Importing a car into Germany from the U.S.

more to the point why would you want to do this?...ok a trans am, cadie...but a Saab?

Many Americans here with the US forces (or contractors of the US forces or NATO) will buy a US spec (German) car here in Germany and get the VAT waived. Since the military will ship a vehicle (or more then one, depending on rank) "for free" as part of moving a person back to the US, the cost of the car is typically less.

Any of the US forces in Europe (or NATO forces on US bases, or German military who guards the US bases) have access to the facilities at the base, including all auto repair - and gasoline vouchers (so no, they don't need to worry about bringing a non-efficient auto to Europe).

So unless your friends are military, I would agree with your recommendation - leave the car at home, or sell it and get a car here, or check with the dealer on the cost of converting to German specs (if they are so inclined).

ALL "US spec" cars have a speed limiter (to 124 mph I think) which could make driving on the Autobahn less than enjoyable; assuming the car can get to 200k/h. (By the way, it's a myth that US cars have a catalytic converter and European cars don't, Europe required catalytic converters since 1986 - however, US regs typically put the catalytic converter closer to the engine so it heats up faster and meets emissions req's which typically leads to loss of horsepower)

Most of the military dudes I know down here have their US cars b/c the military pays to ship it over. What a lot of people do is buy a "US spec" car in Germany that is built for the US market. The military guys get it at a significant discount (supposedly) than buying new in the US, pay no tax, and get to drive it around Europe while stationed here.

I'm certainly no expert but probably the only real difference b/t your friend's Saab and a euro-Saab is that the US car has a more powerful motor and is therefore ready-made for the Autobahn. If anything, they might want to put on tires with a higher speed rating. Otherwise, getting it repaired should be no problem. Saab is certainly a European company owned by GM which probably has a number of cross-platform parts.

If they aren't with the US forces I doubt it makes sense to ship their car over however unless it is brand spanking new. The cost of shipping plus potential costs to make it "German ready" may not be worth it.

On EDIT...pretty much what TCH said...

Ok, let's turn this around.

My dad really, really really wants a Golf with a diesel engine. Since he lives in California, he cannot buy one of these new. Very strange law - you can only buy a USED vehicle with a diesel engine. I think that the car has to have something like 7,500 miles down. As you might imagine, there is a hot market for used diesel vehicles in the neighboring states to California, and many car dealers snap them up and then sell them for a huge profit in California. My dad really wants one, but doesn't want to pay same-as-new for a used vehicle with 50,000+ to a dealer.

I think that it might be somehow cheaper to buy a slightly used (Jahreswagen) in Germany and ship it over, but of course I don't really know. Apart from sending me to Google, does anyone have personal experience with this or know the facts?

While I am far from an expert, I would forget the idea. Importing European-spec cars to the US can be a very expensive undertaking b/c the car has to be EPA emission approved and NHTSA crash-tested. Obviously VW imports most of its models to the US but no doubt those models have been modified for US standards. It is my understanding the Euro diesels are different from the US diesels due to the type of diesel fuel sold as well.

There are companies who will bring your car up to US specs but it is apparently pretty costly. The US laws suck b/c Euro emission/safety standards are pretty similar. Thus, the US prevents you from importing some pretty interesting cars from Europe or wherever.

Why not have your dad check ebay and buy a late model car from somewhere else in the US?

The type of diesel fuel...yeah, you could definitely have something there.

About emissions, I would find that pretty strange since Europe generally has tougher emission standards than the US, right?

I just did this (brought my car over from the US) and it was easy peasy lemon squeezy! As long as you do it within a year of moving here, you save a crapload of taxes. Shipping from Los Angeles, insurance for a 10K worth car, and shipping from the port in Bremen to Munich was 1,500 euros. It's right now getting the initial TUV reporting done (as it's the first Infiniti in Germany) and we expect a few minor 'adjustments' to bring it up to German standards.. but all in all cheaper than buying a car here. (I should say a 'comparible' car here... as mine is a 4 door sedan, with all leather, kickass stereo and sunroof...) If you are curious how it all works out in the end, pm me in a few weeks!

What taxes do you save, exactly?

I didn't have to pay an unreasonable amount of taxes when buying my car in Germany...what I mean is that the cost of shipping, adjustments etc sound like they are comparable to taxes you would pay in Germany normally. If your car was only worth 10k, it can't be a new Infiniti, and for 10k you could certainly buy an older German luxury car with the features you describe.

Ths costs of converting a US spec. car to German TUV standards would be cost prohibitive. Add to this the cost to get it here and the cost for more gas as US cars are not as fuel efficient. The people who do have US spec cars here, have them for a reason. They are either US Military/Govt. who have access to the super cheap gas vouchers/service or Germans with lots of $$ to maintain the car.

Your best bet is to leave the US Spec car in the US or sell it. It's not worth the hassle.

On a side note, DaimlerChrysler will begin importing Smart cars to the US very soon. As of now they have to
do it via Canada, but this will change soon. So the US will be getting fuel efficient cheap cars really soon.
If you want one Now, you gotta go thru a company in California called ZAP.

But Americans being who they are love their Huge SUV's, so Smart will roll out the Smart FourMore SUV.
YES A SMART SUV..
[img]http://www.edmunds.com/media/news/column/letterstoeditors/04.november/06.smart.fourmore.sketch.500.jpg[/img]

You save quite a bit if you import the car within the first year of moving here because then it counts as partof your household.
otherwise you would have to pay
10% customs on the worth of the car plus shipping plus insurance
16% VAT on top of the sum of all that.

When you got the car here you have to get it ready to meet EU standards - any old car dealership is happy to help you. of course it might be easier when you go to your brand - I could recommend this guy for the Nissan and or infiniti.
Everything is easier when the specific model is or was registered in Germany before - the Kraftfahrbundesamt is helping there. If yes it is quite easy to get the specs and therefore the registration.
Oh another thing about household: if it is household goods, then the TUV is not going to be that difficult (Exhaust fumes etc) it is basically easier to get the sticker.
more information can be found here
TUV on Importing cars
and here
ADAC Fahrzeug Import

@knusper muesli
I mean that for the cost of getting it here (1,500 euros) I could not have bought a comparitible car. It's a 2000 Infiniti and the re-sale to a private person would probably only get me like 8 or 9K if I'm lucky (the Kelly Blue Book value was 10K), then convert that to euros and you've got a bit less... all assuming that I had someone to do this for me back in the States, which I don't. Which is why I brought it over here. So the real answer is always based on your special circumstances... i.e. what kind of car you have, the costs involved, etc etc... for me, this was the best way to go. Plus I love my car and missed it dreadfully!

And since this car will be only used for weekend shopping trips mostly, the cost of gas really isn't an issue, but it's true that it would be nice if it was a lower gas consuming car (although it's not a crap American car with a thirsty tank, but a nice Japanese one... hee hee). Oh well... you can't have it all! But at least I'll have MY car and it will be one-of-a-kind here!

thanks everyone, a while back the Stars and Stripes paper edition did an article about that very thing, basicly they said importing a German spec car to the US is a very exspesive propostion. I did an online search but couln´t find it. Alot of Americans actually buy German cars, usually older ones that they use for a year or two and then sell when they move on.

@ Tim Hortons Man - Mr. ajohnson works in freight forwarding (importing/exporting all sorts of stuff all over the world). If you have specific questions, I'm sure he would be more than happy to help you out with some contacts, etc. PM me if you want.

Its amazing that you can ship a car from the US to Europe for 1,500 euros.. I wanted to ship something the size of a suitcase to Australia (4 cu ft) from London (would take over 8 weeks) and the cheapest quote I could get for this was 180 pounds (around 250 euros)! Sure, its further to Australia but really, that price difference is huge.

I was wondering if anyone has ever imported a car from the US or bought a US spec car. I was talking with some friends that are moving to the Frankfurt area and they are thinking of bringing there US (Saab) car over here. I told them I wouldn't recommend it as you not only have the hassle of importing it but trying to get it repaired here will be a nightmare even if its European car.

Secondly US spec'd cars aren't built for the high speeds and it will wear out quicker.

Even Americans that are here with the US forces tend to buy German spec autos and then sell them when they leave.

We had a US spec Toyota and we never had any problems with getting it serviced or parts for it. If it is a European style vehicle It should be OK. It went fast too, there was no 55 mph limiter on it!! We did about 60,000 miles on it in 3 years before we sold it. I think the biggest problem would be as you said the hassle of importing it. The shipping costs alone run at about $800. I do know someone who was bringing their US spec Mercedes here and the warranty which in the US was for 5 years became a 3 year warranty by default because they would be driving it overseas, so they might want to check that out.

Thanks, I told them it wasn't worth it, they wanted to bring it over as it is paid for and runs well. I've heard both good and bad story's about bringing cars over.

Another thing to consider is whether the car they bring over, or buying new, comes with a European Certificate of Conformity. If not it will need to get a Uberinstimungsbeschinigung (rough spelling - a Gutachten for a vehicle) before it can be German registered. This is not the same as the standard TUV test & has to be carried out at the head TUV for the area/region. If the vehicle is not close to EU standards the cost of the test & any necessary modifications will be expensive.

If it is an older US car there may be an exemption (the UK exempts cars over 10yrs old, for example)

EU conformity is indeed the big issue. I have owned a few American vehicles, both in the Uk and Germany. Cars registered in EU countries must conform to EU regulations - cars registered before these restrictions came into effect are exempt but new registrations are not.

Manufacturers like GM and Ford make different variants of their models for the European market. The differences include:-

Speedometer & odometer in Kmh - most modern cars can switch between Kmh and Mph - sometimes it is requires dealer programming;

Combined Stop and Turn lights - have to be changed - not too expensive;

Lights must have EU approval (CE logo) - this is not an expensive conversion - just fit some German made lights e.g. Hella (I found my local TUV didn't like Cibie, resumably because they are French and not German);

Headlight dipping adjstment - this is usually not too expensive to retrofit;

Tyres must also have EU approval (CE logo) - this can start getting expensive;

Window glass must have EU approval (CE logo) - all windows, not just the windscreen - if you have to change all the windows, it simply is not worth it.

Although Saab is nominally a European manufacturer, they are now owned by GM and I believe cars for the North American market are manufactured in the USA. What your friends could do is ask Saab (HQ, not a dealer) if their particular car would be EU compliant. If it is not, then it is not worth bringing it here.

On the other hand, I understand vehices registered to US forces personnel have a special exemption from EU compliance regulations.

That's your perogative, of course (cue 80's soundtrack)

Beware some of the statements made on the TTM thread - unless you are registering the car with the US forces, the Germans will not exempt you the EU conformity conditions, & accept a standard TUV, just because the car is classed as a "household good". You either meet the German conditions or they will not allow you to register the vehicle in Germany. Punkt. (You will be dealing with Beamters don't forget )

they own a Saab and are just looking into what it will cost to import and fit it to EU specs, once I hear I'll post.

...or going round corners (no... that's not really fair if its a Saab).

Importing a car to Germany - coals to Newcastle surely?

Tell them to buy a decent piece of German engineering - available at surprisingly reasonable prices (compared to the UK anyway).

Ball Ox.

Ever heard of an Einzelzulassung? Designed for the registration of a small amount of vehicles that actually do not or only partly comply to EU specs. Small as in an amount that will not have an influence on overall road safety.
Interesting for people who want to Import their machines from further afield. Also vital for car manufacturers and their non-conform prototypes. TüV is a must - TüV actually have the authority to permit an Einzelzulassung or not. EU conformity has nothing to do with it.

Currently there is an abuse problem with the Einzelzulassungs system. Chinese car manufacturer JiangLing currently gets each of their Landwind vehicles "approved" under the Einzelzulassung system, bypassing EU conformity rules. As a result, they can legally sell their death-traps in Europe
Tired of life? Buy yourself one of these!!

As for the US forces registration in Germany... as of about now, US Forces members vehicles now receive bog standard German plates with local prefixes,- AD AF HK & IF prefixes are being phased out. When they receive their German plates their vehicles also expected to conform to German rules. Source

No & Yes. Vehicles without EU Certificates of Conformity have to undergo the individual German national approval scheme. (There are still differences between the EU countries regarding which vehicles required what tests. One example is motor caravans.) Regular vehicles will ALWAYS have to conform (Such as a SAAB from the US). Some of the stranger vehicles will get registered due to certain loopholes in the German system, & the attitudes of the many different German registration offices. The safety issue is a misnomer.

For instance, the Police in an area of Germany have asked people not to phone them when they see a go-kart on the Autobahn. Apparently everytime one is on the Autobahn the police switchboard is blocked with calls from motorists. The police have pulled them over, but they produce their registration papers, & have indicators, rear-view mirrors etc. As they have been registered they are powerless to stop them. Does anyone think that go-karts are safe to be on a motorway? Expect the German law to be tightened shortly .

So the Jiangling Landwind conforms to EU specs ??
Then why all the fuss from the national press & the ADAC?

Regular mass produced vehicles for the European market in thoery have to conform, but the importation of a small number of vehicles from other necks of the woods, irrespective of marque, represents non-regular vehicles as these vehicles often have been built to different specifications. That is where the Einzelzulassung comes in handy.

In case you were not aware, most regular vehicles produced for the world market have already been developed with various the various market conformities in mind - making importation and registration easier.
SAAB, which belongs to GM, build most of their vehicles to meet North American and European safety standards. If you cannot register a SAAB imported from America in Germany, you can with an Einzelzulassung. Punkt.

If I remember correctly, the Jiangling exploits a loophole that the normal vehicle regulations only apply to vehicles under a certain weight - about 2200 kg, I believe.

Most SUVs exploit the same loophole to avoid having to meet the emission standards for normal cars - they are effectively classified as light trucks.

Its one of a number of loopholes...

The Jing-a-ling mainly exploits the loophole of getting the vehicle registered as a once-off vehicle. Once registered in one EU country, it can be registered in any other EU country without the need of a certificate of conformity.

As far as I know, the German government are currently in the process of closing the light truck loophole. I suspect that the Einzelzulassung is already under review. One possible way of closing that loophole is to place an upper limit on the amount of vehicles one can register under the Einzelzulassungssystem. They cannot abolish it completely because then the manufacturers would not be able to conduct road-testing with their prototypes and pre-series vehicles.

I don't know if this statement was specifically about the Jiangling, or any vehicle in general registered in the EU? Rest assured just because you have an EU Logbook, such as a German Fahrzeugbrief, the UK, for instance, will not allow you to register without undergoing a UK type approval test, or producing an EU certificate of conformity. (Even having the EU Type approval number on the Fahrzeugbrief is insufficient :excl: )

Just ask the number of people that have tried to register motorcycles in the UK since 2003 on a German logbook. Many have been caught out since bikes were added to the vehicles requiring type approval in 2003.

It applies to any general registeration in the EU Vloid.

Using the UK as a benchmark is probably not the best example because the UK has a bit of a reputation for trying to overrule EU directives.
I am aware of the difficulties one encounters trying to register a pre-owned non UK vehicle into the UK - It makes you wonder why the Germans have the reputation for being so precise on trivial matters

As an Example to the UK's alternative rule attempts... there used to be a time not very long ago when UK customs would try and do you for importing large amounts of (VAT Paid) beer & smokes from the continent. Aparently they had simply decided set their own limits as to how much one can import and treated anyone found over this limit like common criminals. So much for free trade!

Hi,

I'm moving to Munich in 3 weeks, and I'm thinking of shipping my car from New York. It's a BMW Z4, I've had it for 4 years, and it hasn't been modified in any way. It's in great condition.

Here's what I'm wondering about:

* Since my BMW is made in the US, I don't know if it conforms to the German environmental standards. Could this be a problem? Might I have to pay some exorbitant tax as a result?

* Would I be allowed to sell the car in Germany? Or do I have to keep it for a minimum period or else this would be treated as an import for the purpose of a sale, instead of an import of personal goods?

* Has anyone actually brought a car from the US to Germany, and can he or she share the experience?

Thanks for everyone's help!

Topics merged by admin

Yes, Tax = No.. Conversion fees = Highly possible.


Why not.. Don't think so as its over 2 years old, but with US specs, not many germans will buy it. Your most likely buyer is going to be a US service member stationed in Germany, who will prob. ship it back to the US.


Some people have, most realize that the costs of shipping a car to Germany are not worth the hassle. Use the search function in the Upper right corner
and you'll find many posts about this topic.

all Z4 are made in the US, including all the ones sold in Europe. The issue is not *where* your car was built but for which *market* it was built. You have a US spec car so you'll probably need to change the taco to one that shows KM; you might need to change the lights so you have orange turn indicators; you *might* also have issues regarding emissions but I doubt it.

And you can not import a car and sell it within 1 year without paying some sort of tax on it. We have friends who brought their car back from the U.S. (they are German and had lived there for 6 years). They were told they had to keep it for at least 1 year before they sold it (or pay taxes on the sale).

A colleague of mine shipped his car from US (Miata x5)
He had to take it to TUEV which is the agency that inspects car and so on.
The only thing he had to add was a rear fog light in order to pass the test.

After that he had no problems, and also was able to sell it quickly before he left (after a 2 year stay.)
Let me add also that with the exchange rate he sold it for more money that he bought it for 4 years ago.

Bottom line, it makes sense to bring it over and I do not think you will have problems getting rid of it.
There are many dealers buying cars and taking them over to Russia, Romania, and other Eastern European countries.

We brought our car over (jeep liberty) from Seattle.

You are legally allowed to drive on a US tab/license plate for up to 1 year (as long as they are not expired, obviously), so we are just now going through the conversion (tuev and german license registration). We also adjusted our USAA coverage and have that over here as well.

Going through the conversion hasn't been much of a hassle so far. Dont know the exact change requirements yet though, so I dont want to speak too soon. Our garage guy didn't think it would be bad though.

You are not allowed to sell your car within a year of bringing it over, or you pay taxes. They literally showed up on our doorstep 1 year to the import date, requesting to see our car. They looked at it, noted the VIN was the same, and left.

We have been very happy with the whole experience of bringing our car over. Dont regret it at all. We dont even mind the gas prices, as we barely drive. Weekend hikes, ski trips, etc is the only time we get in the car. The public transport is fantastic here.

Good luck with the move.

Seattle 2:

What a coincidence! We live in the Seattle area and are moving to Germany this August.
Who did you use to transport your car?
Did you take a container and if so, which moving company did you use? We're either going to only bring our car or a container.

We were told we only had to own the car 6 months here in the US to avoid the taxes. Had that confirmed last week by someone at a shipping agency in Germany.

Thank you.

Recently my wife & I completed the rather arduous task of importing my 2001 Mustang convertible from Los Angeles.
At first I read the horror stories about regulations, conversions etc. and decided not to bring it over.
I put it up for sale before I left last year but could not get a resonable offer. I researched the costs and requirements and found it was not nearly as expensive or difficult as I had read and there was no import taxes in my case (part of housholdgoods) so I took the plunge on my last visit back in Feb.

We used Pangea Cargo http://www.pangaeacargo.com and we personally delivered the car to their facility in Carson.
The transport time to Bremerhaven was about 10 weeks and cost $1500 USD. It was a bit of a hassel getting the car through Zoll because they required proof of US employment up to the time I left to come to Germany and a new copy of my Meldebescheinigung not more than 3 weeks old which I had to go back to the rathaus and of course pay for..again.
After the car cleared zoll, we simply took ICE from Essen and returned with the car the same day.

After a few days we took the car to tüv for an inspection and they gave us a list of required changes:
Our inspector recommended Auto Mandt in Hagen who was able to do the changes in 3 days for $1700 USD They call it Homologation service.
Here is what they did: Installation of rear fog lights w/switch inside cab; add two cheap-o glue-on reflectors on the back, rewire taillights, change l/r turn signals to be amber, added two bulbs to l&r headlamps so it shines out the sides, and order datasheet for emmisions.

Although I could have done these changes myself for about a hundred bucks, they apparantly have a monopoly on the required datasheets for the car and something called abgassuntersuchung which I think is a smog certification and you cannot get tüv certified without them. As promised, the car was ready in 3 days and we received a temp Zulassungsbescheinigung (Registration Certificate/Title) which we needed to take to the Straßenvehrekehrsamt along with the insurance docs (Doppelkarte) and received the permanant registration along with license plates good until 2010.
Note: Straßenvehrkehrsamt took the original California Title, not sure if we get this back but will find out this week.

While it was not cheap to bring over, it definitly worked out in my case. A new or used car is generally more expensive here.
My car also has nearly twice the resale value here as what I could get in the US.
It looks great, draws allot of attention and I have the deep satisfaction of owning the only Mustang in town :-)

Here are some websites (in German) which were very helpful describing the import process:
http://www.tuev-sued.de/auto_fahrzeuge/zulassungen_import
http://www.uscars24.de/Deutsch/US-Importe/SelbstImport.html

Good luck and hope this helps!
-Eric Fehrenbach

Some redundant info here to previous posts, but I'll share my experience:

You must agree to use the car only for personal use, and not to loan it out. You agree not to sell the car for at least one year.

The original title will be needed by the shipping company to get the vehicle out of the U.S. port.

To import duty-free into Germany, you need:
1. Copy of passport with working permission (Aufenthaltstitel)
2. Employment contract in Germany
3. Meldebestätigung / Anmeldug (filing address in Germany)
4. Copy of U.S. car registration paperwork showing registration in your name for prior six months before registering your address (Anmeldung) in Germany; the U.S. car registration must be current as well.
5. Proof of residency outside the EU for 12 months before moving.

It is maybe worth highlighting that proof of ownership is shown by car registration receipts only: vehicle title in my name, insurance records of vehicle for past years, or purchase contract from years earlier in my name didn’t matter. Note that you may need to show also your prior year registration receipt, if the current registration shows less than six months since your renewal.

My experience is with a 2004 Passat. I have had it here for approximately two months and I am currently modifying rear lights (fog) and controlling light switch on the dash. If they don’t have prior record for your made-for-North-America vehicle regarding emissions, there may be a 1200 euro fee (approximately) for this test. Alternatively what you may end up paying for is the expertise of knowing what prior records exist for your made-for-North-America vehicle. Heimann & Thiel GbR gave me a quote of under 1000 euros for all modifications and approved paperwork, etc. but in the end I found that the local DEKRA (TUV equivalent) are only requiring lights to be modified.

Even including an emissions testing fee (beyond the standard compliance test), plus modification costs, plus shipping, you are still likely to be a couple thousand euros ahead of selling the car in the U.S. right now and buying and equivalent car in Germany.

Thanks for everyone's help so far. I'm now seriously considering bringing the car over, since I can't seem to find a buyer in New York.

I have a couple more questions on the actual process, and I was wondering if those of you who have actually brought their car over could comment:

* I assume I will be driving with my NY plates until the car gets registered in Germany. Do I also keep my US insurance? Will this be valid in Germany?

* Does somebody know a dealer in Munich who would do the necessary modifications? (Remember, it's a BMW Z4).

* How do I show I've lived abroad for the last 12 months? There is no equivalent to the address registration (Anmeldung) in the US. What documentation is accepted?

Thanks again for everyone's help!!

Radsportler,

Are you sure about this?
1. Copy of passport with working permission (Aufenthaltstitel)
2. Employment contract in Germany

We haven't been told that by anyone. We're going to Germany without an Aufenthaltstitel or an employment contract because we'll try to get all that once we're there.
Would we be better off hiring a company to pick up the car for us at the zoll rather than try to do it ourselves?

So I've decided to ship my car to Germany, and I'm talking to Pangaea Cargo, since efehrenbrach mentionend them.

But now I've read some horror stories about them, and about another company (Interglobal Shipping) where apparently some of the folks at Pagaea worked before. (See this link: http://www.motor-talk.de/forum/erfahrung-m...1#post16290238).

Has anyone else had any experience with Pangaea?

Can someone recommend a different shipper?

Has anyone, who has imported their car, experienced major damages to their car, and can report on the experience with insurance?

Thanks again everyone!

My pleasure to assist!
I dealt with Thomas Buse & Bernd Reimann at Pangea and found them to be very helpful and informative.
Unfortunatly, my experiences Maren Patzwald, their logistics agent at Ablecargo.com was less than positive.
It was nearly impossible to get specific questions answered before booking and their operations were very disorganized when I arrived with the car. I should have gone with my insticts and chose another shipper because the car arrived with 2 minor scratches apparantly caused by their immobilization system, 1 on the hood and one on the passenger side door. I know the scratches did not exist before because the car was freshly painted. Because of time constraints, I was not able to photograph the car before loading and now am having trouble making a claim. I fully understood the risks involved and despite the minor damage, the car did arrive in the timeframe and price expected. I was able to track the ship itself using http://www.vesseltracker.com

I was notified by Pangea the moment the ship arrived along with a list of all documents required to clear zoll. The only things unexpected was their requirement to see proof of my employment before anmeldung and a copy of my Meldebescheinigung not older than 3 weeks which cost me an additional €20.

I can assure you that Zoll will verify in-depth each requirement for tax free import as part of your houshold goods before releasing. You will be required to declare everything contained in the car as well. Despite what others have said, we were not allowed to drive with the original California plates. We had to obtain 5-day (GERMAN) insurance through my wife's insurance company Alianz and temporary plates from the Straßenvehrkehrsamt before we were allowed to drive the car out of their lot. Alianz has since waived the 5-day insurance fees (we needed an additional 5-days to take the car to Auto Mandt for conversion) because we insured under a 1 year policy.

Please carfully review the duty-free requirements and that you qualify in advance.
Note: Automobiles which are considered household goods are also duty and tax free when moving to Germany to establish residence, if the following criteria apply;

The vehicle has been in possession of the individual moving to Germany and was registered abroad at least 6 months prior to arrival in Germany,
Proof of residency outside the EU for 12 months before moving is provided,
The vehicle is intended for personal use only,
The individual registers a residence in Germany,
The vehicle must be immediately registered with the Local Motor Vehicle Branch (see Section 3.c. Registration Procedure),
The vehicle must not be sold, lent, rented or pawned for one year after import
Docs required: Original Bill of sale, Title, Insurance Card, Passport, Aufenthaltstitel showing you are allowed to work, Meldebescheinigung not older than 3 months.

I found these sites helpfull:
http://www.mapsupport.com/thedatabase/impex/imprtgvehger.htm
http://www.schumachercargo.com/articles/sh...to-germany.html

One last note, you should remove the U.S. plates before shipping if you want/need to keep/return them and also anything of value like Radio faceplates, navigation, coin etc. They will dissapear :-(

I hope my experience is helpful and wish you the best of luck in your move!
Regards,
Eric Fehrenbach

What you talkin'bout Willis? You only hear the whiners on here. Best decision I ever made was to bring my car over here.


Exactly! Also the loss there and the buying of a new car here will in the end cost you a bundle! I shipped mine over for $800 and the only hassle I had were stupid TUV guys that didn't know the laws. They said I couldn't drive it until I had it converted under the old standards and I actually had 6 months by law to do it. Didn't know that until it was too late. Still the total cost to that point was $2,000 and that was less than what I would have lost if I had sold the car in the States.


You are in luck. The Wal something lines service the East Coast and they are who I used nearly 11 years ago. I just dropped my car off at the Ports of Baltimore and picked it up in Bremerhaven 6 weeks later. From NY, it should take a week less time fro drop off to pick up. My advice, deal directly with the shipping lines and leave out the middle man that doubles the price.

I drove mine for 6 months on Texas plates then got it converted and registered and no one said anything about it in the Munich vehicle registration office or Tuv. I also had to turn in one of my plates to register the car. The other plate I was allowed to keep as a memento.

I had the car delivered along with my HHGs directly to Munich. I drove it off the truck and put the insurance paperwork in the glovebox along with a copy of the customs form.

I was stopped twice by the police who wanted to run my VIN through their database (Must have been the Texas plates). They ran their check, looked at the customs form, insurance paperwork, and my Texas DL then said have a good day.

Cost to convert & register my BMW X-5 to German Tuv standards ~ 2500 Euro. Resale value increase from US to Germany ~ 15,000 Euro (based on scout 24 and eBay) But until car is sold it is an unknown. However, if USD keeps falling then bringing it over gets even better.

I am looking to import a 1968 Porsche 912 to Germany and am trying to figure out the process as completely as possible before taking the plunge so that there as few surprises as possible.

So my questions:

1. Are there any exemptions for older cars with the TUV? In California I am exempt from passing the emissions test because of the age of my car. Also, I am guessing that this car was manufactured, originally, in Germany. Does this make a difference?

2. If I import the car while I am here on a tourist Visa, and plan to use it for traveling around for a couple of months, am I still exempt from paying taxes/duties when the car arrives?

3. Is there any definitive answer on the question of whether I can drive my car with my California plates?

4. What happens if I want to sell my car before leaving? Can I simply sell it and leave the import duties/tax and TUV for the buyer to deal with?

Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated.

Here is a question about importing a car from California back to Munich.

Vehicle is a 1985 BMW E23 745i turbo with all the Alpina extras and only 67,000 miles. This was one of those "grey market" cars that BMW never officially exported to the states. My friends Dad brought it over and has all the paper work. Now my friend is relocating to Munich (free shipping) and wants to bring it with him.

What can he expect from TUV?

An out right hassle... Don't know if they had all the air cleaning systems back in 85, but if it doesn't
then it will deff. cost a shed load to bring it up to standard. And now with the newer Anti-Pollution law
coming into effect on 1 Jan. the restrictions will be even stronger.

Free shipping or not, its prob. best to just leave it/sell it before coming over, as it prob. won't pass TUV anyway.

Thanks Dark Knight i will relay the info. Looks like my garage is gonna have a 745i in it for awhile. Would you know if there is a special catagory/classification on bringing over a vintage or classic auto to germany like a VW Karmen Ghia or BMW 2002tii?

I don't know the exact details of getting it registered as a "Historic" car (Its prob. not old enough anyway)
However even if you did, the special registration and tax status limits your driving range to under
2k km's per year.. So still not worth it..

Update: Further research says that car must be over 30 years old, can't be used for daily use, and all use must be strictly logged.
A road worthiness test for the car and a criminal background check on the owner is also required.. - Vehicle registration plates of Germany (Wikipedia) (Under Collectors plates)