Importing from the UK - definitive guide (Q&A)

Esel

The dealer may have applied 'on your behalf'.

Mervyn Skidmore

Esel wrote: »

The dealer may have applied 'on your behalf'.

OK but what does it mean? And do I need to do anything?

Esel

I would just ignore it.

If you want, you could tell them you never requested the form, and see what they say.

AmberGold

darragh o meara wrote: »

Details are all pulled from the V5. I'd be getting a check done to make sure the car isn't dodgy as it's unusual that it would be wrong.

Sorry meant V5, the cars legit, main dealer, 6 months old. Where do the VRT office get specs re options and the like. DVLA don’t hold this info.

Edit ; Just found this https://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/motors/vrt-officials-step-up-checks-on-high-spec-cars-1.895750

omri

AmberGold wrote: »

Sorry meant V5, the cars legit, main dealer, 6 months old. Where do the VRT office get specs re options and the like. DVLA don’t hold this info.

Edit ; Just found this https://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/motors/vrt-officials-step-up-checks-on-high-spec-cars-1.895750

Feb 8, 2010.

bazz26

AmberGold wrote: »

Sorry meant V5, the cars legit, main dealer, 6 months old. Where do the VRT office get specs re options and the like. DVLA don’t hold this info.

Edit ; Just found this https://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/motors/vrt-officials-step-up-checks-on-high-spec-cars-1.895750

If there is no statistic code for your model on the VRT system then they will get onto Revenue who in turn contact the manufacturer with the VIN to confirm the factory spec.

donkey balls

Lads regarding the Revenue VRT database if a cat is not listed how long does it take for the Revenue to decide what VRT should be applied to the car.
Reason I'm asking is there does not seem to be the model of car I'm looking to buy.

bazz26

They say it can take upto 10 working days.

PabloAndRoy

What is the recommended engineer report service?
Dekra?
AA?
Someone else?

plodder

Mervyn Skidmore wrote: »

OK, a week ago I explained how I had went through the VRT process without any issue. Purchased a car from a main dealer up north, and VRTed no problem. Today I get a letter from the driver and vehicle licencing agency in Swansea. It says that I've requested a V561 Export Certificate but that in order to do so I must use a V756 application form. I have no clue what this letter is about as I requested nothing, and the car is already on Irish plates. Anyone able to enlighten me? Do I need to do anything or just ignore this letter?

Ignore it. You don't need to do anything. Sellers in the UK normally send the V5C back to the DVLA when the buyer also resides in the UK. They reissue it to the new owner, but they wont do that if the new owner resides outside the UK. That's what the V561 is for, if the seller sends the V5C back by mistake when the car is being exported. But, that didn't happen in your case, as you obviously had the V5C to register it here.

TRS30

PabloAndRoy wrote: »

What is the recommended engineer report service?
Dekra?
AA?
Someone else?

I personally found the Dekra report a bit general and full of disclaimers. However I rang the engineer and had a long chat about the car which gave me a much better feel for the car than the report.

Henry Ford III

Heading to the UK shortly to get a car for someone (not me).

Besides Autotrader (which is pretty good) where else should I be looking?

I'd like to short list a few possibles within a reasonable radius before booking flights/rentacar.

TRS30

Henry Ford III wrote: »

Heading to the UK shortly to get a car for someone (not me).

Besides Autotrader (which is pretty good) where else should I be looking?

I'd like to short list a few possibles within a reasonable radius before booking flights/rentacar.

The only other places I found were car supermarkets, i.e. cargiant. If you google it a few will come up.
Personally I didn't find them any cheaper for what I was looking for.

TRS30

Henry Ford III wrote: »

Heading to the UK shortly to get a car for someone (not me).

Besides Autotrader (which is pretty good) where else should I be looking?

I'd like to short list a few possibles within a reasonable radius before booking flights/rentacar.

The only other places I found were car supermarkets, i.e. cargiant. If you google it a few will come up.

Personally I didn't find them any cheaper for what I was looking for.

darragh o meara

Henry Ford III wrote: »

Heading to the UK shortly to get a car for someone (not me).

Besides Autotrader (which is pretty good) where else should I be looking?

I'd like to short list a few possibles within a reasonable radius before booking flights/rentacar.

I've bought a few cars from EBay motors but they didn't have a huge choice last time I went over. Auto trader is probably your best bet but of its something unusual them you could also have a look on gumtree.

homerjk

Does anyone know what the story is with buying the car now and not paying the VRT until you're ready to go around driving in it?

Myself and my partner are in the family way (baby due in April) so we are looking at getting an estate from the UK as there is a better selection of them there. We dont need the car until the baby arrives, as we are keeping the current one as the second car, but would like to take advantage of the weak sterling at the minute.

I was wondering that if a car came up that i like, could i buy it now, park it up and VRT it just before Brexit to save 6 months VRT? Is that possible? Or is it even worth it and the VRT wouldnt change that much anyway up to March?

PabloAndRoy

homerjk wrote: »

Does anyone know what the story is with buying the car now and not paying the VRT until you're ready to go around driving in it?

Myself and my partner are in the family way (baby due in April) so we are looking at getting an estate from the UK as there is a better selection of them there. We dont need the car until the baby arrives, as we are keeping the current one as the second car, but would like to take advantage of the weak sterling at the minute.

I was wondering that if a car came up that i like, could i buy it now, park it up and VRT it just before Brexit to save 6 months VRT? Is that possible? Or is it even worth it and the VRT wouldnt change that much anyway up to March?

My understanding is that you must pay the VRT within 30 days of the car coming in to the country.

homerjk

I saw that all right in the Revenue information section but is that what all the 2nd hand dealers who import cars do over here too? They pay the VRT within 30 days even if they dont sell it for a few months?

bazz26

Lol, if you could do that then every one would be buying cars from the UK and storing them away until the VRT amount is next to nothing. Reality is you are required to book a VRT appointment within 7 days of the car coming into the country and pay the VRT and register the car on Irish plates within 30 days of it coming into the country. They look for evidence of when it arrived into the country via ferry ticket and/or a sales invoice.

If you don't want to drive it and defer paying motor tax until it goes on the road then you can declare it off the road from the day it goes on Irish plates via SORD but there is no deferring VRT payment option.

bazz26

Dealers are not treated the same as private individuals. Legitimate dealers are required to pay the VRT on the car when they sell it to a customer. It's usually included in the sticker price of the car.

homerjk

bazz26 wrote: »

Lol, if you could do that then every one would be buying cars from the UK and storing them away until the VRT amount is next to nothing. Reality is you are required to book a VRT appointment within 7 days of the car coming into the country and pay the VRT and register the car on Irish plates within 30 days of it coming into the country. They look for evidence of when it arrived into the country via ferry ticket and/or a sales invoice.

If you don't want to drive it and defer paying motor tax until it goes on the road then you can declare it off the road from the day it goes on Irish plates via SORD but there is no deferring VRT payment option.

Ok cool thanks, I'll probably try and buy the last week of February then,

PabloAndRoy

just following up on this. I am looking at a car that an irish broker is offering. The car seems to be in the country since mid august and the VRT is not paid. If I go for it, then I will need to pay the VRT, which is fine, but I am a little concerned that the car has been here since August and the guy is not a dealer per se, but a broker.

What is the penalty for being over the 30 days? Or will this be ok?

Advice?

masit

PabloAndRoy wrote: »

just following up on this. I am looking at a car that an irish broker is offering. The car seems to be in the country since mid august and the VRT is not paid. If I go for it, then I will need to pay the VRT, which is fine, but I am a little concerned that the car has been here since August and the guy is not a dealer per se, but a broker.

What is the penalty for being over the 30 days? Or will this be ok?

Advice?

If he does not VRT it for you, walk away. You will get hit with the VRT fine.

bazz26

The cost of the VRT should be included in the price that the "Irish broker" is charging you assuming they are a legitimate business. You shouldn't need to VRT the car, this should be done by the broker as part of purchase. When the car came into the country should not be your concern once you are buying from a legitimate motor trader.

Henry Ford III

TRS30 wrote: »

The only other places I found were car supermarkets, i.e. cargiant. If you google it a few will come up.

Personally I didn't find them any cheaper for what I was looking for.

Thanks.

Cargiant for example already advertise on autotrader. I tried a few other car supermarkets but the same cars kept coming up. Tried www.motors.co.uk and ebay also.

So I think I'll stick with Autotrader.

bazz26

Autotrader catches most of them in the UK. You then have Exchange & Mart which is more like donedeal we have here. You will probably find the same cars on both sites but Exchange & Mart tends to have more private sellers and lower value cars. If your looking for something a bit less common then the classified section of Pistonheads is worth a look.

Henry Ford III

bazz26 wrote: »

...If your looking for something a bit less common then the classified section of Pistonheads is worth a look.

Tried there too. Pricey enough I think.

markc1184

My niece bought a car in Northern Ireland last week. It's going for its vrt appointment on Friday evening. She's in the process of filling out the form but is a bit lost and I'm of no help because I've never had to do it.

On the form (VRTVPD1) in section 2 (authorised person) does she need to fill anything out here? The car was bought privately if that makes any difference?

Section 3a asks for a VAT number. Because it was bought from a private individual does this get left blank?

Apologies for these questions.

Edit: From my own looking about online should it actually be VRTVPD2 form that she is filling out?

plodder

markc1184 wrote: »

My niece bought a car in Northern Ireland last week. It's going for its vrt appointment on Friday evening. She's in the process of filling out the form but is a bit lost and I'm of no help because I've never had to do it.

On the form (VRTVPD1) in section 2 (authorised person) does she need to fill anything out here? The car was bought privately if that makes any difference?

Section 3a asks for a VAT number. Because it was bought from a private individual does this get left blank?

Apologies for these questions.

Edit: From my own looking about online should it actually be VRTVPD2 form that she is filling out?

It should be the VRTVPD2 and the declaration form. They are listed on the FAQ at https://www.ncts.ie/1155

I'd read that page carefully as it's easy to miss other requirements like proof of address, PPS, etc. Make sure she knows how to find the VIN on the car as well.

VAT number can be left blank if it doesn't apply.

TRS30

So I'm heading over next week to pick up a car from the UK. Am I right in thinking that the documents I need to get from the dealer are;

-Full V5C document
-MOT Cert
-Invoice for sale

Anything else? Does the dealer need to fill in/sign any part of the V5C?
I assume their VAT number will be on the invoice.