Import Your Car to Germany Duty-Free

In case you are permanently moving to Germany, you may be able to avoid VAT and customs duties on one or several personal vehicles you bring with you. 

You must fulfill the following requirements to get your vehicle imported as removal goods.

• The center of your life must have been outside Germany for at least 12 continuous months
• The vehicle must have been registered in your name for at least six months in a row before you relocated to Germany
• After relocating to Germany, you have one year to import your vehicle
• You are not allowed to sell the vehicle for 12 months after importing it

For this kind of customs application, our local agent needs the following documents and information from your side.

• Copy of your Passport
• Your last address in the US
• Your address in Germany
• Proof of stay in the US (Employment contract, bank statement, return flight ticket, etc.)
• Period of your stay in the US (the minimum is one full year before your move to Germany
• A packing list (in case you transport personal items inside your vehicle)
• Bill of Sale for the vehicle or current value of the vehicle (a Kelley Blue Book printout is sufficient)
• Last vehicle registration of your vehicle valid for a minimum of six months before shipping/relocating (at best the last two registrations)
• Registration surrender (in case you cancel the registration before exporting your vehicle)
• Registration certificate/card showing your address in Germany (must not be older than 4 weeks)

Important for you to know: If the vehicle registration is still valid once the vehicle is unloaded in Germany and you don’t have proof of registration surrender, you must pay the yearly German Motor Vehicle Tax (Kfz-Steuer) for the first full year upfront. This allows you to drive your vehicle still with US license plates until the US registration ran out. In addition, you will need additional insurance to be covered on German roads (the so-called green insurance card). We can recommend TourInsure as the insurance agent to buy insurance from.

Once your US registration expires, you must register your vehicle at your local DMV in Germany.

Please be informed that students are excluded from this kind of clearance process. Contact us for more details about importing your vehicle to Germany duty-free.