Toyota Tundra and Tacoma import guide

Toyota sells the Hilux here, but in America it sells two pickups we never got: the mid-size Tacoma and the full-size Tundra. Both have a reputation for running forever, and both turn up on UK roads because someone wanted one badly enough to ship it. If that is you, the good news is that the route is well worn. The size of the truck, its age and its weight decide nearly everything else.

Shipping from the USA

From £1,450 for a car, more for a truck

Time at sea

Around 2 to 4 weeks

Test

IVA under 10 years, MOT over

Import tax

10% duty + 20% VAT

Tacoma or Tundra?

The Tacoma is the smaller of the two, roughly Hilux-sized, and arrived in 1995. The Tundra is Toyota's answer to the F-150 and the Ram 1500, a full-size truck sold from 2000. Both are left-hand drive, and both come in a choice of cab and bed lengths, which matters when it comes to shipping.

The second-generation Tundra, with its 5.7 litre V8, is the one most UK buyers ask about. The current Tundra dropped the V8 for a twin-turbo V6. On the Tacoma side, the second and third generations are the common ones, and plenty have been lifted or kitted out for off-road use.

Weight and your licence

Every pickup import turns on the gross vehicle weight. Up to 3,500kg, a truck takes the light vehicle IVA test when it is new enough to need one, and you can drive it on an ordinary category B car licence. Over that line it becomes a heavy goods vehicle, with a different approval route and a C1 licence.

A Tacoma sits comfortably under the line. A Tundra normally does too, but it is a heavy truck and most will be over 3,000kg, which means a class 7 MOT once it is over 10 years old. Our guide to importing a pickup truck goes through the weight rules in full.

The test depends on age

GOV.UK exempts vehicles over 10 years old from vehicle approval, so an older truck takes an MOT instead of an IVA test. Worked out from today, 12 October 2026, the line falls in October 2016.

That puts every first-generation truck, every second-generation Tacoma and the earlier second-generation Tundras on the MOT side. A Tundra or Tacoma built after October 2016, and anything current, takes an IVA test. If a truck dates from around 2016 or 2017, check the build date with us rather than going by the model year.

We run one of only seven privately operated IVA centres in Great Britain, so a newer truck is tested on our own lane in Castle Donington. Our dealer-level DVLA account then lets us register it within 10 working days. There is more on the test in the IVA test explained.

Lights and UK changes

The DVLA registers left-hand drive vehicles without the steering being moved, so the work is mostly lighting. American trucks often use red flashing indicators at the rear, rarely have a rear fog light, and have headlights set for driving on the right. Truck-mounted amber marker lights and aftermarket light bars need a look too. A truck under 10 years old also needs its speedometer in mph. Our guide to converting an American car for UK roads covers each change, and we do the work on site before the test.

What to check before you buy

Older Tacomas in particular are known for frame rust, so ask for photos of the underside before anything else. For buying at a distance, see our guides to buying a car abroad safely and buying from a US auction.

Shipping from the USA

We collect from anywhere in the USA and truck it to the port, mainly New York, Savannah, Houston or Oakland. US Customs wants the title, or a certified copy, at the port at least 72 hours before it sails, plus a lender's letter if there is a loan on it.

As a guide, built from a year of real jobs, shipping a car from the USA starts from £1,450, shipping only. A pickup comes in above that, and a crew-cab Tundra with a long bed takes far more room than a Tacoma, so give us the model, cab and bed length for a real figure. The sea passage is around 2 weeks from the East Coast and around 4 from the West. See shipping a car from the USA and the cost of shipping from the USA for more.

Import tax

A Tacoma or Tundra under 30 years old pays 10% import duty and 20% import VAT, worked out on the price plus the shipping, with the VAT charged on top of the duty. A truck over 30 that qualifies as historic pays 5% VAT and no duty, which today means one built before October 1996. Only the earliest Tacomas can get there.

If you are moving to the UK, have lived abroad for at least 12 months and have owned the truck for at least 6, Transfer of Residence can bring it in with no VAT or duty. The import tax calculator runs your own figures.

Car or van once it is registered?

Vehicle tax follows how the DVLA classes the truck, and for company car tax HMRC treats most double cab pickups as cars from 6 April 2025. If a business will own it, speak to your accountant first. Our road tax for imported cars guide covers the vehicle tax side. If you drive in London or a charging Clean Air Zone, check ULEZ and imported cars too.

Why not just buy a Hilux?

It is a fair question. A UK Hilux is right-hand drive, already registered, and needs no shipping, lighting work or test. If you want a working pickup, it is the easy answer. People import a Tacoma or Tundra because they want something different: a petrol V6 or V8, the American look, or a particular trim that was never offered here. A Tundra in particular is a bigger truck than anything Toyota sells in the UK. If a right-hand drive truck from Japan appeals instead, our 4Runner and Hilux Surf guide is worth a read.

Questions people ask

Found the truck you want? Send us the listing on the quote form and we will check the weight and price the whole job, from the US address to UK plates.