes you a minimum 2-year guarantee. On a used car it can be cut to no less than one year if agreed. Private sales are not covered.

VAT: who pays what, and where

Two details catch buyers out. First, a dealer's invoice for a used car may or may not show VAT separately, depending on how the dealer calculates it, so ask before you agree the price. Second, the date that counts for the six months differs between countries: it can be the date the order was signed or the invoice date.

Your Europe's worked example shows how VAT moves with a nearly new car sold between two private people:

If you have already paid VAT in the seller's country on a new car, you can ask for a refund. In one Your Europe case, a car bought in Belgium was registered in France. To reclaim the Belgian VAT, the buyer needed proof from the authorities in France. It had to show the car was registered there within six months of first use and before 6,000 km.

Step by step: buying and importing the car

1. Check the rules at home first. Ask your registration authority what it needs from an import: technical inspection, COC, emissions data, registration tax. Your Europe notes that each country decides whether to exempt cars moved because of a change of residence.
2. Check the car's history remotely. Studies cited by the European Parliament in 2018 estimate that 30–50% of cars sold across borders have a tampered odometer. Home-country mileage records do not travel with the car: Belgium's Car-Pass warns that its certificate is not used in neighbouring countries. Get inspection reports and invoices, and decode the VIN with our VIN decoder.
3. Agree the contract and the documents. You need the invoice, which from a dealer should show its VAT number. Add the original registration certificate (both parts if it has two), proof of roadworthiness from the export country and, ideally, the EC certificate of conformity.
4. Pay safely. Never send a deposit for a car you have not seen; ECC-Net reports that cross-border car scams typically ask for half the price up front.
5. Plan the journey home. You can tow the car behind an insured, registered vehicle or hire a transport company. You can also drive it yourself with insurance and temporary plates from the country of purchase. For Germany, Your Europe says a new car can use transit plates, while a used car will probably need an ordinary registration in Germany, even for a short period.
6. Declare the car at home. Procedures differ. In Belgium, for example, Car-Pass describes an online customs form (e705) on the Federal Public Service Finance website before inspection.
7. Pass the technical inspection. Many countries test an imported car before registration. In Belgium a passed used-vehicle inspection produces the Car-Pass and the registration application.
8. Insure and register. Get permanent plates in your country of residence. In Belgium the insurer files the registration with the vehicle registration service (DIV).

The documents to bring home

If the COC is missing, Car-Pass suggests asking the brand's importer in your country. Then check the car's original specification on our specs pages, because the version on the COC must match the one you are registering.

Is it worth it? Work out the landed cost

A lower price abroad is only a saving after every extra cost. Add them up before you travel:

Landed cost = price + transport + temporary plates and insurance + registration tax + inspection + COC + VAT (new cars only) + travel.

Compare that with the price of the same car at home. Then keep a margin for the risk: you inspect the car only once, the seller is far away if something goes wrong, and the paperwork may take weeks. In a 2026 illustration, a €2,000 saving on a €22,000 used car shrinks fast once transport, temporary plates, an inspection and a COC are added. In a country with a high registration tax, it can disappear entirely. Then add the running costs in our cost of ownership calculator, because tax and insurance in your own country decide what the car really costs per year.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Paying VAT twice on a new car because the dealer was not told it would be registered abroad.
• Driving home on plates that are not valid in transit countries. Check insurance and plates for every country on the route.
• Leaving without the registration certificate's second part or the COC, which can stop registration.
• Trusting the odometer of an import without dated records from the export country.
• Moving a leased car abroad without asking. The leasing company owns the car and may refuse to let you register it in another country, Your Europe notes. In its example, a driver had to end his lease early and pay extra fees.

Our verdict: importing pays best for nearly new and higher-priced used cars with a large price gap and clean paperwork. It also suits buyers who can inspect the car in person. For cheaper cars, the extras often eat the saving. To compare candidate models before you travel, use the compare tool.