If you want to bring your car to France, you’ll need to register it in accordance with requirements…
Foreign cars are considerably more expensive to buy in France than in the UK, US or Dubai. Up to double the price in France for a comparative car in the UK. It’s also true that the UK/US spec is usually higher, with more sporty options.
There are other considerations too. In France, there’s a government-led push towards French-made vehicles, so Peugeot and Renault prices are extremely competitive compared to foreign makes. People also tend to hang onto their cars for longer. This means the second hand car market is often overstocked with early models and high mileage. As a very general rule, cars work harder here, perhaps because there’s much less public transport in rural areas. So a car is seen as a functional necessity rather than luxury item.
If you’re happy with your car and you wouldn’t be able to buy it again for the same price once you’ve moved, it makes sense to consider bringing it with you. However, European administration doesn’t make it easy. And that can put a lot of people off. There’s a significant amount of bureaucracy. And there’s a very long list of documents that you have to provide at each step of the process.
Registering a car in France
In France you need to be officially registered online as a taxpayer to be able to complete the formalities. If you’re only just moving to Europe, you are very unlikely to already be paying tax here. Fortunately, it’s legal for somebody else to register for you, and there are several companies that can help you do this including The European Concierge.
The online platform for registering your foreign car is not particularly user-friendly. Only certain sized PDFs are acceptable, for example. And the ‘quitus fiscal’ (which is the certificate confirming VAT tax clearance for your vehicle) is often very slow to arrive.
A quitus fiscal can only be obtained if your UK-registered car arrived in France before December 31 2020. If it arrived after that date, you need to go through customs to get a ‘certificat de dédouanement’ to allow you to register your car here.
Most Prefectures insist on a conformity certificate that can only be issued by the manufacturer of the vehicle. Some Prefectures insist on it being done in French. If for whatever reason that can’t be done, the DREAL (Direction Régionale Environnement Aménagement Logement) is the only organisation in the whole of France that’s authorised to carry out the inspection. Fortunately, there is an office in every region of France.
Registering a classic car in France
Classic cars add another layer of complication because the manufacturer which needs to issue the conformity certificate may no longer exist. In those cases, as long as your car is more than 30 years old, you may need to work with the FFVE (Fédération Française des Véhicules d’Époque). They can issue a French document in lieu of the usual Certificate of Conformity. They also deal with classic motorbikes.
Help with registering your car or bike in France
If it’s your first time and you aren’t familiar with the process, it’s a good idea to talk to an expert like The European Concierge. They handle enquiries about car imports, transportation and registration on a daily basis and offer support and guidance every step of the way, or even handle the entire process for you. It takes roughly three months from start to finish, but may take longer.
To find out more, you can book a free 15 minute consultation with Eric Donjon at theeuropeanconcierge.com
