How does registering an imported vehicle work?
Whatever the country of origin, the file rests on four pillars:
- Ownership: invoice or sales contract, and the original foreign registration certificate (or the official document that replaces it when the foreign authority kept it).
- Tax: proof of VAT clearance for a vehicle from a Member State, a customs import document for a vehicle from a third country.
- Conformity: the certificate of conformity (COC) issued by the manufacturer, or a foreign registration certificate whose entries D.2 (type, variant, version) and K (EC type-approval number) are complete; failing that, a manufacturer’s identification certificate or an individual approval.
- Condition: a valid roadworthiness test for a vehicle old enough to be subject to periodic testing.
Once these documents are gathered, the application is filed with your registration authority (ANTS in France, DIV in Belgium, SNCA in Luxembourg, RDW in the Netherlands, NCTS and Revenue in Ireland); a provisional or definitive certificate follows and lets you order plates. See the procedure step by step.
What changes with the country of origin?
| Origin | Tax | Conformity | Points to watch |
|---|---|---|---|
| EU Member State (Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Italy, Spain…) | VAT clearance; VAT due at destination only for a new means of transport | EC type approval: the COC exists; sometimes unnecessary if D.2 and K are complete | Different national documents (Teil II, kentekencard, DUA…), tax-driven van versions, vehicles already imported once |
| EEA outside the EU (Norway) | Customs, import VAT, import document | EC type approval: the COC exists as in the Union | Export tax refund on the seller’s side; check whether your authority recognises the Norwegian test |
| Third country (United Kingdom, Switzerland) | Customs, duty depending on origin, import VAT, import document | COC if the type has an EC approval; national approval (GB, CH): individual approval | Right-hand drive and headlamps (United Kingdom), personal plates handed back (Switzerland), MOT and Swiss inspection not recognised |
The country that matters is that of the first registration, not the seller’s: a car sold in Poland or the Netherlands often started life in Germany or the United Kingdom. The registration certificate says so; the VIN confirms it.
Is the certificate of conformity always compulsory?
No. The COC proves that the vehicle matches a type approved in the Union. If the foreign registration certificate already carries the EC type-approval number (K) and the type-variant-version (D.2), the authority has the data and does not systematically require the COC. This is common for recent German, Dutch or Italian documents. We would rather tell you so than sell you a useless document: a free VIN check settles it.
The COC becomes necessary when these entries are missing or refer to a national approval, when the vehicle comes from a third country, when it has been modified, or when it has never been registered. It is issued by the manufacturer, as a paper duplicate, and the manufacturer is only bound to do so for ten years after manufacture (article 36 of Regulation (EU) 2018/858). Beyond that, or without an EC approval, what remains is a manufacturer’s identification certificate or an individual approval with the national approval authority.
The electronic eCoC, for its part, is a data flow between the manufacturer and the authorities for new vehicles: a private owner does not order one and does not need one to register a used vehicle. Understanding the eCoC.
Which pitfalls come up most often?
- The vehicle has already been imported: an American or Japanese import resold in Germany or Poland has no EC type approval. The VIN reveals it; the local registration certificate does not always say so.
- The tax-driven van version: Belgian or Dutch estates and MPVs approved as two-seat N1 vans. The COC describes that configuration and your authority will register a van, not a car.
- The document missing at the sale: German Teil II, Dutch tenaamstellingscode, Swedish Del 2. Without it, proving ownership becomes difficult.
- The foreign roadworthiness test: a TÜV report or an MOT is reassuring, but does not always replace a test valid for your authority.
- The seller’s plates: in Belgium, Switzerland or Luxembourg, plates belong to the holder and leave with them. Plan the journey home before signing.