If you are packing up a life in Spain and heading home, the car is often the part people dread. It feels like the one thing that could tie you up in two countries' paperwork at once. It rarely does. We bring more than 100 cars a year over from Spain, and about one in three of them are British cars coming back.
- Transit time
- About 2 to 5 days by road
- Usual method
- Road, RoRo or container
- Import tax
- 20% VAT, or nil for many returning cars
- Price
- Priced per job
Coming home: the tax first
For most returning expats, the tax is where the good news is. There are two ways a car from Spain can come in without import VAT or duty, and it is worth knowing which one fits you before anything else.
Transfer of Residence
If you have lived outside the UK for more than 12 months and owned the car for more than 6, you can apply to HMRC for Transfer of Residence. Approved, the car comes in tax and duty free, whether it was bought in Spain or anywhere else. We send you guides on completing the application.
A British car going back
If the car was UK-registered before you took it to Spain, it may return tax free with its UK purchase invoice and a copy of its old V5C logbook. It is HMRC's decision on that evidence. Our guide to bringing a UK car back home explains it.
If neither applies, a car bought in Spain pays 20% import VAT on the price plus transport, with no duty if it was built in the EU or UK. A car over 30 years old pays 5% VAT and no duty. VAT is worked out from the purchase invoice, or a recent valuation if the invoice is more than 3 months old.
Find the old UK paperwork before you leave. The UK purchase invoice and the old V5C are what can make a returning car tax free. They are far easier to dig out of a drawer in Spain than to replace from the UK.
Getting it out of Spain
Spain's own guidance is that a car leaving for good should be given a baja definitiva por exportación with the DGT, the Spanish traffic authority. You can apply online through the DGT's electronic register, or in person at a Jefatura or Oficina de Tráfico with an appointment. There is a fee, unless the car is more than 15 years old from its first Spanish registration.
Once the baja is done, the car cannot be driven on Spanish plates. It either goes on temporary green plates, which allow 60 days of driving whilst the export is completed, or it is transported. If we are collecting it, the second option is the one you want, so talk to us about timing before you file.
Road, RoRo or container
By road it takes about 2 to 5 days, and road freight is usually the cheapest way. RoRo and container shipping are both available too: a container takes around 5 to 10 days, with the car secured inside. Supercars and some classics usually go by enclosed transport.
Motorhomes are a common one on this route, and they do not fit a standard multi-car transporter. They travel on their own or on a larger two-vehicle lorry, priced accordingly. See our motorhome shipping page if that is you.
Driving it home yourself
You can drive the car back. You need a licence valid in both countries, and the car must be registered and insured in Spain, so check with your insurer that the UK leg is covered. An EU or EEA licence is generally valid in the UK, and if you are moving here you can usually exchange it for a GB licence.
From the border to UK plates
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Before you go
Paperwork together
Spanish registration documents, proof of ownership, licence, passport and any Transfer of Residence or old UK papers.
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Arrival
Customs entry
As HMRC CDS authorised agents, we make the entry and apply the right tax treatment.
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Within 14 days
NOVA
We tell HMRC the car has arrived, which the DVLA needs before it will register it.
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Preparation
Changes and testing
Headlights, mph speedometer and rear fog light, then an MOT, CoC route or IVA test as the car needs.
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Within 10 working days
DVLA registration
Our dealer-level DVLA account lets us register imported cars within 10 working days.
Remote registration
If you have driven the car home, it may not need to visit us at all. You get it an MOT, we check the documents, submit the DVLA application and assign you an import agent. This suits cars over 10 years old and classics we do not need to inspect in person.
What a Spanish car needs
A car bought in Spain is left-hand drive and set up for driving on the right, so it usually needs its headlights adjusted or replaced, a speedometer reading in mph and a rear fog light where needed. On cars over 10 years old the work generally comes down to the fog light. Our guide to speedometer and headlight conversions covers how.
A British car coming back is right-hand drive already, which helps, and we check its lights and everything else when it arrives.
For an EU-built car under 10 years old, the usual approval route is a Certificate of Conformity, which we can source. A car over 40 years old needs no MOT and can be delivered to your UK address before it is registered.
The cars that come over
It is not all returning hatchbacks. Thanks to the Spanish sun, older cars there are often in better condition than their UK equivalents, and we have brought over everything from a Porsche 964, MGB and Lotus Elan to a Ferrari F40 and a Jaguar XJ220.
Some are Spanish through and through: an Authi Mini Cooper 1300, built in Spain between 1968 and 1975, and Santana Land Rovers, also built there. Spanish-built means EU-built, so no duty. An American car found in Spain, say a Corvette C5, is a different matter: unless it is over 30 years old, it pays 10% duty as well as VAT. Our guide to importing a classic car goes further.
Your Spain paperwork
0 of 7 done
What it costs
Spain is priced per job. Where the car is, how it travels and what it needs at this end all make a difference, and a returning British car often needs much less than a Spanish one. The estimator below gives a feel for the tax.
For the wider picture, see moving to the UK with your car, or the Spain country page.
Questions people ask
Do I pay import tax bringing my car back from Spain?
Often not. Transfer of Residence can make it tax free if you lived abroad for more than 12 months and owned the car for more than 6. A car that was UK-registered before may also return tax free with its UK purchase invoice and old V5C.
How long does it take to bring a car from Spain to the UK?
About 2 to 5 days by road. A container takes around 5 to 10 days.
Can I drive my car from Spain to the UK?
Yes. You need a licence valid in both countries, and the car must be registered and insured in Spain. Check with your insurer that the UK leg is covered.
Do I need to deregister the car in Spain?
Spain asks for a baja definitiva por exportación with the DGT. After it, the car needs temporary green plates to be driven, so talk to us about timing if we are collecting it.
Can you bring a motorhome back from Spain?
Yes. Motorhomes do not fit a standard multi-car transporter, so they travel on their own or on a larger two-vehicle lorry.
Does my car need to visit you to be registered?
Not always. If you drive it home and get it an MOT, we can often register it remotely, especially cars over 10 years old.
Heading home from Spain? Send us the car's details on the quote form, and tell us if it was UK-registered before.
