Which documents must the German seller hand over?
German registration rests on two documents. The Zulassungsbescheinigung Teil I, the former Fahrzeugschein, stays in the vehicle and carries the technical data: manufacturer and type codes (entries 2.1 and 2.2, the HSN/TSN), type-variant-version (D.2), approval number (K), masses, emissions. The Zulassungsbescheinigung Teil II, the former Fahrzeugbrief, is the title kept by the owner: without it, proving ownership becomes complicated.
At the sale, the seller de-registers the vehicle (Abmeldung or Außerbetriebsetzung): the Zulassungsstelle stamps Teil I and takes the plates back, unless you leave on export plates. Also ask for the invoice or Kaufvertrag with the VIN, the date and the VAT treatment, the latest Hauptuntersuchung report and, if it exists, the certificate of conformity handed to the first buyer. From a dealer, the wording Differenzbesteuerung § 25a UStG means margin-scheme VAT; a netto sale without VAT means VAT to be paid in your country.
Do I need a certificate of conformity for a German car?
Often not. Teil I of an EC type-approved vehicle shows in entry K a number of the form e1*2007/46*0123*45 and in D.2 the type-variant-version: your registration authority then has the data it needs. Check these two entries before you buy, and send us the VIN if any doubt remains: we will tell you for free whether the COC is useful.
The certificate becomes necessary in three cases that are frequent in Germany: entry K refers to an ABE (German national approval) or an Einzelgenehmigung, which happens on older vehicles or vehicles imported from outside the Union and then registered in Germany; Teil I records modifications (wheels, suspension, tuning) that depart from the approval; or the vehicle is new and has never been registered. The COC is issued by the manufacturer from the VIN, as a paper duplicate, for ten years after manufacture. A vehicle approved in the United States and then “Germanised” by an expert report has no EC type approval: the route is a manufacturer’s identification certificate or an individual approval.
VAT and tax clearance: what the tax office expects for a vehicle bought in the Union
A vehicle bought in another Member State is not cleared through customs: it falls under intra-Community VAT rules. Two situations:
- New means of transport (less than six months since first registration or less than 6,000 km): VAT is due in the country where you register the vehicle, at that country’s standard rate, even when you buy from a private individual. A dealer then invoices you without VAT.
- Used vehicle: no VAT in your country if you buy from a private individual. From a dealer, VAT is either included in the price (margin scheme, stated on the invoice) or charged in your country when the sale is made VAT-free as an intra-Community supply.
In both cases, most registration authorities want proof that the vehicle’s VAT position is in order before they issue the registration certificate: a tax clearance certificate in France (quitus fiscal), the e-705 customs signal in Belgium, the vignette 705 in Luxembourg, the BPM declaration in the Netherlands, the VRT appointment with Revenue in Ireland. Ask your authority which form applies and obtain it before filing. VAT rules on Your Europe.
On a German dealer’s invoice, look for “Differenzbesteuerung nach § 25a UStG” (margin scheme: nothing to pay at destination) or “steuerfreie innergemeinschaftliche Lieferung” / netto sale (VAT-free: VAT will be due in your country). For a new means of transport, VAT is due at destination whatever the wording.
Roadworthiness test: what your registration authority accepts
Most authorities ask for a valid roadworthiness certificate for a vehicle old enough to be subject to periodic testing (four years in most countries). A test passed in a centre approved in your own country is the safe route; a test passed in another Member State must be recognised as long as it is still valid under the frequency rules of Directive 2014/45/EU, but tests from outside the Union (British MOT, Swiss cantonal inspection) are not. Some countries, Belgium and the Netherlands among them, add a specific import inspection that checks the vehicle against its approval data.
A roadworthiness test checks the condition of the vehicle, not its conformity with the approved type: it replaces neither the certificate of conformity nor entries D.2 and K of the foreign registration certificate.
The Hauptuntersuchung report (TÜV, DEKRA, GTÜ, KÜS) is a periodic test of another Member State and must be recognised while it is valid; some authorities nevertheless expect a fresh test on arrival for a vehicle old enough to be subject to periodic testing.
How to bring the car home: Ausfuhrkennzeichen or trailer?
Germany issues Ausfuhrkennzeichen, export plates with a red band showing the expiry date, at the Zulassungsstelle of the place where the vehicle is located. You need an Ausfuhrversicherung (dedicated third-party insurance), a valid Hauptuntersuchung and both parts of the Zulassungsbescheinigung; validity runs from two weeks to one year. These plates are recognised for the journey to other European countries.
Kurzzeitkennzeichen (yellow plates, five days) are designed for driving within Germany, not for export. On arrival, the temporary registration of your country takes over if the file is not complete.
Once the vehicle has been de-registered in its country of origin, its old plates no longer cover it. Most countries offer a temporary registration while the file is being completed (the WW provisional certificate in France, transit or temporary plates elsewhere) or expect you to trailer the vehicle until the definitive certificate is issued. Ask your registration authority what exists and how long it lasts: temporary registrations are short and rarely extended, so gather the certificate of conformity and the roadworthiness test first.
Documents usually requested: proof of ownership (invoice or contract), ID, proof of address, the foreign registration certificate or the official document that replaces it, and proof of insurance. The vehicle must be insured from the first kilometre, including for the journey home on the export plates of the country of origin.
Registration taxes: what you pay when you file
Most countries levy one or more taxes at first registration on their territory, paid when the application is filed:
- a one-off registration tax based on CO₂ emissions, engine capacity, power or list price, with an age-related reduction for a used vehicle already registered abroad (VRT in Ireland, BPM in the Netherlands, the malus in France, the tax on entry into service in Belgium);
- an administrative fee for the certificate and the plates, and sometimes a postage charge;
- in some countries a weight-based component, or a regional tax proportional to fiscal horsepower;
- then the annual road tax, which starts with the registration.
The certificate of conformity supplies precisely the values that serve as the tax base: WLTP CO₂, masses, power. An NEDC figure read from an old document can distort your estimate. Our calculators give an order of magnitude; the taxable value is set by the administration. Car taxes across the Union, on Your Europe.
How do I file the registration application?
The application is filed with the registration authority of the country where you live: online in France (ANTS), through your insurer’s WebDIV access in Belgium, at the SNCA in Luxembourg, at an RDW inspection station in the Netherlands, at an NCTS centre in Ireland, at the local Zulassungsstelle in Germany. You present or upload the documents, pay the taxes, and receive a provisional or definitive registration certificate that lets you have plates made.
Our step-by-step guide details the documents, the order of the formalities and the Belgian, Luxembourg, Swiss, German and Dutch variants.